Less than three hours into the round of 64 of the men’s tournament, and we already have a wild finish, with No. 13 seed Furman knocking off Virginia, a No. 4 seed that may be best known for dropping its first-round game as the tournament’s top overall seed five years ago.
This time, it looked like Virginia would hold off a rally by Furman until an inbounds play by the Cavaliers completely broke down. Kihei Clark tried to pass the ball halfway up the court, but it was intercepted by Furman’s Garrett Hien. He quickly passed it to JP Pegues, who nailed a 3-pointer from the wing to give Furman a game-winner with about 2 seconds left. Final score: 68-67.
Kansas plays without Coach Bill Self.
Kansas coach Bill Self missed Thursday’s first-round NCAA tournament game against Howard as he continues to recover from a recent health problem.
Norm Roberts, a Kansas assistant coach who had been a head coach at St. John’s, continued to coach the team in Self’s absence.
Self, 60, missed the Big 12 tournament last week after undergoing a procedure to treat blocked arteries in his heart. The Hall of Fame coach was released Sunday from a hospital.
Kansas (22-7) went 13-5 in the Big 12, winning a regular-season title for the 17th time during Self’s 20-year tenure, but lost to Texas, 76-56, in the Big 12 tournament final on Saturday. The Jayhawks, who won last year’s N.C.A.A. tournament, are the No. 3 overall seed — and No. 1 in the West — this postseason despite losing three starters from the 2022 title-winning team. — Adam Zagoria
We’re on the hunt for upsets as the men’s N.C.A.A. basketball tournament gets going in earnest. Here are our picks for the games we don’t want to miss (all times Eastern):
No. 8 Iowa vs. No. 9 Auburn
6:50 p.m., TNT
Iowa has a potential first-round N.B.A. draft pick in Kris Murray, whose twin brother, Keegan, was a lottery pick last year. But the Hawkeyes have been inconsistent all season, including in a home loss to woeful Eastern Illinois. Auburn also recorded an up-and-down season: The Tigers had winning streaks of eight games (to start the year) and five games (in January), but otherwise didn’t win more than two games consecutively. Auburn’s defense could give the Iowa offense trouble; modelers are giving the edge to the Tigers in this tossup game.
No. 5 Duke vs. No. 12 Oral Roberts
7:10 p.m., CBS
Duke is a trendy Final Four pick in its first year under Coach Jon Scheyer, but the Blue Devils will need to handle Oral Roberts first. The Golden Eagles posted a record of 30-4, including a perfect 18-0 in Summit League play. But Duke is also on a hot streak and has won its past nine games on the way to an Atlantic Coast Conference tournament title. Fans are largely picking Duke, but some modelers are skeptical, with Pomeroy giving Duke a 63 percent chance to advance.
The New York Times
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