March Madness is a time of upsets, buzzer-beats and exciting play in general. Some games, more than others, do a better job of providing us with these entertaining features.
Here are my five favorite March Madness games from this year, ranked from fifth to first. If you didn’t have a chance to follow this year’s March Madness at the NCAAB betting sites, these are the best, most exciting games that you should check out.
5. Oakland vs. NC State
This is the only second-round matchup that made my list.
The storyline for this game was great, as it featured two Cinderellas, two double-digit seeds, whom nobody expected to be in the second round.
Oakland had downed Kentucky in the first round, in what almost made this list, but I didn’t want to include a game that was tainted by Kentucky’s sloppiness. NC State was the shocking ACC Tournament winner that upset its first-round opponent.
This second-round game was an overtime thriller that was a two-point affair until just under 80 seconds remaining.
There were a couple of times when NC State looked like it was going to pull away in regulation, but the 14 seed kept making big shots. Jack Gohlke, with his catch-and-shoot prowess, was a joy to watch on the losing team.
It took clutch plays from both squads in the waning minute for it to come to overtime, when DJ Horne finally woke up a bit and the Wolfpack pulled away for a 79-73 win.
4. Duke vs. Houston
This is my one low-scoring game on the list. Yes, points were scarce, but not every entertaining game is necessarily going to be one that is also high-scoring.
To get my point, you might have to have some appreciation for grit and physicality and for good defense in general. If you can appreciate palpable competitiveness, then I think you can appreciate these things even if you are an offensive-minded guy.
What made this game good was clearly not the offense. This was a defensive affair, an absolute rock fight in which both teams knocked each other around – Duke was perceptibly still worn down from this contest when it lost its following game to NC State.
Duke did an admirable job weathering Houston’s initial storm. To start the game, it looked like the Cougars’ pressure-heavy defense was going to overwhelm Duke. However, the Blue Devils battled back to take control of the game.
Held back by the injury to its leading scorer, Houston fought as hard as it could. Each made basket in this game was exciting because of the effort – the movement, physical intricacy and overall energy from the ball-handler and his teammates – required for each one.
Duke was able to hang on for a 54-51 victory to advance to the Elite Eight.
3. Yale vs. Auburn
This was a tremendous first-round upset in which the 14-seed winners of the Ivy League shocked Auburn, a team that many people had predicted to upset UConn.
Down by three with just under 30 seconds, Auburn missed a three-pointer but collected the rebound and missed a two-pointer off the scramble for the ball. Down four with just under ten seconds left, Auburn drove inside and converted this time, achieving an and-one.
The Tigers missed the free throw but collected the rebound – it was a tie-up following yet another mad scramble. Yale’s defender made a heroic effort to block and foul Auburn’s shot-taker at the basket, sending him to the free throw line.
Dramatically, he missed both free throws. However, Auburn still collected chances on the possession, with another heroic shot-block from Yale deterring what would have been the game-tying basket.
Auburn attempted a three and missed. And this chaos was just the final minute. Yale hung on 78-76.
2. Alabama vs. North Carolina
This was a Sweet 16 thriller in which nobody gave the Crimson Tide a chance, yet Alabama was to advance to the second Elite Eight in its history.
Bama was down by one, 84-85, with under a minute to go. It wasn’t three-pointers but hard work inside that enabled Bama to take the lead.
After putting them ahead, Grant Nelson played stout defense in isolation against the best that UNC had to offer, giving this high-scoring game an exciting and impressive defensive dimension.
Ahead 89-87 with 1.2 seconds left, the Tar Heels guarded Alabama’s inbounds pass as if their lives depended on it, but it was to no avail. The Tide held on 89-87.
1. Colorado vs. Florida
This was the highest-scoring game of the tournament and indeed the highest-scoring NCAA Tournament game since 2007. From start to finish, it featured fluid offense with great shot-making from both sides.
Colorado converted 63 percent of its field goals while Florida’s field goal conversion rate was 51.5, although the Gators made up for this disparity by using steals and rebounds to attempt more shots.
Both teams made shots right until the end. Walter Clayton Jr., for Florida, pulled up with just under ten seconds left to drain a deep three to tie the game at 100. Fittingly, this game ended with a game-winning jumper. KJ Simpson gave Colorado a 102-100 victory.
