Photo by: Omer Khan
Quarterfinals are wrapped up at the College Basketball Crown. Boise State and Nebraska picked up their spots in the semifinals after wins on Wednesday, April 2, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Two more teams grasped semifinal spots after wins on Thursday, April 3.
UCF Knights 88 – Cincinnati Bearcats 80
Coming off of first-round wins on Tuesday, the UCF Knights and Cincinnati Bearcats were quarterfinals ready. UCF’s win snapped Cincinnati’s five-game win streak against them.
Defense was the determining factor of a game between two offensively strong teams. While the Knights held the lead for much of the first half, the Bearcats tied it up four times and stayed within just a few points thanks to five three-pointers. Each team’s tall centers made the game underneath the net a challenge, leading to multiple second-chance points.
The offense for each team became more consistent in the second half. Darius Johnson led the Knights with a game-leading 31 points. He also leads the program for most postseason games played in UCF’s Division I history with 13. Cincinnati’s Dillon Mitchell had a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds. The Knights shot 47% from the field and 84% from the charity stripe, while the Bearcats led in three-pointers at 35%.
Villanova Wildcats 60 – USC Trojans 59
Villanova came for revenge against USC. In a tight game, the Wildcats tied the all-time series against the Trojans 2-2.
The Wildcats were on the Trojans like glue. Their defense limited the Trojans to taking multiple three-point shots in the first half. While USC wasn’t finding the basket from behind the arc, they excelled in the paint, shooting 52%. The Trojans sped up their offense and were able to make a comeback to lead at half 31-27.
The defense loosened up and the offense was in the spotlight in the second half. Villanova outshot the Trojans 55%-25% in the field. USC improved its 3FG% to 60%. There was a two-minute scoring drought where the teams were making steals and missing shots. Villanova came out of the drought with nine straight points to take the lead. The game was back and forth from there on out. The teams were tied at 59 when a critical foul made by Rashaun Agee led Villanova to score one of two free throws to take the lead. Villanova had the chance to gain a two-point lead on another USC foul but missed the free throw. With two seconds left on the clock, the Trojans chucked the ball down to halfcourt but weren’t able to shoot in time.
Eric Dixon led the Wildcats with 28 points. Saint Thomas had a double-double with 23 points, and 13 rebounds and Agee scored 22 points.
Semifinal Game on April 5:
Boise State vs. Nebraska @ 10:30am PT
UCF vs. Villanova @ 1pm PT
