NCAA March Madness Day 2: Recap, Reaction, and Takeaways

And that's a wrap on Round 1 of the 2024 NCAA tournament. It's the last day of the year we get nonstop college basketball action for over twelve straight hours. Some of you might think seven hours of commercial-free football is the greatest thing on earth, and I'd have to politely disagree. An entire half-day of March Madness action is undefeated.

All in all, we saw 11 lower-seeded teams pull off wins, including three 11 seeds, two 12s, two 13s, and one 14. March more than lived up to its name this year, as the Big Dance was absolute madness over the past two days. If Day 1 didn't bust your bracket, Day 2 was sure to at least put a dent in it.

The final buzzer on the last game sounded at about 1:30 am ET, so it's understandable if you decided to hit the hay during the late slate, but we got you covered on every single contest from Day 2 of the tournament. Here are some recaps and takeaways from the action!

FAU Extremely Sloppy in First-Round Overtime Exit

No. 9 Northwestern - 77 | No. 8 FAU - 65 OT

Dusty May's squad did not come to play this year. Just overall terrible execution on offense, lackadaisical effort, and sloppy play overall. The final possession before the regulation buzzer was very emblematic of this team's play the whole afternoon, and frankly the last month of the season. Johnell Davis, who had NINE turnovers in this game, showed absolutely zero urgency with the game tied and the clock dwindling below five seconds. He approached half court barely jogging before throwing up a prayer three from 35 feet that was partially blocked. It was almost as if he thought there were 10 extra seconds on the game clock. Very strange situation.

It was a great win for Northwestern, who was lights out in the overtime period. Senior guard Ryan Langborg scored 27 points in the game, including twelve in the extra period alone. He and Boo Buie (22 points) are going to have to put up 50+ combined if they want a shot at beating No.1 UConn, who they face on Sunday.

Fau losing in overtime because dude wanted a bleacher report tik tok highlight clip lmao pic.twitter.com/bNd4FbSN3d

— John (@iam_johnw) March 22, 2024

Baylor's Shooting Too Much For Colgate 

No. 3 Baylor - 92 | No. 14 Colgate - 67

Another NCAA tournament appearance, another blowout loss for Colgate who has dropped four straight first-round contests by an average of 17.25 points. It's extremely hard to win in the NCAA tournament, especially if you are a 14 or 15 seed, but Colgate has really struggled to even compete in the field.

Credit Baylor who is such a tough matchup given their athleticism and shooting ability across the board. The Bears were unconscious the entire game, shooting 58% from the field and 16 of 30 from three. I mean, c'mon. No one is going to beat this team if they are shooting the ball like that, not even UConn. Versatile forward Jalen Bridges was definitely the most impressive, showing off a deep bag of moves that included some fadeaway jumpers and step-back threes. Clemson also had a blowout win of their own, but I'm not sure they have enough firepower to keep up with the Bears.

After the win against Colgate, @BaylorMBB's Jalen Bridges chats with @JonRothstein about his offensive rhythm, the special experience of playing in front of his father, and what lies ahead for the team. pic.twitter.com/8uIserz1uf

— March Madness Men’s Basketball TV (@MM_MBB_TV) March 22, 2024

Jaedon LeDee, A Man Among Boys

No. 5 San Diego State - 69 |  No. 12 UAB - 65

Where would SDSU be without their star big man Jaedon LeDee, who manhandled the Blazers to the tune of 32 points and 8 boards, constantly crashing the offensive glass and keeping possessions alive? It was a great close out by the Aztecs who made their free throws in the final minute to ice it. That's what senior-led teams do!

I do want to give major props to UAB, who really fought like hell in this one. Facing a nine-point deficit with about 11 minutes to go, it looked as if SDSU was going to be in control the rest of the way but two huge Efrem Johnson threes brought the Blazers right back in it. Ultimately it came down to having zero answers for SDSU's third-team all-American, who I'm sure will be the focal point of Yale's defensive game plan on Sunday. Based on how badly the Bulldogs were just bullied by Auburn forward Johnni Broome - a similar player to LeDee - I think he's set up once again to do some major damage.

Jaedon Ledee was BORN to get BUCKETS

He's going OFF for @Aztec_MBB pic.twitter.com/jKpDQvaVzJ

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 22, 2024

Marquette Rides Huge Second Half to Victory

No. 2 Marquette - 87 | No. 15 Western Kentucky - 69

What a tale of two halves this one was. Western Kentucky came out the gate with more energy than any other team I've watched in this tournament so far. The Hilltoppers were pushing the pace, gobbling up offensive boards, and ailing open threes after some great ball movement which led to their seven-point halftime lead.

