UC San Diego coach Eric Olen knew that his team would be good this season.
Is this good? Perhaps not entirely.
Five years back, the Tritons competed in Division II before the pandemic halted their tournament, potentially preventing them from claiming a national title. The outbreak affected the school’s plans. the move up to Division I The next year, during their inaugural season eligible for the NCAA Tournament, the Tritons secured their place by claiming the Big West Tournament championship.
Everything mentioned brings joy in Southern California. Conversely, it causes concern in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
The Tritons received their due reward. the 12th seeded team in the South Region , where they will face Michigan, the champion of the Big Ten Tournament In one of those contentious 5-versus-4 matches that often lead to unexpected upsets right from the start.
"It’s been quite an extraordinary season, you know?” remarked Olen, who became head coach at UC San Diego back in 2013 when they were still a subpar Division II squad. "This group truly deserves every bit of credit coming their way. From day one, I believed we had a solid team. Yet, even with those initial thoughts, this outcome surpassed anything I could’ve imagined—being able to compete at such a high standard throughout the entire campaign.”
The Tritons have secured 15 successive victories, thus heading into their clash with Michigan on Thursday in Denver with significant confidence. Do not assume they'll be awestruck; consider this: In one of just their four defeats this season, they nearly upset the No. 11-seeded San Diego State.
Winning 30 games doesn’t happen randomly," stated UC San Diego guard Hayden Gray, who was nominated for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award. "We’re heading into this game with confidence. Let’s see how well they can defend us.
It'll be a tall task for the Tritons, literally and figuratively. Michigan will have a huge size advantage in The 7-foot-1 center Vladislav Goldin and the 7-foot player Danny Wolfenstein , and coach Dusty May's team is just as hot as UC San Diego. It toppled three straight Top 25 teams in Purdue, Maryland and Wisconsin to cut down the nets at the Big Ten Tournament.
Still, there have been 55 times in which the No. 12 seed triumphed since the NCAA Tournament field expanded in 1985, including twice last year, when James Madison beat Wisconsin and Grand Canyon knocked off Saint Mary's.
The process remains unchanged. The items will stay the same on the board before the game," stated Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones from the Tritons. "We'll simply head out and perform as usual.
West Region
Similar to how Michigan felt, Memphis was likely expecting a higher seeding after claiming victory in the American Athletic Conference tournament, yet ended up receiving an underwhelming one instead. the feared No. 5 seed and a first-round matchup with Colorado State, the winner of the Mountain West Tournament .
The Tigers, who are led by All-American candidate PJ Haggerty, proved they can beat anyone when they beat NCAA Tournament teams Michigan State, Clemson, Missouri, Ole Miss and UConn. But coach Anfernee Hardaway's crew also showed they can lose to just about anyone, such as Arkansas State and Temple.
“What an incredible story,” said Colorado State coach Niko Medved, whose team will face the Tigers on Friday in Seattle. “This team, the legacy of this team, will live on forever. Just resilience and staying together. Believing in something that’s bigger than yourself and not getting ahead of yourself."
East Region
Oregon secured its No. 5 seed thanks to one of the most unpredictable seasons among major programs: The Ducks started strong, winning 12 out of their initial 13 games, which included victories over Texas A&M and Alabama. However, they faced challenges during Big Ten play, losing five consecutive games, before rebounding with an impressive eight-game win streak that concluded shortly after. a defeat against Michigan State during the Big Ten Tournament.
On Friday, The Ducks will face the No. 12 seeded Liberty team, who secured victory in the Conference USA tournament; however, they have yet to compete against a single Quad 1 opponent all season.
Midwest Region
Will Wade has the No. 12 seeded McNeese back in the NCAA tourney for a second consecutive year, and its first-round foe should be awfully familiar: Clemson, where Wade worked as a student manager and started his career as a graduate assistant. The No. 5 seed Tigers, who won 18 games in the ACC, will play the Cowboys on Thursday in Providence, Rhode Island.
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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
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