College Hoops: How Second Round of NCAA Tournament Might Have Played Out -- on Day 6

Eight games are played on Sunday, and we have some big upsets

Author:
Jake Curtis
Publish date:
Mar 22, 2020 5:10 PM EDT

Eight more berths in the Sweet 16 are on the line in the eight second-round NCAA tournament games played on Sunday, March 22. Well, that's when those games would have been played if March Madness had not been canceled due to the novel coronavirus.

The absence of the NCAA tournament cannot knock the love of basketball out of everyone, as Sports Illustrated writer Michael McKnight showed in this video of those playing on the famed Venice Beach court:

The rest of us just have to imagine what might have happened in the wild and exciting NCAA tournament.

We are out to the Sunday second-round games in this installment of how the tournament might have gone.

We used the bracketology and pairings projected by Jerry Palm at CBSSports.com for our purposes, and we have already provided sceanrios on what how might have taken place on the five previous days of the tournament. It started with the preliminary-round games on Tuesday and Wednesday, then proceeded to the first-round games on Thursday and opening-round games scheduled for Friday. On Saturday we suggested how the first eight games of the second round might have played out.

Today (Sunday), we give you the final eight second-round games, with a berth in the Sweet 16 going to the survivors:

Day 6, Game 1

No. 6 BYU (25-8) vs. No. 14 Hofstra (27-8) at Albany, N.Y.

***BYU's Yoeli Childs is pleased to advance to the Sweet 16

First-round results: BYU beat UCLA 71-65, Hofstra upset Seton Hall 71-67.

The game: Hofstra is having trouble getting its feet back on the ground after its big upset of Seton Hall two days earlier. The Pride are trying hard but they just don't seem to have the intense focus they had against Seton Hall.

BYU takes advantage by dominating the first half and holding a seven-point lead at intermission. Hofstra can't handle 6-foot-8 BYU forward Yoeli Childs, who collects 15 points and seven rebounds in the first half.

Hofstra oach John Mihalich changes defensive tactics at halftime, opting to sag back on Childs to shut him down. Mihalich knows it is a risk because the Cougars lead the nation in three-point shooting percentage.

Sure enough, BYU scorches Hofstra from the three-point line in the second half, hitting 8 of 13 shots from long range to end Hofstra's Cinderella season.

Pride players don't hang their heads as they go though the handshake line, still proud of their first-round win. Meanwhile BYU's players slap each other on the backs and can't hide their wide smiles as the Cougars reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2011.

Final score: BYU 81, Hofstra 70

Day 6, Game 2

No. 6 Virginia (24-7) vs. No. 3 Maryland (25-7) at Greensboro, N.C.

***Virginia's Mamadi Diakite can impress a crowd

Photo by Scott Taetsch - USA TODAY Sports

First-round results: Virginia defeated Richmond 52-47, and Maryland beat UC Irvine 71-59.

The game: Virginia has been improving game by game, and the defending national champs enter this game on a nine-game winning streak.

Maryland coach Mark Turgeon tried to prepare his team for the Cavaliers' patient offense and their outstanding defense, which simply does not allow easy shots. But talking about Virginia's style is different from facing it for the first time.

Maryland shoots just 34.3 percent from the field in the first half and trails 28-23. A five-point deficit against the Cavaliers is like a 10-point deficit against anyone else, but Maryland slowly cuts into the lead in the second half.

All-Big Ten guard Anthony Cowan Jr. collects six points in the first eight minutes of the second half, enabling the Terps to get within a point with 11:43 left.

But Mamadi Diakite, who has scored in double figures in 13 consecutive games, converts a three-point play that starts a 7-0 Virginia run that gives it an eight-point lead at the seven-minute mark. The Cavaliers metodically suck the life out of Maryland over those final seven minutes, running mistake-free sets that produce quality shots and protect the lead.

In the final minute, several Maryland starters, now on the bench, hide their heads in their towels. At the final buzzer, Virginia players congratulate each other, but don't engage in any wild celebration. This is not new to them.

Final score: Virginia 58, Maryland 49

Day 6, Game 3

No. 1 Dayton (30-2) vs. No. 8 Saint Mary's (27-8) at Cleveland

***A rather mild celebration by Dayton's Jalen Crutcher (left) and Obi Toppin

First-round results: Dayton beat Wintrop 82-67, and Saint Mary's eliminated Oklahoma 72-71 on Jordan Ford's basket at the buzzer.