This game was actually tied with 11:26 left, at 55 apiece. Then Marquette started drilling their open looks from three, especially Kam Jones who was scoring at all levels and finished with 28 on the afternoon. Jones is one of the most underrated players in the country. He's so crafty near the basket, can finish acrobatic shots, and is a phenomenal long-range shooter. Tyler Kolek also showed zero signs of rust after missing the Big East Tournament with an oblique injury.

If this team plays like they did over the last ten minutes of the game, they will make the final four. Consistency has been an issue at times this season though, and their next opponent - No. 10 seed Colorado - just dropped 102 points in regulation. While UNC v. Michigan State and Tennessee v. Texas might be more intriguing, this one has the potential to sneakily be the best round of 32 matchups.

FINAL ---- MARQUETTE 87, WESTERN KENTUCKY 69

The Golden Eagles outscored the Hilltoppers 51-26 in the final 20 minutes. Kam Jones really propelled MU to pull away in the second half with 18 of his 28 coming in the second half.

Tyler Kolek in his return: 18 points, 11 assists.

— John Fanta (@John_Fanta) March 22, 2024

Tigers Lock Down On Defense, Blow Out Lobos

No. 7 Clemson - 77 | No. 11 New Mexico - 56

It was simply too good to be true for the Lobos. Under-seeded, analytics darling, massive public backing, trendy Elite Eight/Final Four pick, Clemson reeling - I mean, we had to know it would go poorly with how much they had going for them right?  Hindsight is always 20/20. I was blinded by infatuation after watching those guards storm through the Mountain West tournament while Jalen House's dad was insanely hyped for his son.

All the pre-tourney discussion was on how talented NM's guard rotation was with House, Mashburn, and Dent. Clemson won't be able to keep up with their #260 tempo ranking. They'll get run out of the gym! *Insert Michael Jordan meme here* for Tigers point guard Chase Hunter, because he clearly took that personally. The senior from Atlanta, GA led all scorers with 21 points on 8-16 from the field and dished out six assists. He was easily the best guard on the floor all game long, while the aforementioned NM trio combined for 24 total points on 8-33 shooting. PJ Hall was also excellent in limited time due to foul trouble, scoring 14 points in only 19 minutes. The Tigers will need both on their A+ game if they want to knock off Baylor, who looked terrifying against Colgate.

UConn Dominant In All Facets

No. 1 UConn - 91 | No. 16 Stetson - 52

The live line at the half was -43.5. I haven't seen a first-half beatdown like this in the tournament for quite some time. Stetson, however, refused to accept this fate at the beginning of the second half, hitting their first seven shots but then proceeded to make one of their next seventeen. UConn had 15 assists on 20 made buckets in the first half, limited themselves to 9 turnovers on the day, and were +15 on the boards. All five starters scored in double figures, led by Donovan Clingan's 19, 8, and 4. Northwestern is going to have their hands full with the sophomore big man with their 7-footer Andrew Nicholson ruled out.  This team should keep on rolling. Dan Hurley had this to say as the Huskies took a 33-point lead into the break. Championship DNA.

.@UConnMBB with the lead!

Coach Dan Hurley speaks with @tracywolfson after the end of the first half. ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/pYINciEAhy

— March Madness Men’s Basketball TV (@MM_MBB_TV) March 22, 2024

Poulakidas Ice Cold in Shocker Over Auburn

No. 13 Yale Auburn  - 78 | No. 5 Auburn - 76

While Thursday was defined by the legend of Jack Gohlke, Friday belonged to Yale guard John Poulakidas, who poured in 28 points to help the Bulldogs knock off a red-hot Auburn team that many thought could make a final four run. How poetic is it that another marksman from the midwest decided to go nuclear against a top-seeded SEC team? All of these mid-major schools must've heard SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey talking smack about them and are on a personal mission to make him eat his words. It's incredible.

Poulakidas was truly sensational in this one, hitting deep threes and fadeaway jumpers in the mouth of Auburn defenders all day. Danny Wolf - Yale's versatile big man and best player - shot 4-15 from the field and the Bulldogs still won. All the credit goes to Poulakidas who almost single-handedly won this for Yale. They advance to take on No. 5 San Diego State in the round of 32 on Sunday.

I can't end this section without mentioning how badly Auburn blew this one, though. The Tigers missed three free throws and four shots in the final 30 seconds of this game. Multiple chances to win it, all blown. Johni Broome was unstoppable on the block with 24 points and 13 rebounds, but Auburn had too many empty possessions where they stopped going to him and would throw up a bad shot.

I really fell victim to the analytics here and thought Auburn would cruise, especially with how poorly Yale played in the Ivy Championship against Brown when they needed a buzzer-beater to even make the Big Dance. Maybe Kim English was on to something! Maybe analytics are just a bunch of bologna! Of course, they aren't, but I think the moral of the story is that they can be when one guy decides that he's Steph Curry. Just another example of why the NCAA tournament is the greatest sporting event on earth.

