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New York Times
21-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
How to watch Marquette vs. New Mexico: Odds, storylines for men's NCAA Tournament matchup
Coach Shaka Smart has built Marquette into a consistent NCAA Tournament team. The Golden Eagles have made the tournament in each of Smart's three seasons. Second-team All-American guard Kam Jones is the player to watch for Marquette. Meanwhile, the Mountain West regular season champions are propelled by their leading scorer, Donovon Dent. Jones and Dent are electric, so look for both players to put on a show. Advertisement New Mexico fell in the tournament's first round last year, but Marquette comes into this game not playing their best basketball. Can the Lobos pull the upset? We've got a breakdown of the strengths and weaknesses on both sides of the matchup, plus odds and viewing info. Our game previews are a collaborative effort between The Athletic staff, The Field of 68 and Brad Evans' The Gaming Juice. Dive into March Madness with The Athletic Projecting the bracket | Best picks to win the title Strengths: No team in college basketball maximizes possessions like Marquette. The Golden Eagles are top 15 in the country in offensive turnover rate and defensive turnover rate. The only other team that can make that claim since 2017 is last year's Houston squad, which was on track to make the Final Four before Jamal Shead's injury. The catalyst for Marquette is its defensive ball pressure. Stevie Mitchell is an elite on-ball defender, and so is Chase Ross. Shaka Smart isn't exactly reigniting the 'Havoc' defensive system from his VCU days, but he is not afraid to lean into the pressure his guards can provide on opposing backcourts. Weaknesses: The Golden Eagles struggle with rim protection. Ben Gold has not taken the leap many expected, and the young bigs are … well, they're young. One of the downsides of a defense that gambles for turnovers is the lane is left open — opponents shoot 52 percent on 2-pointers. The other notable issue for the Golden Eagles is they don't shoot 3-pointers as well as it's needed. Marquette has hovered right around 32 percent from beyond the arc all season. The offense is predicated on creating space for Kam Jones to operate, and if shooters aren't making shots, the space isn't there. Outlook: Jones was the best player in college basketball in November. He was playing like a First-Team All-American through January, but he has come back to earth a bit in conference play. Part of that is due to league foes knowing the scouting report on him better than anyone, but that would matter less if the senior guard's supporting cast was playing at a higher level. Jones is capable of putting this team on his back and carrying them to the second weekend, if not deeper. But for that to happen, David Joplin and Chase Ross must play well. If they don't, Marquette is a team that could get picked off in the first round. —Rob Dauster Strengths: Younger Pitino has followed in his legendary father's footsteps, instituting sound defensive principles that have guided his team to the Dance. The Mountain West regular season champions create chaos. They're top five in adjusted tempo nationally, and their frenetic pace and relentless on-ball pressure twist teams into a pretzel. Pre-tourney, they forced a turnover on 20.4 percent of opponent possessions. Strong around the rim — grabbing rebounds, scoring and altering shots — New Mexico packs the paint with considerable zeal. With an intimidating frontline of Nelly Junior Joseph, Mustapha Amzil and Filip Borovicanin, the Lobos won't be pushed around inside. Advertisement Weaknesses: Offensively, the Albuquerque reps didn't play at peak elevation in the regular season. In the 30 days leading up to the postseason, they ranked outside the top 140 in adjusted offensive efficiency, netting a mediocre 1.095 points per possession. Though the Lobos stroke it fairly well from outside, only 25.8 percent of their points came via the 3-pointer. They also converted under 70 percent on free throws. Lacking a deep bench, it'll be important to stay out of foul trouble. Despite its lopsided overall record, New Mexico has visible flaws. Outlook: Channeling the free spirit of Bill Walton (RIP!), New Mexico, at times, flows beautifully like the mighty waters of the Rio Grande. Their frontcourt can bang with anyone, and when the triples fall from Dent, Tru Washington and CJ Noland, they are a very tough customer — don't forget they defeated UCLA and VCU in non-conference play. Draw is everything, but the under-the-radar Lobos have the potential to lash out. —Brad Evans (Photo of Kam Jones: Patrick McDermott / Getty Images)
