Day 1 of Sweet 16 Recap

By Djack

Michigan 7 vs Oregon 3:
The Michigan men of destiny took on the wounded Ducks in the sweet sixteen. Oregon has been without their second best player Chris Boucher, for the entirety of the tournament, so far they've managed just fine. Michigan should've won this game, they couldn't score with the same efficiency as Oregon, and ultimately it led to their exit from the tournament. Very even battle throughout, Oregon was able to score on a go ahead layup from Tyler Dorsey with a minute left that'd end up being the game winning basket. Michigan's Walton Jr. took an open 3 late for the win that missed. Overall, Oregon just outplayed Michigan a tiny bit in all aspects. Oregon wins 69-68.

West Virginia 4 vs Gonzaga 1:
Gonzaga is one step closer to reaching their first final four in history and coach Mark Few to getting the monkey off his back. Gonzaga squeaked out a win over West Virginia 61-58, using great defense, and smart offensive possessions to lead them to victory. Despite shooting 26% from the field and 21% from the 3 point land, West Virginia still was in the game late in the second half. Down by 2 after Jordan Matthews hit a 3 to put Gonzaga up, West Virginia had a chance to tie it up or go for the win with about a minute left on the clock. Gonzaga went up by 3 after hitting a free throw and West Virginia needed a three to keep their season alive. Their final possession was filled with chaos and dysfunction. Jevon Carter chucked up two 3's not even coming close on either, they were able secure a second offensive rebound on the possession, and then they dribbled out the clock too long didn't have a play to go to and didn't even get off a final shot. No timeouts left for coach Huggins to use to call a play at the end, probably cost his team the game. That's the way the cookie crumbles.

Purdue 4 vs Kansas 1:
Kansas absolutely demolished Purdue last night in the sweet sixteen cementing their role as the favorite to win this tournament. 98-66 was the final, although the first half was slightly competitive. Kansas only lead by 7 at half, however the second half was all Kansas as they outscored Purdue by 25. Frank Mason and Devonte Graham both scored 26 a piece as Kansas continued to show just how dominant they are. As long as Kansas plays their style of basketball and execute, no team in this tournament has the talent to beat them.

Xavier 11 vs Arizona 2:
If your bracket wasn't busted already, it certainly is now. Xavier, the Cinderella of the 2017 tournament, continues to play fundamentally sound basketball and keeps on marching forward. This game was back and forth for the majority of regulation, Arizona pulled away late with a 7 point lead, unfortunately for them it wouldn't be enough. With 3 minutes left they were up 7, Xavier wouldn't give up though, they locked down on D and held Arizona to 0 points the rest of the game. Xavier's Sean O'Mara hit the game winning shot for Xavier and Arizona's Allonzo Trier took a 3 for the win at the end of regulation, but it was no good as Arizona ruined everyone's bracket.