POULAKIDAS MASSIVE BUCKET 🪣#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/Fl9Xxwoy75

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 22, 2024

Offenses Shine In What May Be The Game of the Tournament

No. 10 Colorado - 102 | No. 7 Florida - 100 

This game had everything. Unstop offense. 202 total points?!? Heroics with incredible shot-making from both sides. A ridiculous three to tie. A Kawhi-Leonard-esque game-winner right after. This game made me feel like Jon Rothstein because I wanted to just scream THIS IS MARCH during each sequence late in the game. Wow.

Walter Clayton Jr. Have yourself a day. The transfer from Iona had a career-high 33 points, 26 of them coming in the second half. This game had absolutely no business being this dramatic but Clayton made sure that it was. The Buffs were up by 12 with only four minutes left and had a seven-point lead with only a minute and a half remaining but Clayton just kept on nailing free throw after layup after cold-blooded three to keep the Gators in it. That is until KJ Simpson hit a pull-up baseline jumper with 1.7 seconds left that ended up being the game-winner as Clayton's three-quarter court prayer caromed off the backboard.

Grand Canyon University's Tyon Grant-Foster underwent two separate heart surgeries and didn't play for two years after collapsing while playing for DePaul in 2021.

Tonight, he scored 22 points and led the Lopes to a March Madness win 🙏 pic.twitter.com/Zn0juiZ8Lg

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) March 23, 2024

Aggies' Guard Trio Unstoppable In Win

No. 9 Texas A&M- 98 | No. 8 Nebraska - 83

Complete and utter domination by the Aggies, who scored a FIFTY-EIGHT first-half points en route to a 15-point win. As I mentioned a few days ago, you live and die by Wade Taylor if he's on your roster. On Friday, it was the latter. Taylor is the most streaky shooter in high-major college basketball, but he's truly one of those guys who becomes Kemba Walker-level unguardable when he's feeling it. He was feeling it in this one. The junior guard hit his first five threes hit his first five threes of the game, and after A&M grabbed the lead with eight remaining in the half, they never relinquished it.

The rest of the A&M guard trio played exceptionally as well. Manny Obaseki - a sophomore guard from Allen, TX - has only averaged 6.3 points per game this season on 41% shooting from the field. He dropped 22 on the Cornhuskers with three three-pointers, after only having hit 17 from long range all season. Obaseki has been on a mini heater of late, hitting double figures in seven straight games, after only doing so three times all year before that streak. Tyrese Radford hit the 20-point mark as well, adding 10 rebounds and five assists. Up next is No. 1 seed Houston and while the Cougars did look sharp in their first-round game, I would want absolutely no part of this Aggies team based on what I saw against Nebraska. Texas A&M can beat the Cougars. It may come down to the point guard matchup between Taylor and Big 12 Player of the Year Jamal Shead. You can't get much better than that.

Texas A&M's Wade Taylor IV was TOUGH all night.

Hit seven 3s and finished with 25 points and a win pic.twitter.com/TAbmurc9sO

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) March 23, 2024

Balanced Effort Sends Duke to Round of 32

No. 4 Duke - 64, No. 13 Vermont - 47

The Catamounts gave it their best shot, but Duke's talent and perseverance won out in this one. The Blue Devils have been called a soft team all year, and while they have done some questionable things (I'm looking at you, Kyle Filipowski), I was impressed by their responsiveness in this game. Duke showed some grit with their ability to stymie Vermont runs by rebounding extremely well and hitting some big-time shots that kept the Catamounts at bay.

Crazy Box Score Observation of the Day: Filipowski, despite playing 37 of the 40 total minutes, only attempted one field goal (which he missed). The 7-footer did contribute in other ways, leading the team in rebounds (12) and tying for the lead in assists (4).

Zach Edey Continues to Wreck Havoc

No. 1 Purdue -  78 | No. 16 Grambling - 50

No repeat historic loss for Purdue this year, as the best player in college basketball goes for 30 points and 21 rebounds. The modern-day Shaq of the NCAA. Purdue shooting 13/22 from the line is mildly concerning, but a lot of that was Edey missing six free throws. And he still hit 30 points. And 21 rebounds. I'm excited to see him and Great Osobor for Utah State - a top-five mid-major big - go head to head on Sunday.

Zach Edey has a season-high 20 REB 😤 pic.twitter.com/xoTkMrol7r

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 23, 2024

Charleston Can't Keep up With Crimson Tide Attack

No. 4 Alabama - 109 | No. 13  Charleston - 96

Another day, another 100-point effort from the Crimson Tide who already shattered their school record of 100-point performances earlier in the season. This was the 10th time Alabama has hit that threshold, which means they've scored at least 100 points in 30% of their games. That is downright absurd. Mark Sears was far and away the best player on the floor with 30 points, four rebounds, and five assists. I picked Arizona to go to the Final Four from this region, but I think Bama might be the lone survivor here. The defense is still a problem, but if they keep up this scoring pace it might just be enough to propel them to a national semifinal. Either way, I just want to see those two teams square off in the Elite Eight. The pre-game over/under could break a record.

