The March Madness Round of 64: Highlight Games from the Dance
One of America’s most anticipated and competitive sports tournaments is now underway: March Madness. The NCAA’s premier basketball tournament is a special time of year; sixty-four basketball programs fight for survival in a single elimination bracket-style brawl. The intense threat of just a few mistakes leading to any team losing an entire tournament run leads to some thrilling games and unbelievable upsets. This year’s March Madness has not fallen short in the Round of 64: #1 seed of the east Duke played a nail biter against #16 seed Siena, none of the #8 seeds in their regions got the best of the #9 seeds, and only 224 perfect brackets remain after the first two days. Some games played in the Round of 64 are obvious beatdowns and fairly one-sided, but other games stand out for being nothing short of exhilarating and exciting.
#7 Seed Kentucky Staves Off the Upset from #10 Seed Santa Clara (89-84 Final/OT)
If I had to choose one game from this Round of 64 as my favorite, it would be the back-and-forth clash between Kentucky and Santa Clara in the midwest region. A total of 12 ties, 20 lead changes, and an astonishing ending sequence made this game one to remember for a while.
Both teams came into March Madness with something to prove and scores to settle. The Kentucky Wildcats run in the SEC tournament was squandered by Florida, the #1 seed in the south. The Santa Clara Broncos suffered a similar fate to the Wildcats, falling short to the Gonzaga Bulldogs in the semifinals of the WCC tournament, the #1 team in the conference. Two tough losses for the Broncos and Wildcats fueled their fire to prove dominance in the NCAA tournament.
The Kentucky Wildcats would triumph against the Santa Clara Broncos in one of the closest games in the Round of 64. The standout player in this thrilling game was Kentucky Wildcats guard Otega Oweh, who dropped a staggering 35 points, 8 total rebounds, and 7 assists. Apart from his impressive stat line, Oweh also saved the Wildcats’ tournament run with a mile long, buzzer beater three pointer to tie the game up 73-73 and take the Santa Clara Broncos into overtime.
Both teams had an impressive showing of basketball skill and vigor on offense and defense; Santa Clara forced 11 turnovers with 8 steals from the Wildcats offense, while Kentucky accumulated 11 blocks against the Broncos including 2 clutch blocks by forward Brandon Garrison to shut the door on guard Sash Gavalyugov’s three-point shooting and Santa Clara’s hopes for an upset.
#11 Seed VCU Shuts Down #6 Seed North Carolina in a Stunning Upset (82-78 Final/OT)
Astonishing upsets are at the heart of March Madness. The upsets are made even more sweet and unbelievable when they become OT thrillers like VCU and North Carolina played in the Southern region. The game had viewers on the edge of their seats (including myself) and was nail-biting to watch in the ending sequence, even if this was the game to bust my bracket.
The North Carolina Tar Heels had a roller coaster regular season; an unexpected win against Duke near the end of the season had everyone’s expectations for the Tar Heels scrambled and confused. North Carolina’s hopes at a turnaround in the ACC tournament were instantly silenced in their very first game of the tournament, losing 80-79 against Clemson in heartbreaking fashion. The VCU rams found themselves in an opposite position, winning the Atlantic 10 tournament with little to no struggle. Coming in as an 11th seed, the Rams had a lot to prove against an ACC squad like the Tar Heels.
The Rams would succeed in proving themselves, silencing the Tar Heels hopes once again in OT. The key for VCU to pull off an upset like this was sophomore guard Terrence Hill Jr., putting up 34 points with lethal efficiency from the three-point line (7-10). Hill Jr. was the VCU player to force overtime late in the second half, driving through the paint for a game-saving layup.
It’s hard to believe that at one point in the game, the Tar Heels seemingly had the game completely locked up. With a little under 14 minutes to play, North Carolina held a 19 point lead over the Rams at 56-37. VCU accomplished the impossible in their bout with North Carolina, displaying a drive for victory and a passion for the game of basketball the sports world barely gets to see.
