Latest news with #BJFreeman
New York Times
17-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
What is the College Basketball Crown, and who's invited to the first one? Full bracket, details
There's a new postseason tournament in men's college basketball. The College Basketball Crown announced its inaugural 16-team field on Monday, comprised of teams that failed to reach the NCAA Tournament. The Crown, developed by Fox Sports as a rival to the longstanding NIT, will be hosted in Las Vegas from March 31 to April 6, with the championship played the day before the NCAA men's national championship. Here's the 16-team field, which features no specific seedings, listed in alphabetical order: And here's the bracket: The field is set. Two weeks from today it all goes down in Vegas. 16 teams. 1 crown. Tickets available via @vividseats now – — College Basketball Crown (@CBBCrown) March 17, 2025 Officially announced last April, the Crown is a collaboration between Fox Sports and AEG that features automatic bids from the Big 12, Big East and Big Ten conferences, all of which have television agreements with Fox. The three conferences each received two automatic bids, given to the top two teams that did not qualify for the NCAA Tournament and based on advanced metrics such as the NET. The other 10 bids are at-large spots chosen by the Crown's selection committee. Advertisement It's become a challenge in recent years to fill out the NIT and other non-NCAA Tournament postseason events as the transfer portal and name, image and likeness (NIL) have led to teams and individual players opting out of consolation tournaments. Last year, 17 programs passed on NIT invites, the most in the event's nearly 90-year history. The Crown, originally conceptualized as featuring only high-major programs, felt that same burden in year one. Seven leagues are represented in the inaugural field, including the American Athletic Conference and Atlantic 10. A number of power conference teams declined invitations, including some in line for automatic bids, such as Indiana, West Virginia and Ohio State, despite uncertainty regarding the contractual obligations of the six automatic bids. Rutgers, Kansas State, Penn State, Wake Forest and TCU also declined possible at-large invites. Participation questions could still linger. The transfer portal window for men's basketball opens on March 24, a week before the Crown tips off. A source familiar with the tournament's stipulations for participating teams told The Athletic that rosters would need a minimum of seven scholarship players available. But it's possible teams that accepted invites could struggle to meet the minimum by the time the tournament begins. It's unclear if there are alternate programs on standby. The first thread worth following is whether any teams have to drop out. Beyond that, Nebraska versus Arizona State features a Cornhuskers team that collapsed down the stretch in the Big Ten but is solid defensively, against an Arizona State squad that had some intriguing individual pieces this season in senior guard BJ Freeman and freshman big man Jayden Quaintance. Villanova, which recently moved on from head coach Kyle Neptune, features the top scorer in college basketball in Eric Dixon (23 points per game). Boise State senior forward Tyson Degenhart is a first-team all-Mountain West honoree and one of the best all-around players in this tournament. Advertisement Cincinnati started the season ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 poll with real NCAA Tournament expectations. Those didn't materialize during Big 12 play, but there's talent to make a run in Vegas if enough of the roster stays together. The tournament covers a team's cost of flights, local transportation, hotel, per diem and practice time for the traveling party. There will be an NIL component to the Crown as well, though sources familiar with the tournament said those details were still being worked out. Unlike the NIT, there are no early-round games played at home sites. The first two rounds will be played at the MGM Grand Garden Arena from March 31 to April 3, airing on FS1. The semifinals and finals will be at T-Mobile Arena on April 5 and 6, airing on Fox, with the championship tipping off at 5:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, April 6, the same day as the NCAA women's national championship.
Yahoo
23-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Arizona State's leading scorer BJ Freeman is no longer with team after turbulent stretch
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Arizona State's leading scorer BJ Freeman is no longer with the program because of conduct detrimental to the team, a team spokesman confirmed on Sunday. The dismissal follows a turbulent stretch for Freeman, who was ejected in games against Colorado and Arizona during conference play. He was also suspended for the team's road loss to Oklahoma State on Feb. 9. The 6-foot-6 senior is averaging 13.7 points over 25 games. He last played on Tuesday in an 80-65 loss to No. 5 Houston, scoring 17 points. The Sun Devils (12-14, 3-12 Big 12) have lost six straight going into Sunday's road game against Kansas State. The Arizona Republic first reported Freeman's dismissal. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college basketball: and The Associated Press
Reuters
23-02-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Arizona State top scorer BJ Freeman no longer with program
February 23 - BJ Freeman, Arizona State's leading scorer this season, is no longer with the program, a team spokesperson told the Arizona Republic on Sunday. The guard had averaged 13.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game over 25 games (22 starts) in his first season with the Sun Devils. He was suspended for Arizona State's 86-73 road loss to Oklahoma State on Feb. 9 because of conduct detrimental to the team before returning. The spokesperson did not clarify Sunday whether Freeman was dismissed from the team or left on his own. The news comes as Arizona State (12-14, 3-12), second-to-last in the Big 12, prepared to play at Kansas State on Sunday afternoon. Freeman transferred to Arizona State from Milwaukee, where he was a two-time All-Horizon League selection in his first two seasons of college basketball. He averaged a conference-high 21.1 points per game last season and has career averages of 17.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 84 games (70 starts). --Field Level Media
NBC Sports
18-02-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
No. 5 Houston at Arizona State Prediction: Odds, Expert Picks, Betting Trends and Stats
Its Tuesday, February 18, and the No. 5 Houston Cougars (21-4, 13-1) are in Tempe to take on Arizona State (12-13, 3-11) in a Big 12 conference showdown. The Sun Devils lost over the weekend at home to TCU, 74-70. BJ Freeman had 21 in the loss for ASU. The Cougars nipped Arizona on the road 62-58. Their patented suffocating defense simply wore the Wildcats down as the game progressed. Houston has now won four in a row. They remain perfect on the road sporting a record of 7-0 this season. Arizona State is merely 5-6 at home. They have lost their last five games overall. Lets dive into the matchup and offer some information and possibly a sweat or two. We've got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch the opening tip, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts. Game details & how to watch Houston at Arizona State Date: Tuesday, February 18, 2025 Time: 9:00PM EST Site: Desert Financial Arena City: Tempe, AZ Network/Streaming: ESPN2 Never miss a second of the action and stay up to date with all the latest scores and player news. Check out our day-by-day NCAA Basketball Schedule Page that includes live game updates. Game odds for Cougars at Sun Devils *odds courtesy of BetMGM Odds: Houston Cougars (-800), Arizona State Sun Devils (+550) Spread: Cougars -11.5 Total: 134.5 points Bet the Edge is your source for all things sports betting. Get all of Jay Croucher and Drew Dinsick's insight weekdays at 6AM ET right here or wherever you get your favorite podcasts. Expert picks & predictions for Houston at Arizona State Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NCAA calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, injuries, and the schedule. Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager. Houston at Arizona State Best Bets Here are the best bets our model is projecting for today's Cougars & Sun Devils game: Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play on the Houston Cougars on the Moneyline. Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Arizona State Sun Devils at +11.5. Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the OVER on the Game Total of 134.5. Cougars at Sun Devils: Top betting trends and recent stats Arizona State has lost 17 of its last 20 games against teams with better records The Sun Devils' last 3 home games have gone over the Total Houston has covered the spread in 7 of its last 10 games against teams with losing records If you're looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our NCAA Basketball Top Trends Tool on Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700. Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff: · Jay Croucher (@croucherJD) · Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper) · Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports) · Brad Thomas (@MrBradThomas)