New York Times
18-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
The most likely upsets in the East Region for the 2025 Men's NCAA Tournament
The East Region is home to our model's second-favorite upset. Can VCU topple BYU (and keep going from there)? Below, you'll find a game-by-game analysis of every first-round matchup with Bracket Breaker implications in the East. As a reminder, to qualify as a Bracket Breaker game, opponents need to be separated by at least five seeds (which is why we don't cover 8 vs. 9 or 7 vs. 10 games). Our analysis adjusts teams' basic strengths according to how closely they statistically resemble favorites and underdogs from past tournaments and, where appropriate, by style matchups. We can't tell you how to pick — that depends on how richly your pool rewards deep upsets and your risk tolerance. But if you're interested in how our model works, check out this piece. Advertisement You'll also find links to the other regions as we post them, and stay tuned later in the week for upset odds for every potential second-round matchup. Odds from BetMGM. For more March Madness coverage, check out all of our bracket advice. More Bracket Breakers: Men's Top 10 Upsets | West Region Preview | South | Midwest (coming soon) | Women's Top 10 Upsets Upset Chance: 43.1 percent The more things change in college basketball, the more they stay the same. VCU is on its third head coach since Shaka Smart left for Texas, and the Rams still epitomize the quintessential giant killer. Ryan Odom's system may not be the same as the Havoc of VCU's Final Four run, but it produces similar results, particularly on defense. VCU forces turnovers on 20.6 percent of opponents' possessions and holds foes to the lowest effective field goal percentage in the nation (44.4 percent). If that's not enough, the Rams employ bracket-breaking tactics on offense, too, taking 47 percent of their shots from three-point range (27th in the nation) and grabbing 36.7 percent of their own misses (12th). It's almost as if Slingshot conjured their existence. That's the first case in favor of VCU. The second is far more basic: The Rams are simply almost as well as the Cougars. BYU is ranked 24th by with an adjusted net rating of +22.4; VCU is 30th at +20.6. A difference of fewer than two points per 100 possessions is minimal, to say the least. Then there's our model's similar games function. Six of the 10 historical Bracket Breakers games most similar to this one ended in an upset, including last year's matchup between Duquesne and … BYU. With all of these signs pointing toward VCU, it's a wonder that BYU is even favored. But the Cougars are a strong team, featuring the country's 11th-rated offense and 28th-ranked defensive rebounding, which means it will be strength on strength at both ends of the floor. The Cougars could get themselves in trouble due to their reliance on 3-point shooting (especially against VCU's perimeter defense), but the Cougars hit 37 percent of those shots, so if they're cooking, they'll be a tough out for anyone, let alone VCU. Advertisement It's also worth noting that if you like VCU to beat BYU, you might as well take them to reach the Sweet 16. Our model gives the Rams a 44.3 percent chance of knocking off Wisconsin. Upset Chance: 31.4 percent Last week, we identified Oregon as one of Slingshot's most vulnerable high seeds, largely because the Ducks fall into a statistical family we call 'Generic Giants.' In the simplest terms, they don't do any single thing particularly well, using a fairly well-rounded approach to beat most teams, but without any of the possession-building characteristics that are the hallmark of safer favorites. These types of teams fall at a much higher rate in the tournament, and that's the main reason why the upset odds are so high for this game. In fact, it has very little to do with Liberty. The Flames actually have a negative 'secret sauce' — our model's statistical adjustment based on how much an underdog resembles successful killers of the past. They do have one weapon going for them: They shoot a ton of 3s (48 percent of shots) and make them at a 39.5 percent clip, led by Taelon Peter (13.9 ppg, 46.6 3PT%). Importantly, four of the 10 most similar games ended in upsets, including two of the top three (Texas/Northern Iowa in 2016 and Providence/Dayton in 2015). Upset Chance: 13.9 percent Speaking of teams Slingshot doesn't like, it also had words for Wisconsin last week. The Badgers may have reinvented their offense, but they've also adopted a style that's not conducive to safety — heavily reliant on 