March Madness Recaps and Upsets
by Bodog Sportsbook | Mar 24 2008
Upsets happen, stars are born and hearts are broken. That's why they call it March Madness. Below is a quick recap of the first and second round, as well as a list of the tournament's newest residents of Upset City.
First and Second Round RecapThe results for the first and second round of the 2008 NCAA tournament are in and the field of the Sweet 16 has been decided, with some notable exclusions. The first round began with very few surprises; many of the top seeds took care of business in their first-round games. North Carolina, UCLA, Memphis and Kansas all looked dominant in their first round matchups. And then there was Duke. Duke would face a Belmont team that had no fear of or reverence for the Blue Devils. The Blue Devils would escape a first-round upset by the skin of their teeth, a sign of things to come. And then all of a sudden, the face of the tournament began to change as the madness continued. First, USC got trumped by Michael Beasley and the Kansas State Wildcats, upset No. 1. Next, Davidson and their shooting star Stephen Curry stunned Gonzaga, knocking off the Bulldogs in upset No. 2. Once the tournament entered what has now been dubbed “Treacherous Tampa,” March Madness was already in full swing.
> Bet on the remaining games in the NCAA men's basketball tournament with Bodog's college basketball lines.The second round of the tournament saw all four No. 1 seeds advancing. UCLA had the toughest test as it received clutch performances from Kevin Love and Darren Collison to advance past the Aggies. Xavier’s defense allowed them to advance past a young Purdue team and Texas held off Miami to advance. Michigan State looked like they had found their form as they knocked off Big East champs Pittsburgh. Memphis, North Carolina, Kansas and Louisville advanced with ease. Villanova beat Siena convincingly, while Tennessee struggled to get past a Butler team that probably should have upset them in overtime. The Volunteers would dodge a bullet, but their No. 2 seed counterparts Georgetown and Duke weren’t so lucky. See Upset City.
UPSET CITYThe doors to the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa should have had a disclaimer: “Welcome to Upset City.”
VANDERBILTSiena, the 13th seeded team, took on fourth seed Vanderbilt. Although on paper this game was an upset, after watching the game, a good bet says Siena would beat Vanderbilt in a rematch. Siena handled the higher seed with a 20-point beat down. Siena dominated this game from start to finish; call it an upset, but it didn’t look like one.
CLEMSONClemson had this game. They had it in the bag. But Villanova just happens to be the comeback cats. Let’s not forget that this school has one of the greatest upsets in tournament history on its resume. Taking care of a Clemson team that was just happy to be there after a 10 year hiatus was just another day at the office for the Villanova Wildcats. Villanova climbed back from an 18-point first-half deficit and stormed past Clemson en route to a 6-point victory. You have to feel for the Clemson team, particularly their seniors, but in March you can’t let up or you could find yourself a resident of Upset City.
DRAKEOh no, Drake, say it isn’t so. Drake becomes a resident of Upset City after losing a heartbreaker in one of the tournament’s most exciting games. After battling back in the second half from being down by double digits, Drake would force the game into overtime. Down by a point, with just seconds left, Western Kentucky point guard Tyrone Brazelton found teammate Ty Rogers for a last second desperation 3- pointer. Was there any question whether he was going to make it, even though it was from about 30 feet out and he had to release it over two defenders as soon as it touched his hands? It’s March Madness - of course he made it. Welcome to Upset City, Drake.
CONNECTICUTWhile they were still interviewing the stars from the Western Kentucky upset over Drake, San Diego was warming up in the background, preparing for their first-round fourth vs. 13th seed matchup against Connecticut. San Diego would come out inspired, battling and taking a 5-point lead into the half. A serious injury to Huskies A.J. Price was a major loss in the first half. The second half saw UConn rally to close the gap as the two teams exchanged baskets in the dying moments of the game. This game would be decided in the last seconds of overtime. With San Diego down by a point and without its two leading scorers due to foul trouble, San Diego turned to De’Jon Jackson. Jackson drove past Jerome Dyson, stepped back and made a fade-away jump shot just inside the arc to put San Diego on top. After an errant inbounds pass, Connecticut found itself the newest resident of Upset City.
GEORGETOWNYou don’t need to be in Tampa to get upset. Raleigh, N.C. would do just fine for the Hoyas. The Hoyas ruined many brackets by losing to the Davidson Wildcats. Georgetown looked to have the game under control in the first half. They took an 11-point lead into halftime and extended it to 16 in the second half. But Davidson would respond. Stephen Curry showed his NBA-caliber shooting and scoring ability, making difficult, well-defended shots from all over the court. Davidson would storm back to shock the Hoyas 74-70, earning Georgetown a place in Upset City.
DUKEIt’s questionable whether you can call this one an upset. After nearly getting knocked off by Belmont in the first round, the Blue Devils stumbled into their second round matchup against West Virginia. Duke fought hard in the first half and even took a lead at halftime. But watching the game, it was obvious that West Virginia was the better team. Credit the Blue Devils for fighting as hard as they did, but this team is becoming a regular around these parts - Duke for the second straight year returns to Upset City. Welcome back.
Get all the March Madness Results:
