Latest news with #Omier
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Mississippi State basketball vs Baylor in NCAA tournament reunites former Miami teammates
RALEIGH, N.C. — Miami basketball went on an 11-day trip to France two summers ago. The Hurricanes played three exhibition games there while also touring Paris, Normandy and Nice. Michael Nwoko, now a sophomore center with Mississippi State, was a freshman on that Miami team. Norchad Omier was also on that team, and now plays for Baylor. The two of them were roommates in France and will play each other when the No. 8 seed Bulldogs (21-12) face No. 9 Baylor (19-14) in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Friday (11:15 a.m. CT, CBS). Advertisement 'It was fun,' Nwoko said. 'Definitely going out to France and living that life, it was fun, especially with him.' The two of them said they exchanged texts on Selection Sunday after the bracket was revealed. 'He's a great player,' Nwoko said. 'We texted when we saw the matchup and just kind of laughed about it.' 'We're excited to play,' Omier said. 'Both of us are competitors, so we're excited to play each other.' Both Nwoko and Omier are starters in the post, so they could match up against each other during Friday's game. Omier, a 6-foot-7 forward, is the Bears' leading scorer with 15.9 points per game. He's one of just 11 players in college basketball to average a double-double — he also averages 10.9 rebounds per game — and was named to the All-Big 12 first team. Advertisement Nwoko, a 6-foot-10 center, has started 30 consecutive games and averages 5.4 points and 4.3 rebounds in 16.4 minutes. 'I feel like I know his moves from playing with and against him all of last year, so personally I'm not going for none of that stuff,' Nwoko said. 'That's how I feel about it.' MORE: Why Jeff Lebby, Mississippi State football will hold spring game despite tampering concerns Omier played two seasons at Miami and was part of the team that went to the Final Four in 2023. Friday will be Nwoko's first NCAA tournament game. MSU is seeking its first March Madness win since 2008. 'Every kid dreams of this, so that's been a real thought in my head,' Nwoko said. 'Just staying level-headed and getting ready for this game.' Advertisement Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at ssklar@ and follow him on X @sklarsam_. This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi State vs Baylor in March Madness reunites ex-teammates
New York Times
23-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
No. 1 Duke buries Baylor as Cooper Flagg, Blue Devils roll on to Sweet 16
RALEIGH, N.C. — Three minutes of suffocation were enough to send Duke to the Sweet 16. Because, frankly, the final three minutes of Sunday's first half — when No. 1 Duke went on a 12-0 run, and No. 9 Baylor couldn't muster a single point — were the difference in the Blue Devils' eventual 89-66 win. A 17-point halftime margin got only as close as 13 over the final 20 minutes. Advertisement Too steep a margin, against too talented a team, to make more of a dent than that. Now, had Baylor been able to maintain the same effectiveness it had in the game's first 10 minutes, we might be talking about a different situation. Behind graduate big man Norchad Omier's offensive rebounding, Scott Drew's squad hung neck-and-neck with the Blue Devils out of the gate, with Omier leading a balanced interior scoring effort. Omier finished with 15 points and nine rebounds, and Duke freshman Cooper Flagg said he was 'strong as hell' at one point mid-game. But Omier picked up his second personal foul, and given the Bears' lack of other frontcourt options, Drew had no choice but to sit him. It quickly became clear how much Omier's physicality was propping up Baylor's overall effort, because the Bears came unglued in a matter of minutes. Duke promptly rattled off a 10-0 run — punctuated by Patrick Ngongba drawing a Flagrant 1 foul on Baylor reserve Marino Dubravcic — that gave Jon Scheyer's squad a little breathing room. And then, minutes later, came the decisive sequence: Flagg (who finished with 18 points, nine rebounds and six assists in his second NCAA Tournament game) scoring seven of 12 points, before Caleb Foster's runner with 6.1 ticks left sucked any remaining doubt about the outcome at Lenovo Center. The second half was simply a 20-minute coronation thereafter, with the Bears never able to seriously chip away at Duke's lead. Anytime Baylor got close, it felt like Duke junior guard Tyrese Proctor drained a pivotal triple that kept the Bears at bay. He finished the game with a career-best 25 points, courtesy of his career-high seven 3-pointers. Proctor has hit six 3s in each of Duke's past three games, going an absurd 19-for-30 (63.3 percent) from deep over that stretch. For someone who made one 3 in the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament last season — including a disastrous 0-for-5 effort against NC State in the Elite Eight — his recent uptick couldn't have come at a better time. Advertisement Much of the focus entering Sunday's game was about Baylor graduate guard Jeremy Roach, who spent the first four seasons of his college career with the Blue Devils and who led Duke to the Final Four in Mike Krzyzewski's final season. But Roach, who only scored seven points in 26 minutes off the bench, could make little difference as his storied college career came to an end. Outside of Omier, the Bears were led by star freshman VJ Edgecombe, a protected top-five pick in this summer's NBA Draft. Edgecombe picked Baylor over Duke coming out of high school, and while he flashed moments of excellence en route to a team-high 16 points and six rebounds, the Blue Devils ultimately finished with the upper hand. And with confirmation they'll be flying to Newark later this week, the next step in their pursuit of the program's sixth national championship. Duke will play the winner of Sunday night's game between No. 4 Arizona and No. 5 Oregon. (Photo of Tyrese Proctor, No. 5, Sion James, No. 14 and Cooper Flagg, No. 2: Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
V.J. Edgecombe and Baylor hold off Mississippi State in final seconds to win 75-72 in March Madness
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — NBA lottery prospect V.J. Edgecombe had just four points at halftime of Baylor's first-round NCAA Tournament game against Mississippi State. That didn't concern Bears coach Scott Drew. The athletic Edgecombe responded with a big second half and finished with 16 points, including two clutch free throws down the stretch, to help the ninth-seeded Bears hold off the eighth-seeded Bulldogs 75-72 on Friday. 'Because he's so highly rated on the draft boards, people just assume that he's going to score,' Drew said. 'V.J. doesn't have to score to impact a game. He is an all-around player. He gets comparisons to Dwyane Wade, Russell Westbrook, and the thing that those guys did is their athleticism and their ability to assist, defend. It affects the game. So if he's scoring or not, he's helping us.' Edgecombe also had five rebounds, a block and a steal in his first NCAA Tournament game. Robert Wright scored 19 points, Langston Love added 15 and Norchad Omier had a strong game inside with 12 points and nine rebounds for the Bears (20-14), who led by 11 points in the second half but had to hold off the Bulldogs in the final seconds — and even tenths of seconds. Baylor advanced to face either Mount St. Mary's or Duke — the top seed in the East Region — in the second round on Sunday. Josh Hubbard scored 26 points to lead Mississippi State (21-13), which was seeking its first March Madness victory since 2008. The Bears led 60-49 with 8:10 remaining after a free throw by Omier. But the Bulldogs stormed back and cut the lead to one with 29 seconds left when KeShawn Murphy scored in the lane on a baby hook. Edgecombe was fouled with 9.3 seconds left and the Big 12 freshman of the year calmly stepped to the line and made both. 'Playing in the Big 12, you just have a lot of close games, and coming in here, we know that in March a lot of stuff happens,' Omier said. 'V.J. hit both free throws, and we call it a game.' Well, not quite. The Bulldogs still had a chance to tie after Baylor elected not to foul, but Claudell Harris Jr airballed a 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left. Omier was fouled on the ensuing inbounds play and the game was seemingly over. But more time was put on the clock and Omier missed the front end of a 1-and-1. The Bulldogs grabbed the rebound with 0.2 seconds left and called timeout. Hubbard's 3-point heave at the buzzer was no good, although it may not have counted. Mississippi State coach Chris Jans said Harris' 3 came off a new play the Bulldogs had put in, and that Hubbard was an option. 'It's the first time we've ever run it exactly for this type of scenario where we had enough time to get one look and then a second look,' Jans said. 'I thought we're going to get a shot. But unfortunately, it didn't go in.' Takeaways Baylor: The Bears entered the tournament having lost six of their last 10 games, but survived this time. It was Drew's 21st NCAA Tournament victory. Mississippi State: This is the third time in as many seasons that Jans led the Bulldogs to the NCAA Tournament. Before his arrival, the program had reached March Madness just once since 2010. Up next If Duke advances, Baylor guard Jeremy Roach will face his former team. Roach played four seasons for the Blue Devils and helped lead them to a Final Four three years ago. ___ AP March Madness bracket: and coverage: Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. Steve Reed, The Associated Press