3-pointers, poor offensive rebounding and not a lot of forced turnovers. But Montana offers even fewer positive qualities when it comes to generating upsets. The Grizzlies are even worse at offensive rebounding (347th in the country) and forcing turnovers (290th). In fact, they don't stop anyone, allowing an abysmal 110.4 adjusted points per 100 possessions (250th in the nation). That's why they lost by 31 points to Oregon, by 35 against Tennessee and by 28 (allowing 104 points) to Northern Iowa. Advertisement None of the 10 most similar games in our model ended in an upset. And this one isn't likely to either. Upset Chance: 12.1 percent This has been a trendy upset pick among various pundits, but Slingshot doesn't share their enthusiasm. It sees Arizona as a really good team — ninth in our basic power ratings — that also boosts its safety with outstanding offensive rebounding (35.9 percent, 19th in the country). Meanwhile, the model is less enthusiastic about the Zips. Yes, they're a high-volume 3-point shooting team (45.4 percent of field-goal attempts), and the Johnson and Johnson backcourt of Nate (14 ppg) and Tavari (13 ppg, 39 percent 3PT) is dangerous. But Akron has several flaws. The Zips play too fast (successful underdogs tend to favor a slower style), and they don't excel on the boards or in forcing turnovers. Only one of the 10 most similar games ended in an upset, and most of the other nine were blowouts for the favorite. Upset Chance: 6.3 percent Robert Morris is named after the 'financier of the American Revolution.' But unless his university can start financing a lot more NIL money, the Colonials can't hang with the likes of Alabama. Mark Sears and Co. play at the nation's fastest pace, score inside and out, and grab 34.7 percent of their rare misses. That's just too much for Robert Morris, although any team with a 6-foot-7, 185-pound wing who blocks 2.4 shots per game gets our respect. (Kudos, Amarion Dickerson.) Upset Chance: American, 6.4 percent; St. Mary's, 4.1 percent With or without Cooper Flagg, don't expect the Blue Devils to struggle against either potential opponent. None of the 10 most similar games — for either potential matchup — ended in an upset. American is ranked 237th at KenPom and lost by 52 points to North Carolina (whom you might recall losing to Duke three times). Mount St. Mary's is 250th and turns the ball over on 22 percent of its own possessions, the sixth-worst mark in Division I. (Top photo of Ryan Odom:; Illustration: Will Tullos, The Athletic)
USA Today
16-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
When is First Four for March Madness? Schedule, dates, location for men's play-in games
When is First Four for March Madness? Schedule, dates, location for men's play-in games What time is the First Four? Here's the schedule, dates for the play-in round of the 2025 men's March Madness bracket. Show Caption Hide Caption Auburn, Florida lead stacked SEC men's basketball tournament The SEC men's basketball tournament is setting up to be an exciting one with a potential for a major impact on the March Madness field. Sports Seriously The First Four features four play-in games for the 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket. The winners advance to March Madness first round. Two teams that have played in the First Four have advanced to the Final Four: VCU in 2011 and UCLA in 2021. The First Four typically features the lowest-seeded automatic qualifiers and at-large teams. Each year, March Madness is filled with exciting storylines and heroic moments. But the excitement, pageantry and tradition that comes with the three-week NCAA Tournament doesn't start with the first round. It starts in Dayton, Ohio with the First Four. REQUIRED READING: March Madness bracket release date: Selection Sunday start time, how to watch, more Eight Division I men's college basketball teams will travel to the University of Dayton's UD Arena to compete in a two-night play-in tournament on the college campus with one shared goal in mind: get into the field. It's part of what makes March Madness a tournament like no other. Since it was added to the men's NCAA Tournament format in 2011, there have been just two teams that have made it from the First Four to the Final Four: Shaka Smart's VCU Rams in 2011 and Mick Cronin's UCLA Bruins in 2021. Who will make the First Four in 2025? That will be answered in just a few hours, when the entire field of 68 is announced on CBS during the Selection Sunday bracket reveal show. Here's what you need to know about when the First Four is for the men's NCAA Tournament, including a history of the First Four and more: When is the First Four