The total for Charleston-Alabama was set at 172.5, which was the highest NCAA Tournament over/under since 1995...

They combined for 205 points and crushed the over ✅

(via @EvanHAbrams) pic.twitter.com/vgOjaz4K7y

— Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ) March 23, 2024

 

Cougars Have No Problem Chopping Down Longwood

No. 1 Houston - 86 | No. 16 Longwood - 46

Say something nice about Longwood. Ok, um, they had a nice little 7-0 run to cut their deficit to five with 11 minutes left in the first half. That was pretty cool!

This one was a bloodbath. The Lancers had absolutely no chance from the get-go, as Houston bullied them on the glass and easily diced up the Swiss cheese defense that Longwood rolled out there.  Damian Dunn was huge off the bench for Houston with 17 points, which was one shy of tying a season-high. A nice tune-up game for the Cougars who head into a very tough matchup with a scorching Texas A&M squad. Can Jamal Shead slow down Wade Taylor? The Aggies guard has struggled in the past against elite defenders.

JMU Leads Wire-to-Wire, Buries Wisky

No. 12 James Madison | No. 5 Wisconsin

This felt strange to watch, in the sense that JMU really just felt like the better team here overall. That usually isn't the case when you're watching a Sun Belt team take on a top-25 Big Ten squad. The Dukes didn't even play an exceptional offensive game but held the highest-scoring Wisconsin team since the 90s to 61 points and 37% from the field. If not for Max Klesmit hitting five threes in the second half, this game would've been a 20-point blowout.

JMU may have been slightly under-seeded, but this was a pretty embarrassing loss for Greg Gard and Co. They were really never in this game from the tip. A few minor runs here and there, but the Dukes did an incredible job pushing the lead back to 8-12 points every time there was a legitimate threat. I'm all in on the Dukes, who I think have what it takes to slay the giant. Go beat Duke, Dukes!

"James Madison is on the verge of knocking out a team from Madison. The Dukes would advance to play a team that goes by the name of Duke."

Ian Eagle with some midnight observations 😂 pic.twitter.com/bR8KZPzq0r

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 23, 2024

Osobor is in fact, Great

No. 8 Utah State - 88 | No. 9 TCU - 72

Not many people were giving Utah State a legitimate shot in this tournament after playing zero high-major teams all season and being laughed at in analytic circles. This team did win the Mountain West outright, a conference that hasn't necessarily fared great in the tournament, but did get a record six bids this year. Utah State was clearly the better team on Thursday. It was very obvious that this was a much more connected and fundamentally sound unit. The Aggies forced TCU to play their game which was a slower pace, working through their big Great Osobor to get the best look. 22 assists on 33 made baskets, compared to 13 for TCU. This team has their work cut out for them with Purdue looming on Sunday, but from what I saw against TCU, they could give the Boilermakers some kind of scare.

"You can either go and prove people right or you can go and prove people wrong. Utah State proved the Mountain West believers right tonight."

—@ReneeMontgomery on @MW_MBB's @USUBasketball pic.twitter.com/9HlnDVSLhH

— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 23, 2024

Grand Canyon Feeds Off Crowd, Pulls Upset of St. Mary's

No. 12 Grand Canyon - 75 | No. 5 St. Mary's - 66 

This one may have had the best atmosphere of any game on the entire slate. The crowd was absolutely electric. It felt like a home game for Grand Canyon, even though Moraga (home of St. Mary's) is much closer to Spokane than Phoenix is. The Antelope faithful really showed out on Friday night.

Ok, now some real takeaways. Tyon Grant-foster is the real deal he's 100% pro, and his story is one of the more inspiring ones you'll ever hear. The blend of size, athleticism, and shot-making was too much even for the Gaels' top-15 defense. GCU played like this was a life-or-death situation. Saint Mary's did not. The defense played on Aidan Mahaney - St. Mary's star point guard - was exceptional. He was having to fight for every inch and ended up 5/21 from the field. Facing Alabama is a different beast and I definitely have doubts about the Antelopes' ability to keep up, but this was an incredible win and a perfect way to end round 1 of the tournament.

Grand Canyon University's Tyon Grant-Foster underwent two separate heart surgeries and didn't play for two years after collapsing while playing for DePaul in 2021.

Tonight, he scored 22 points and led the Lopes to a March Madness win 🙏 pic.twitter.com/Zn0juiZ8Lg

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) March 23, 2024

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