LEXINGTON, Ky. – Picking up wins in the NCAA Tournament depends on the matchups.
The SEC had a monumental season and placed 14 teams in the tournament. Still, the pre-conference, in-conference schedule, and conference tournament accolades are not an entity in NCAA Tournament play.
It’s game by game. Check out the matchups and how you exploit your next opponent to advance.
Auburn and Tennessee did an outstanding job of eliminating the three-point shooting Creighton Blue Jays and defensively locking down the UCLA Bruins, respectively.
Tigers’ Second-Half Defense Expels Blue Jays: Creighton pushed Auburn in the first half as the Blue Jays made 9-of-14 threes and took a 37-35 lead at the break.
The Tigers’ second half harkened back to their SEC play in the days leading up to their outright SEC regular season crown.
“Very proud of my team,” exclaimed Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl. “We played Auburn basketball. We played like the number one team in the country. We acted like the number one team in the country. We prepared like the number one team in the country.”
Chad Baker-Mazara set the tone to begin the second half by scoring 11 of his 17 points in the first 6:28 as Auburn took a 53-50 lead with 13:32 to play.
He went out with a hip injury about 13:30 remaining in the game, but later reentered the contest.
He started an 18-4 Tigers run which was the turning point in the game. When Tahaad Pettiford took over the game on offense, he read Creighton’s defense well in knowing when to drive to the basket or pull up for key jumpers, and he showed his leadership in running the offense and finding shooters.
Pettiford extended the Tigers’ lead to 64-54 with 8:21 remaining when he nailed two pull-up jumpers in the run.
“Just playing the offense,” explained Pettiford. “We knew the shots that we were going to get, just getting in the gym and working on those types of shots and being ready for the situation.”
Auburn’s defense rose to its elite level in this run as it held Creighton to 2-of-9 from the floor with one turnover on 12 possessions during the 18-4 sprint.
Auburn guard Denver Jones has turned into a defensive stopper for the Tigers as his play once again elevated the team’s efficiency.
“The way we play defense is challenging already, just coming from another school, but I wanted to be one of the best two-way guards in the league, and that was one of the main things I focused on, especially this offseason,” said Jones.
The win placed the Tigers in the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2019 when they went to the Final Four.
“In the first half, our bigs were playing too far back from their men and were not able to get out there and impact those ball screens and keep Creighton on the perimeter,” said Pearl.
The Blue Jays won 24 games and turned into a team that was known as a top three-point shooting squad. Steven Ashworth on the point and the athletic Jamiya Neal became the primary matchup, although Ryan Kalkbrenner came into the season as the focal point for Creighton.
The 6-10 Jackson McAndrew is also a tough matchup as he is a lethal three-point shooter.
“Baker-Mazara, Denver Jones and Pettiford absolutely got us, got us in space,” said Creighton head coach Greg McDermott.
Vols Defense Stops Bruins: Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes is a defensive architect and the Volunteers administered this team philosophy in the 67-58 win over the UCLA Bruins.
After center Aday Mara gave UCLA a 25-24 lead with 3:21 to play in the first half, Tennessee’s Jordan Gainey hit a three off the left base and a pair of free throws before Chaz Lanier gave the Volunteers a 32-25 halftime lead with a layup.
“We went into the locker room with a lot of energy because we knew it was gonna be a dogfight going into the game,” commented Zeigler. “You knew it was gonna be a lot of ups and downs, but the last couple of minutes in the first half, we had a lot of energy. Getting turnovers and those loud plays, it really picked us up.”
Lanier had eight of his game-high 20 points in the first six minutes as the Vols built a 46-31 lead and controlled the Bruins to secure the win and make it back to the Sweet 16 for the third year in a row, a school record.
“I don’t think we are where we need to be with our ball screen defense, and everybody does it,” Barnes noted. “I think you’ve got to be elite there, especially this time of year.”
Tennessee used traps late in the first half as the Vols were successful in their 1-2-2 half-court trap. It was part of a defensive game plan that forced the Bruins into turnovers. They only shot 37 percent and 7-of-23 from three.
The Volunteers outrebounded the Bruins, 36-26, and scored 13 points off of 12 offensive boards.
“That’s all we’ve talked about for two days is our post guys being effective at rebounding the ball for us, need to get extra possessions on the offensive end, gotta do it on the defensive end,” explained Barnes. “That’s something we talked about and we haven’t done a great job the last couple weeks with it.”
Zakai Zeigler scored 15 points and dished six assists in 38 minutes and his three off the left wing gave Tennessee its largest lead at 61-42 with 5:15 to play.
UCLA allowed opponents only 52 shot attempts per game (9th/CBB) and the Bruins gave up just 65 points per game (22nd/CBB).
“They’re really good,” said UCLA head coach Mick Cronin. “They play tremendous defense. When you do set a good screen, usually they switch it and I would tell you — first of all, I don’t think they’re little things. You guys call them little things, I think they’re big things. I think they’re things that are not shooting the basketball.”
Guard Skyy Clark led the Bruins with 18 points, making four three-point field goals. Center Tyler Bilodeau had 15 and was 6-of-12 from the line.
The Volunteers go into the Sweet 16 with a 29-7 ledger as Tennessee has now passed 25 wins in nine seasons, six seasons under Barnes.