The game: Saint Mary's coach Randy Bennett knows his team is outmatched physically, so he hopes his team can win the game from the perimeter.

The Gaels are fourth in the country in three-point percentage, and Ford makes three of them in the first 10 minutes to help Saint Mary's enter halftime with a one-point lead.

However, Dayton's superior athleticism and size take over the game in the second half. The Flyers have won 21 straight games, and Obi Toppin, a first-team AP All-American, becomes unstoppable after halftime. He has scored 19 points or more in six traight games, and he will make it seven in a row on this day.

Toppin scores Dayton's first eight points of the second half, and when Jalen Crutcher knocks down a three-point shot with 11 minutes left, the Flyers have an eight-point lead.

Saint Mary's continues to play smart, well executed basketball, but it can't keep up with the Flyers. The Gaels cut the margin to five with four minutes remaining, but the Flyers get the ball into Toppin on three conecutive possessions and he scores on each one. He finishes with 26 points, and the Flyers celebrate their first berth in the Sweet 16 since 2015.

The Flyers still want more.

Final score: Dayton 78, Saint Mary's 66

Day 6, Game 4

No. 4 Butler (23-9) vs. No. 12 Yale (24-7) at Spokane, Wash.

***Butler coach LaVall Jordan shows the stress of a tight postseason game

First-round results: Butler beat Bradley 64-56, and Yale upset Ohio State 69-67

The game: Unlike many teams that pull off a first-round upset, Yale continues to show focus and precise execution in the second round. The Bulldogs are not satisfied with one surprising win, and they commit just two turnovers while shooting 55 percent from the floor in the first half, staking them to a 36-29 lead.

Butler was on its heels throughout the first half and is lucky to trail by just seven at intermission. The tentative play of team that's expected to win was evident in the first half, but it disappears in the second.

Kamar Baldwin scores on two driving layups and assists on two other Butler buckets as the Butler Bulldogs cut the margin to three at the 11-minute mark.

Yale is not panicking, though. Two juniors and a senior are Yale's top three scorers, and they were integral parts of the Yale team that gave third-seeded LSU a scare in the 2019 NAA tournament. Yale continues to play solid, efficient basketball and maintains a one-point lead with one minute left.

Sean McDermott hits a three-point shot to give Butler a two-point lead with 46 seconds left, and Yale's Azar Swain misses a contested shot at the other end with 27 seconds to go. Leading by two, Butler tries to keep the ball in the hands of Baldwin and McDermott, its best foul shooters, but a Yale trap forces a pass to Aaron Thompson, who is fouled immediately.

Thompson, a fine ball-handling guard, is shooting just 59.7 percent from the foul line for the season, and he misses both free throws with 14.7 seconds left.

Yale coach James Jones calls a timeout with 13.1 seconds left and opts to go for the win, so he draws up a play to get Eric Monroe an open three-point shot.

The ball is inbounded, and Monroe runs through a double screen and then another screen before getting ball in the left corner. A 44 percent three-point shooter who had made 13 of 18 shots from beyond the arc over the final four regular-eason games, Monroe lets fly and keeps his arm extended and his wrist cocked as he follows the flight of the ball.

The ball touches nothing but net when it drops through as the buzzer sounds. Monroe jumps around, arms raised, before being knocked to the floor and mobbed by his teammates in the corner.

All five Butler players sit down on the court, arms around their knees, speechless, shocked.

Final score: Yale 72, Butler 71

Day 6, Game 5

No. 2 Villanova (25-7) vs. No. 7 USC (23-9) at Albany, N.Y.

***USC players are excited to reach the Sweet 16

USC — Photo by Richard Mackson - USA TODAY Sports

First-round results: Villanova ousted North Dakota State 69-67, and USC beat Indiana 73-72

The game: In some ways this USC team coached by Andy Enfield resembles Enfield's Florida Gulf Coast team that reached the 2013 Sweet 16. The dazzling athleticism and relaxed play of those Eagles is evident in USC, which stuns Villanova at the outset by scoring 20 points in the first eight minutes.