for men's March Madness? Dates: Tuesday, March 18 through Wednesday, March 19 First Four games for the 2025 men's NCAA Tournament will take place on Tuesday, March 18 and Wednesday, March 19. The four games will be split, two apiece, across Tuesday and Wednesday. Those that win the First Four games on Tuesday will advance to first-round games of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday, March 20. Those that win the First Four games on Wednesday will advance to first-round games on Friday, March 21 — all told, a quick turnaround with travel and game prep for the winners of First Four games. Where is the First Four for men's March Madness? Location: UD Arena (Dayton, Ohio) The First Four will be once again played on the campus of the University of Dayton at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio. The 2025 NCAA Tournament is the 13th time that the First Four will take place at UD Arena since the play-in tournament was added to the overall NCAA Tournament in 2011. The lone two years that the First Four didn't take place at UD Arena was in 2020, when the entire March Madness tournament was canceled due to COVID-19. In 2021, the NCAA brought the whole tournament to the state of Indiana for a "bubble site." Who plays in the First Four? Explaining NCAA Tournament play-in games As previously noted by The Enquirer, part of the USA TODAY Network, the First Four is composed of the four lowest-seeded automatic qualifiers and the four lowest-seeded at-large teams. Though it is not officially the first round of the NCAA Tournament, it does represent the first round of games played in March Madness. Traditionally, the First Four consists of four teams that will play for a 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament, while the other four will be fighting for an 11 seed. However, there have been First Fours where teams are playing for two 12-, 13- and 14-seed lines. Last year's First Four was the first to include teams fighting for a 10 seed. First Four history Here's a full list how past First Four games have gone since it began in 2011: 2011 (11) UTSA 70, Alabama State 61 Alabama State 61 (12) Clemson 70, UAB 52 UAB 52 (16) UNC-Asheville 81, Arkansas-Little Rock 77 Arkansas-Little Rock 77 (16) VCU 59, USC 46 2012 (12) South Florida 65, Cal 54 Cal 54 (14) Vermont 71, Lamar 59 Lamar 59 (16) BYU 78, Iona 54 Iona 54 (16) Western Kentucky 59, Mississippi Valley State 2013 (11) Saint Mary's 67, Middle Tennessee 54 Middle Tennessee 54 (13) La Salle 80, Boise State 71 Boise State 71 (16) North Carolina A&T 73, Liberty 72 Liberty 72 (16) James Madison 67, LIU-Brooklyn 55 2014 (11) Tennessee 78, Iowa 65 Iowa 65 (12) NC State 74, Xavier 59 Xavier 59 (16) Albany 71, Mount St. Mary's 64 Mount St. Mary's 64 (16) Cal Poly 81, Texas Southern 69 2015 (11) Dayton 56, Boise State 55 Boise State 55 (11) Ole Miss 94, BYU 90 BYU 90 (16) Hampton 74, Manhattan 64 Manhattan 64 (16) Robert Morris 81, North Florida 77 2016 (11) Michigan 67, Tulsa 62 Tulsa 62 (11) Wichita State 70, Vanderbilt 50 Vanderbilt 50 (16) Florida Gulf Coast 96, Fairleigh Dickinson 65 Fairleigh Dickinson 65 (16) Holy Cross 59, Southern 55 2017 (11) Kansas State 95, Wake Forest 88 Wake Forest 88 (11) USC 75, Providence 71 Providence 71 (16) UC Davis 67, North Carolina Central 63 North Carolina Central 63 (16) Mount St. Mary's 67, New Orleans 66 2018 (11) St. Bonaventure 65, UCLA 58 UCLA 58 (11) Syracuse 60, Arizona State 56 Arizona State 56 (16) Radford 71, LIU-Brooklyn 61 LIU-Brooklyn 61 (16) Texas Southern 64, North Carolina Central 46 2019 (11) Arizona State 74, St. John's 65 St. John's 65 (11) Belmont 81, Temple 70 Temple 70 (16) North Dakota State 78, North Carolina Central 74 North Carolina Central 74 (16) Fairleigh Dickinson 82, Prairie View A&M 76 2021 (11) UCLA 86, Michigan State 80 Michigan State 80 (11) Drake 53, Wichita State 52 Wichita State 52 (16) Norfolk State 54, Appalachian State 53 Appalachian State 53 (16) Texas Southern 60, Mount St. Mary's 52 2022 (11) Notre Dame 89, Rutgers 87 Rutgers 87 (12) Indiana 66, Wyoming 58 Wyoming 58 (16) Texas Southern 76, Texas A&M Corpus Christi 67 Texas A&M Corpus Christi 67 (16) Wright State 93, Bryant 82 2023 (11) Pitt 60, Mississippi State 59 Mississippi State 59 (11) Arizona State 98, Nevada 73 Nevada 73 (16) Texas A&M Corpus Christi 75, SE Missouri State 71 SE Missouri State 71 (16) Fairleigh Dickinson 84, Texas Southern 61 2024
NBC Sports
13-03-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Smart, Jones react to unreal performance at MSG
Shaka Smart and Kam Jones break down how Marquette came back to beat Xavier in the second round of the Big East Tournament.