Fox Sports
21-03-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
Baylor holds off Mississippi State in final seconds to win 75-72 in March Madness
Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Robert Wright scored 19 points, V.J. Edgecombe added 16 and No. 9 Baylor squeaked past No. 8 Mississippi State 75-72 on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Langston Love added 15 points and Norchad Omier had 12 points and nine rebounds for the Bears (20-14), who led by 11 points in the second half but had to hold off the Bulldogs in the final seconds — and even tenths of seconds. Josh Hubbard had 26 points to lead the Bulldogs (21-13), who were seeking their first March Madness victory since 2008. Wright's driving, underhanded, left-handed layup gave Baylor a 37-32 lead at halftime, its biggest to that point. A free throw by Omier made it 60-49 with 8:10 remaining. But the Bulldogs stormed back and cut the lead to one with 29 seconds left when KeShawn Murphy scored in the lane on a baby hook. The Bulldogs fouled Edgecombe with 9.3 seconds left and the Big 12 freshman of the year made both. Claudell Harris Jr airballed a 3-pointer with a chance to tie the game with 1.1 seconds left. Omier was fouled on the inbounds play and the game was seemingly over. But more time was put on the clock and Omier missed the front end of a 1-and-1. The Bulldogs grabbed the rebound with 0.2 seconds left and called timeout. Hubbard's 3-pointer at the buzzer was no good, although it may not have counted. Takeaways Baylor: Coach Scott Drew's Bears entered the tournament having lost six of their last 10 games, but survived this time. It was Drew's 21st NCAA Tournament victory. Mississippi State: This is the third time in as many seasons that coach Chris Jans led the Bulldogs to the NCAA Tournament. Before his arrival, the program had reached March Madness just once since 2010. Up next Baylor advanced to Sunday's second round to face the Mount St. Mary's-Duke winner. ___ AP March Madness bracket: and coverage: Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. recommended
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Baylor holds off Mississippi State in final seconds to win 75-72 in March Madness
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Robert Wright scored 19 points, V.J. Edgecombe added 16 and No. 9 Baylor squeaked past No. 8 Mississippi State 75-72 on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Langston Love added 15 points and Norchad Omier had 12 points and nine rebounds for the Bears (20-14), who led by 11 points in the second half but had to hold off the Bulldogs in the final seconds — and even tenths of seconds. Josh Hubbard had 26 points to lead the Bulldogs (21-13), who were seeking their first March Madness victory since 2008. Wright's driving, underhanded, left-handed layup gave Baylor a 37-32 lead at halftime, its biggest to that point. A free throw by Omier made it 60-49 with 8:10 remaining. But the Bulldogs stormed back and cut the lead to one with 29 seconds left when KeShawn Murphy scored in the lane on a baby hook. The Bulldogs fouled Edgecombe with 9.3 seconds left and the Big 12 freshman of the year made both. Claudell Harris Jr airballed a 3-pointer with a chance to tie the game with 1.1 seconds left. Omier was fouled on the inbounds play and the game was seemingly over. But more time was put on the clock and Omier missed the front end of a 1-and-1. The Bulldogs grabbed the rebound with 0.2 seconds left and called timeout. Hubbard's 3-pointer at the buzzer was no good, although it may not have counted. Takeaways Baylor: Coach Scott Drew's Bears entered the tournament having lost six of their last 10 games, but survived this time. It was Drew's 21st NCAA Tournament victory. Mississippi State: This is the third time in as many seasons that coach Chris Jans led the Bulldogs to the NCAA Tournament. Before his arrival, the program had reached March Madness just once since 2010. Up next Baylor advanced to Sunday's second round to face the Mount St. Mary's-Duke winner. ___ AP March Madness bracket: and coverage: Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here.