The Wildcats are unable stop USC freshman Onyeka Ukongwu, who had 10 of those 20 points, and Villanova, which relies on its outside shooting, is not hitting its three-point shots.

By halftime, the Trojans hold an eight-point lead.

Saddiq Bey starts the Villanova rally by scoring five quick points to open the second half, and the Wildcats tie the game with 8:10 remaining.

USC never seems to panic, displaying a calm that sometimes is seen as a lack of focus and discipline. It serves the Trojans well on this day as Mathews hits a three-pointer to restore the lead.

The Trojans hang on to a three-point lead in the final minute before Villanova's Collin Gillespie lines up a three-pointer. It's on line but just short with 39 seconds left. Villanova opts to foul to extend the game, but USC makes enough free throws in the closing seconds to hang on and end Villanova's season.

USC's players high-five and hug each other, while the Wildcats solemnly walk through the handshake line and off the court.

Final score: USC 81, Villanova 76

Day 6, Game 6

No. 3 Duke (26-6) vs. No. 11 Cincinnati (21-10) at Greensboro, N.C.

***Duke's Tre Jones is excited about where the Blue Devils are headed

First round results: Duke knocked off Little Rock 90-64, and Cincinnati beat Illinois 68-62

The game: Cincinnati is still bearing the scars of its physical win over Illinois, and the Bearcats look tired. Furthermore, they have to face a talented Duke team in North Carolina, with the Greensboro fans cheering on the Blue Devils.

ACC player of the year Tre Jones is controlling play from his point guard spot, driving to the hoop and dishing out assists as the Blue Devils run past Cincinnati in the first half, taking an eight-point lead.

Vernon Carey Jr. takes over in the second half, and 7-foot-1 Cincinnati center Chris Vogt gets into foul trouble trying to guard him.

Cincinnati's Jarron Cumberland scores on consecutive possessions to get the deficit down to six points, but Duke takes off from there, outrunning the Bearcats.

The Blue Devils strut into the Sweet 16, while the Bearcats look exhausted.

Final score: Duke: 81, Cincinnati 72

Day 6, Game 7

No. 3 Michigan State (23-9) vs. No. 11 Rutgers (21-11) at Cleveland

***Michigan State and Rutgers played each other in the regular season

First-round results: Michigan State beat North Texas 79-59, and Rutgers eliminated West Virginia 73-67

The game: With so many Big Ten teams in the tournament, it was almost inevitable that two teams from that conferene would meet early in March Madness.

Michigan State and Rutgers played eah other only once in the regular season and the Spartans came away with a 77-65 victory in East Lansing, Mich., in their Big Ten opener.

Cassius Winston had 23 points in that game, and he collects 12 point in the first half of this game, giving Michigan State a five-point lead at the break.

Rutgers' Ron Harper Jr. scores the first points of the second half, but the Spartans dominate matters from that point. Michigan State's Xavier Tillman scores twice on put-backs, which angers Rutgers coach Steve Pikiel and expands the Spartans' lead to 10 points.

Rutgers stays close enough to avoid a blowout, but never threatens to take the lead.

Final score: Michigan State 76, Rutgers 68

Day 6, Game 8

No. 1 Gonzaga (32-2) vs. No. 8 Houston (24-8) at Spokane, Wash.

***Winning never gets old for Gonzaga

First-round results: Gonzaga defeated Prairie View A&M 88-65, and Houston beat Colorado 76-65.

The game: Houston probably would have a pretty good shot against Gonzaga if this game were played on a neutral court. But this game is at the Spokane Area, which in no way resembles a neutral court.

Houston starts quickly, taking a five-point lead 10 minutes into the game, keeping the crowd relatively quiet. But WCC player of the year Filip Petrusev scores four quick points to tie the game late in the first half and get the crowd charged up.

Gonzaga's Corey Kispert hits from beyond the three-point line early in the second half to put the Bulldogs ahead for the first time, and the crowd noise, which is now at an ear-piercing level, carries the Bulldogs to a 12-2 run and an eight-point lead.

Houston stays competitive, but its defense has two many holes to plug up against Gonzaga, which has six players averaging double figures in scoring and leads the nation in scoring.

Final score: Gonzaga 85, Houston 74

We will continue with the Sweet 16 games on Thursday.