Kenny Payne made it clear that he will need help as he begins a huge mission with his first head-coaching job at Louisville. Payne was introduced Friday as the Cardinals’ men’s basketball coach and received a six-year contract through 2027-28 to lead the program. The University of Louisville Athletic Association approved the contract Friday morning. … Read more
In the first truly shocking upset of March Madness 2022, a Kentucky Wildcats team that many bracket-fillers and national observers had pegged for a Final Four appearance (at a minimum) fell to the 15th-seeded Saint Peter’s Peacocks 85-79 in overtime on Thursday in Indianapolis. Among ESPN’s 54-person panel, 37 had the Wildcats reaching the Final … Read more
INDIANAPOLIS — Saint Peter’s coach Shaheen Holloway stood on the sideline with his arms crossed and showed no emotion as guard Matthew Lee made two free throws to give the Peacocks a four-point lead over Kentucky with 20 seconds left in overtime of their first-round game in the NCAA tournament. Holloway didn’t show emotion because … Read more
DAYTON, Ohio — Notre Dame coach Mike Brey opened his news conference early Thursday by wishing everyone a happy St. Patrick’s Day. “Did you notice Paul’s shot went in at 12:02 on St. Patrick’s Day?” Brey said, referring to forward Paul Atkinson Jr.’s layup with 1.4 seconds left in double overtime against Rutgers. “Maybe there … Read more
For the second straight season, the Gonzaga Bulldogs will open the men’s NCAA tournament as the betting favorite. And for the second straight season, the top-ranked Zags remain the consensus favorite among both ESPN’s panel of men’s college basketball commentators, analysts and writers — albeit by a smaller margin than in 2021 when Gonzaga entered … Read more
DAYTON, Ohio — Wright State’s campus is located just 12 miles from University of Dayton Arena, but the Raiders hadn’t played a game there since 1997. Their return won’t soon be forgotten. Playing in front of a Wright State-heavy crowd Wednesday night in the First Four, the Raiders beat Bryant 93-82 to record the first … Read more
Travis Steele is out as the men’s basketball coach at Xavier, the school announced Wednesday. The decision came following multiple meetings between Steele and the administration on Wednesday, sources said. The Musketeers beat Cleveland State in the NIT on Tuesday night, but speculation began to grow Wednesday morning that Steele could be let go before … Read more
For the second straight season, Gonzaga enters the tournament as the favorite (+325), though not quite as heavy a favorite as it was at this point last season (+200). Three of the top four favorites are 1 seeds, with only second-seeded Kentucky cracking the top four among non-1 seeds. Gonzaga +325 1 (West) Arizona 6-1 … Read more
DAYTON, Ohio — Trayce Jackson-Davis was the first Indiana player to take the court Tuesday night and the last to leave. Thanks to his efforts, Indiana will play on in the NCAA tournament. Jackson-Davis, brilliant last week at the Big Ten tournament, carried over his performance to his NCAA tournament debut, scoring 29 points and … Read more
Texas A&M coach Buzz Williams began his postgame news conference Tuesday night with a statement lasting nearly eight minutes in which he decried the Aggies’ exclusion from the NCAA tournament as something that “defies logic.” Williams’ comments came on the heels of his team’s 74-62 win over Alcorn State in the opening round of the … Read more