At the Free Throw Line
Cincinnati jumped out to an early lead against Texas, and was leading 31-17 at halftime. It was an ugly first half with very little offensive execution, particularly on the Texas side, though the Longhorns made a second half run and managed to tie at 52 with 3:44 remaining. Though poor offense again plagued Texas and the Bearcats pulled away for a 65-59 win.
The second game of the early session proved to be more entertaining. A vocal group of St. Bonaventure fans made their way from New York and other parts to Nashville for their school's matchup against Florida State.
Tipoff
There was a lot of good reasons for the excitement: a trip to the Big Dance and a talented squad including Andrew Nicholson, a student-athlete majoring in Physics. For me, it was great to see offensive execution after the sluggish first game. The Bonnies worked the ball inside and out and took a 34-28 halftime lead. Though the Seminoles of Florida State stayed close and then made a run led by their 27 year old senior Bernard James, whose story is definitely worth mentioning.
The 6'10" center was cut as freshman in high school and didn't play ball until joining the Air Force in 2003. He stayed 6 years in the military and was stationed in Iraq. Returning to the States, he spent two years at Tallahassee Community College before joining Florida State last year. His experiences definitely showed in the game against St. Bonaventure. He requested the ball and he received it. His 19 points along with 9 rebounds and 3 blocks led the team as the Seminoles tied and then pulled away from the Bonnies.
Though St. Bonaventure was not done. A trio of big 3-pointers closed the game to just three points and the Bonnies had an opportunity to tie the game. Their 3 point attempt fell short and another field goal was blocked as Florida State held to win 66-63 in a game which really showed what March Madness is: good basketball and diehard fans.
After the session, we stayed near the arena and soaked in the atmosphere. The Bridgestone Arena is right in the heart of the bustling honky-tonk section of Nashville, so there were lots of people milling around and generating a buzz. Before the start of the next session, the Ohio University band and cheerleaders even revved up the crowd outside the stadium more with a short pep rally.
Ohio Cheerleaders
After watching four games and squads from eight universities, there was one clear winner. Both the Ohio University band and cheerleading squad easily won the award for Most Peppy. They were lively and were always seemingly ready to lead the cheers.
Entering the stadium, we watched on television the end of Norfolk State-Missouri game. It's not often that teams seeded 15 knock off the a 2 seed, so it was shocking when Missouri lost. So the stage was now set—more big upsets were waiting.
Leading the Team Onto the Court
Led by junior guard D.J. Cooper, the Bobcats of Ohio University started the game strong against Michigan. Down 35-22, the Wolverines finished the half strong, cutting the lead to only 6. Much like the St. Bonaventure-FSU game, there was a lot of good offensive execution, particularly for Ohio, who shot 51% for the game.
The second half brought more of the same. Ohio held a small lead most of the way, even opening up a 9 point spread with 8:11 remaining the game. Though, the Bobcats offensive execution slipped and they only scored one more field goal the rest of the way. In a four minute span, the Wolverines chipped the lead down to only 3 points. However, once getting the game within reach, their shot selection disappeared and good defense by Ohio down the stretch kept Michigan scoreless the rest of the way. Another upset was in the books as the 13th-seeded Bobcats knocked off the 4th-seeded Wolverines 65-60.
In Greensboro, Lehigh upset the 2nd-seeded Duke Blue Devils, so now two 2 seeds and a 4 seed were losers in a matter of hours. 5th-seeded Temple seemed to have heard the message because they started strongly against 12th-seeded South Florida. For over a 9 minute stretch, the Owls of Temple held the Bulls without a point. It was looking like Temple was going to cruise when they led 19-8 at the 6:34 mark in the first. However, that was the last point they made for the half and South Florida closed to within 4 at 19-15. Some people might say good defense, and they would be correct, but the offensive execution by both teams was terrible. It reminded me of the ugly Texas-Cincinnati matchup.
After the Block
Starting the second half, the Bulls hit a few shots to tie the game at 19. It wasn't until two minutes into the half that Temple finally scored to end their eight and a half minute drought. From there, things became worse for the Owls. South Florida started hitting shots and opened a commanding 39-25 with just over twelve minutes to play. Though, in this game of bad offense, it was the Bulls' turn to go cold, as they went almost seven minutes scoring just one field goal. The Owls took advantage. Surprisingly, they executed plays and hit shots, narrowing the lead to 3 points with 5:44 remaining. However, South Florida picked up their play, hitting a few shots and several free throws down the stretch to comfortably close out their upset of the higher seeded Temple 58-44.
The games in Nashville were very competitive, though not always the most enjoyable as a lot of teams suffered long stretches of poor to non-existent offensive execution. Still it was fun to watch even in 300 level seats. In fact, the seats to the side behind one of the baskets offered surprisingly good views. In addition to the play on the court, other moments, moments which don't show on a television screen, stand out, like listening to O-H-I-O cheers or watching a player, who realizes the game is over, take a long solitary walk back to the other side of the court. There is something very human in those moments.
The Realization of Defeat
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