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NCAA and NIT Basketball Tournaments in New York

New York, New York will find both the NCAA and NIT basketball tournaments playing at its prestigious Madison Square Garden this week

MSG the site of one of four men’s NCAA quarterfinals Thursday and Friday, NIT will play its Final Four there

By Arnie Leshin | March 21, 2017

With all due respect to Greensboro, N.C., Jim Boeheim was right, the “Big Apple” is the most appetizing place to hold basketball tournaments.

Before the NCAA tournament brackets were known, the long-time Syracuse head coach spoke out against holding the ACC tournament in Greensboro when a place like Madison Square Garden is the place to be, the Mecca of arenas, the center of all courts.

Now that the Orange had to settle for the NIT and lost at the Carrier Dome in the second round, Boeheim could still say that he told you so as he tunes in to both tournaments playing where he wanted them to be, and said so.

With the National Invitational Tournament Final Four and final to again be played at MSG, the NCAA tourney will take over the place for Friday’s East Regional quarterfinals matching 3rd seeded Baylor (27-7) against 7th seeded South Carolina (24-10), and 4th seeded Florida (26-8) versus 8th seeded Wisconsin (27-9).

The Bears and Gamecocks play game one.

The three other quarters are, as usual, spread around the land.

The other Friday doubleheader is the South Regional at the FedEx Forum in Memphis, Tenn.

Here, No. 1 seed North Carolina (29-7) will play game one against 4th seed Butler (25-8), and 3rd seed UCLA (31-4) will follow versus 2nd seed Kentucky (31-5).

But the sprint to the finals in Dallas, Tex, will tip-off Thursday.

In the Midwest Regional at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Kan., 3rd seeded Oregon (31-5) leads off against 7th seeded Michigan. Game two pairs No 1 seed Kansas (30-4) with 4th seeded Purdue (27-7).

And at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., the West Regional lines up the opener between 2nd seeded Arizona (32-4) and 11th seeded Xavier (23-13), then No. 1 seed Gonzaga (34-1) takes on 4th seeded West Virginia (28-8).

Three schools each from the SEC, the Pac 12, Big 12 and Big 10, one each from the ACC and Big East, plus Gonzaga and Xavier from other than the power conferences.

One note, Baylor, Oregon, South Carolina and UCLA are the only schools with teams still left among the men and women. But while the men’s field is evenly balanced, the women have the toughest road with 11-time national champion, undefeated UConn, in quest of a fifth-straight title and having won a record 109 consecutive games.

As for the men, defending champion, No. 1 seed Villanova, was dethroned against Wisconsin. That left the other top seeds, Kansas, North Carolina and Gonzaga. It left the millions of bracket-pickers hoping for their choices to come through, but there’s also the drama, the nervousness, and the excitement of March Madness at the Big Dance.

With just a quick check of who’s still dancing, KANSAS has a true star in Jose Jackson, has gone through a tough Big 12 conference, and is well coached and good in all phases of the game.

NORTH CAROLINA, which lost in last year’s final, has the size but has also been inconsistent in close contests and needs its guards to mesh with its big guys. If this happens, the Tar Heels will be tough to get past.

GONZAGA has lost once, to BYU at home, and has the confidence, height and savvy guards, plus a chip on its shoulder.

Then there’s KENTUCKY and its usually talented freshmen looking to the NBA college draft and trading in academics for a lot of money. But before that, the Wildcats like to hoist the championship trophy, and certainly, when on their game, can beat anyone.

ARIZONA Is very capable of making a run with its inside strength, experienced guard play, and an impressive, well-rounded offense. Now if it can combine that with an improved defense, it’s right there.

UCLA has elite freshmen in do-it-all Lonzo Ball and 6-10 T.J. Leaf. Once it gets going with its transition game and outside shooting, and can play better defense, its first seven can play with anyone.

BAYLOR has been on a roller-coaster ride in the latter part of the campaign, has lost six of its last 11 starts, but the Bears are still in the hunt and could easily return to their mid-season strength.

OREGON is getting by with its big man, Chris Borcher, injured and out, and has switched to more of a running game and several defenses to offset the loss of Borcher. Can still be a threat.

FLORIDA comes in with the offensive juice that has been good and bad, but its defensive is fierce. When it can combine the two, the Gators must be feared.

BUTLER has tournament experience, the smarts, and the talent to score from the outside and smartly penetrate to the basket. The defense is sound.

PURDUE won the Big 10 regular season and had a strong run despite losing in its conference tournament to Michigan in overtime. The Boilermakers need a more divertive attack and strong play from their big guys.

WEST VIRGINIA got past a good Notre Dame team and proved it can also win away from home. The Mountaineers have a very able head coach in Bob Huggins, a unique style of aggressive defense, and when they’re on, they are a real challenge.

MICHIGAN has been the feel-good story after its airplane failed to get off the ground and having to do a rush-act to get to its next game. It did, it has played its best of the up-and-down season, and is a legit threat.

SOUTH CAROLINA eliminated Duke, has one of the better players in athletic Sindarius Thornwell, and is on a current roll after a strong start mixed with a sub-par stretch run. Plus, the Gamcocks are now playing with confidence.

WISCONSIN is blessed with tournament savvy, a skilled group of guards to operate the hold-the-ball offense, and a sticky defense, so its no surprise it made it this far.

Then there’s11th seed XAVIER, which lost two of its best players to mid-season injuries, but has put together a strong run behind a rejuvenated bench and smart coaching. It began the season as a top-10 team.

Oh, and Boeheim had to rethink planning his retirement. He had said he would hang it up after next season, but with the coach-to-be assistant Mike Hopkins signing to be head coach at Washington, Boeheim has signed for yet another season with his alma mater,

NIT QUARTERFINALS:

Tuesday:

Georgia Tech (19-15) at Mississippi (22-13) AND

Richmond (22-12) at TCU (21-15)

Wednesday: Cal State Bakersfield (24-9) at Texas-Arlington (27-8) AND

Illinois (20-14) at Central Florida (23-11)

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