Villanova does it again
It makes complete sense, doesn't it? So many people picked Temple and St. Joe's to win and Villanova to lose in the first round, but the opposite happened.
Villanova does it again
Jonathan Tannenwald, Philly.com
It makes complete sense, doesn't it?So many people picked Temple and St. Joe's to win and Villanova to lose in the first round, but the opposite happened.
It was the veteran-laden Hawks who played like NCAA Tournament newcomers in a loss to Oklahoma, and the young Wildcats who rallied for a stunning comeback win over Clemson in a season full of them.
And yet the comeback itself almost fell apart, as a technical foul on Jay Wright with 2:58 remaining allowed Clemson to come within two points and tie the score at 66-all soon thereafter.
But the Tigers never took the lead, missing seven three-pointers in the final three minutes while committing costly fouls all over the place.
By the time K.C. Rivers finally nailed a trey with six seconds on the clock, it was too late.
And with Rollie Massimino looking on from the stands, his old team finished off a stunning 75-69 win to earn a second round of dancing.
So a truly magical day in Tampa came to an end, as all four lower seeds in the pod advanced to the second round for the first time in NCAA Tournament history.
We'll have two 12-vs.-13 matchups on Sunday, with the all-Philly showdown between Jay Wright and Fran McCaffery a nationwide broadcast the afternoon's first tip-off.
In honor of this totally crazy day, with so many incredible individual performances across the country, I've decided to double yesterday's Top 5 Players ranking to a Top 10.
novaaaa— ZTG- Outstanding comeback win, I was one that thought this team had the least chance of winning out of the three. I have to ask though, how could they give Wright the "T" when the guy from Clemson clearly slammed Reynolds to the ground...that was just a poor call on the part of the officials. All that came to mind was "oh no, not another bad, questionable call to sccrew this team out of a win."— cg
Great come back— onggia
Reach Jonathan at jtannenwald@phillynews.com or 215-854-2330.
