When the NCAA Selection Committee members filled out the West Region bracket, they must have been looking ahead to potential coaching matchups in the second round.
How else to explain this:
Todd Golden, the coach of top-seeded Florida, has never won an NCAA Tournament game. If he gets the first one, he could face Danny Hurley and two-time defending champion UConn, the eighth seed, in the second game. Of course, the Gators will need to beat No. 16 Norfolk State in Raleigh, N.C., in its opener, and the Huskies must get past No. 9 Oklahoma.
In the bottom half of the bracket, Rick Pitino of No. 2 St. John’s is the first head coach to lead six schools to the NCAAs (Boston, Providence, Kentucky, Louisville and Iona are the others). He might go up against his former assistant, John Calipari of No. 10 Arkansas, next weekend. The Red Storm open with No. 15 Omaha, while the No. 10 Razorbacks will have a tough assignment against No. 7 Kansas.
There’s plenty of star power in the bracket, with Texas Tech’s JT Toppin, St. John’s RJ Luis Jr., Memphis’ PJ Haggerty, Omaha’s Marquel Sutton and Drake’s Bennett Stirtz all earning their respective conferences’ player of the year awards. Maryland’s Derik Queen and UConn’s Liam McNeeley were named freshmen of the year in their leagues and are both considered potential NBA draft lottery selections, along with Oklahoma point guard Jeremiah Fears, an SEC all-freshman pick.
TOP SHOT
Florida (30-4) is one of a record 14 Southeastern Conference teams headed for the NCAA Tournament. The Gators claimed their first SEC tourney title since 2014, beating No. 8 Tennessee 86-77 on Sunday as Walter Clayton Jr., a first-team all-conference selection, scored 22 points. Florida beat No. 21 Missouri and No. 5 Alabama just to get to the Volunteers in the conference tourney. The Gators’ 90-81 victory at then-No. 1 Auburn in early February was one of the most impressive wins in the country this season.
St. John’s (30-4) left no doubt after its selection was stranded on the NCAA bubble last season. The Red Storm won both the Big East Conference’s regular season and tournament titles, beating Creighton 82-66 Saturday in the finale as Luis scored 29 points. It was the first outright regular-season title for St. John’s since 1985 and its first tourney title since 2000. The Red Storm went 6-1 against ranked teams; the only loss was against Baylor in double-overtime in the Bahamas.
GAMES TO WATCH:
No. 7 Kansas vs. No. 10 Arkansas
The Jayhawks were an overwhelming No. 1 in the preseason poll, but things never quite meshed despite having a two-time All-American in Hunter Dickinson. Transfers AJ Storr and Rylan Griffen didn’t make the expected impact and Kansas finished sixth in the Big 12 standings and lost in the tournament quarterfinals. Coach John Calipari’s move from Kentucky to Arkansas was the biggest story of the offseason, but the Razorbacks have been decimated by injuries. Boogie Fland suffered what was thought to be a season-ending thumb injury in January, but word is he’s going to try to play in the NCAAs.
No. 5 Memphis vs. No. 12 Colorado State
Memphis coach Penny Hardaway hasn’t reached the second weekend of the NCAAs in his seven seasons, and his chances this year could depend on the health of first-team American Athletic Conference selection Tyrese Hunter, who sustained a left foot injury in the semifinals of the AAC tourney on Saturday. He was in a walking boot and missed Sunday’s championship victory against UAB. The Tigers will need Hunter if they are to slow Colorado State’s Nique Clifford, a first-team All-Mountain West Conference pick. The Rams have lost just three times, all on the road, since the calendar turned to 2025. They beat Boise State 69-56 in the Mountain West title game.