NBC Sports
28-02-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
How to watch No. 21 Marquette vs Georgetown: Live stream info, preview for Saturday's Big East matchup
The No. 21 Marquette Golden Eagles face the Georgetown Hoyas this Saturday night at 8 PM on Peacock. Marquette leads the all-time series 24-14 and has won the last seven consecutive meetings against Georgetown, dating back to 2022. See below for everything you need to know about Saturday's Marquette vs Georgetown match up, as well as additional information on how to watch college basketball on Peacock. The Golden Eagles, in their fourth season under head coach Shaka Smart, are aiming for their fourth straight NCAA appearance. The team is currently ranked third in the Big East standings following a dominant 82-52 win against Providence on Tuesday. The Golden Eagles made a season-high 17 three-pointers in the win. Senior guard Kam Jones hit four of those shots from beyond the arc, finishing with 17 points and 7 assists in his 44th consecutive game scoring in double figures, tying the longest active streak in the nation. Junior forward Ben Gold also set a career-high, scoring 17 points. 'We were just in great positions to hunt out threes. We were aggressive,' said Gold after the win. 'We were also just helping each other get open. Whether it was just attacking in space and kicking out. We're all ready to shoot. We know we're a high-level shooting team. We do it every single day. We put the work in. It's good to see it go in, but we know that it's not just a one-off thing.' Georgetown is coming off a tough 93-79 defeat against UConn on Wednesday. The Hoyas are trying to adjust without standout freshman Thomas Sorber, who underwent season-ending surgery on Wednesday for a left foot injury. Sorber, a Big East Freshman of the Year contender, is the team's second-leading scorer (14 ppg) and leads the Hoyas in blocks per game (2.0). In his absence, UConn dominated inside, scoring 48 of its 93 points in the paint and outscoring Georgetown, 30-3, in second-chance points. 'This is back-to-back games where we've given up 80- something plus points,' said Georgetown head coach Ed Cooley after the loss. 'We've just got to figure out what we [need] to do with our physicality in order to make sure we try to get to that last four-minute war, to give our men a chance to win.' The Hoyas, currently seventh in Big East standings, will likely need to win the Big East Tournament to secure their first NCAA Tournament appearance under head coach Cooley. How to watch Marquette vs Georgetown: When: Saturday, March 1 Where: Capital One Arena, Washington DC Time: 8 PM ET Live Stream: Peacock What other college basketball games are on Peacock this Saturday? Indiana vs Washington - 6 PM ET How do I watch basketball games on Peacock? Keep up with the college basketball excitement by subscribing to Peacock. Then, either go to in your web browser or download the Peacock app on your phone, tablet, or streaming device and navigate to the Sports section. Find the LIVE game you want to watch and start streaming.. Are all Big East Basketball games available to watch on Peacock? A total of 30 Big East Men's Basketball games will be available to watch LIVE on Peacock. 25 during the regular season and 5 conference tournament games. What devices does Peacock support? You can enjoy Peacock on a variety of devices. View the full list of supported devices here. Students, now you can get Peacock at a special discount — just $1.99/mo for 12 months. Visit Peacock to learn more and get started