No. 6 Missouri vs. No. 11 Drake
The Tigers are back in the NCAAs after their injury-ravaged team went 0-18 in Southeastern Conference play last season. Duke transfer Mark Mitchell and Iowa transfer Tony Perkins have fit in seamlessly with Caleb Grill, who missed most of last season, to form one of the best offensive teams in the nation (fifth in adjusted efficiency). The Tigers have impressive wins over Kansas, Alabama and Florida. The Bulldogs lost coach Darian DeVries and his son Tucker, the two-time Missouri Valley Conference player of the year, to West Virginia last offseason, but Ben McCollum has worked wonders and was named the MVC’s coach of the year. Bennett Stirtz, who followed McCollum from NCAA Division II Northwest Missouri State, was the league’s player of the year and newcomer of the year.
GET TO KNOW:
JT Toppin, Texas Tech
Toppin was named the Big 12 Conference’s player and newcomer of the year, the first to be awarded both. The 6-foot-9 forward, a transfer from New Mexico, averaged 18.1 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. He exploded for 41 points on 17-of-22 shooting in a 111-106 double-overtime victory against Arizona State last month.
RJ Luis Jr., St. John’s
The Big East player of the year averaged 18.4 points, 7.2 points and 2.1 assists for coach Rick Pitino and the Red Storm. A 6-foot-7 junior who can play both guard and forward, he scored a season-high 30 points in an 80-68 victory against Villlanova in mid-January at Madison Square Garden.
PJ Haggerty, Memphis
The 6-foot-3 sophomore guard was named the American Athletic Conference’s player of the year after averaging 21.8 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. He matched a tourney-record 42 points in an 83-80 victory against nemesis Wichita State in the AAC quarterfinals, then helped the Tigers overcome Tyrese Hunter’s injury to beat UAB 84-72 in the title game.
Derik Queen, Maryland
WNBA star Angel Reese dubbed Queen as “Baby Jokic,” referring to NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, on social media Saturday while watching him play in the Big Ten tourney. The 6-foot-10, 250-pounder was named the conference’s freshman of the year after averaging 16.3 points and nine rebounds this season. He was second in the conference with 13 double-doubles.
Liam McNeeley, UConn
The 6-foot-7 forward was named the Big East freshman of the year after averaging 14.5 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. He is considered a potential NBA lottery. He scored 38 points in a 70-66 victory at Creighton last month, showing his range with five 3-pointers.
SPREAD THE NEWS:
No. 4 Maryland (-11.5) vs. No. 13 Grand Canyon
Grand Canyon, coached by NCAA legend Bryce Drew (remember his last-second shot and dive on the floor after Valparaiso’s victory over Ole Miss in 1998), is ranked 67th in defensive efficiency and has a history of upsets, including taking out Saint Mary’s in the first round last year. Maryland is uber talented, but this line might be a bit high.
No. 8 UConn (-4.5) vs. No. 9 Oklahoma
It’s a pretty slim margin for UConn, the two-time defending NCAA champs, but their defensive efficiency has slipped from the top 10 down into the 90s this season. The Sooners struggled in their first season in the Southeastern Conference, but have a potential NBA lottery pick in Jeremiah Fears and could keep it close.
No. 12 Colorado State (-2.5) vs. No. 5 Memphis
There seems to be a 12-vs.-5 upset every March, but this wouldn’t really qualify since the Rams are favored. Keep an eye on whether the Tigers’ Tyrese Hunter is wearing a walking boot or a basketball shoe on his injured left foot. That could decide the outcome of this game.
OUT OF THE WEST:
St. John’s won’t be scared of the spotlight. The school is based in Queens, N.Y., played half of its home games at Madison Square Garden, appeared on “The Tonight Show” with Jimmy Fallon after winning the Big East’s regular-season title and has been followed all season by Vice TV for a reality show. The Red Storm aren’t necessarily flashy on the court, with a middling offense that shoots 30.4 percent from 3-point range. But they are No. 1 in the KenPom defensive ratings and are a carbon copy of the 2012-13 Louisville team that coach Rick Pitino led to the NCAA title.
–Field Level Media
