Despite a couple of early March Madness upsets, the Brooklyn region ended with (1) UConn (East) and (4) Duke (South) advancing to the Sweet Sixteen.
In between UConn and Duke’s blowout victories were two upsets of varying closeness, with Northwestern pulling off an overtime win over last year’s darlings, FAU, and James Madison proved to be the better team compared to Wisconsin, handily defeating the Badgers in the round of 64. But it was the Huskies and Blue Devils that ended up winning in Brooklyn, mos(t) def(initely).
Brooklyn Region Most Outstanding Player
Donovan Clingan, UConn
Averaging a double-double and four blocks per game in a section of the NCAA tournament? Impressive. The 7-2 sophomore and projected lottery pick dominated both Stetson and Northwestern, especially the Wildcats. Spoiler alert, but none of those blocks came against the Hatters. Clingan ended up with a 14-14-1-8 statline against Northwestern, and that eight numeral was for the eight send-backs of Wildcat shots he ended up with in just 27 minutes of action. Just absolute domination over here from the Bristol, Connecticut native.
Brooklyn Region First Team
- G: Jeremy Roach, Duke – 2 gP (14.5 PPG, 5.5 APG, 3.0 RPG, 1.5 SPG, 58.3 FG%, 58.8 3P%)
- G: Jared McCain, Duke – 2 gP (22.5 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 2.0 APG, 1.0 SPG)
- G: Ryan Langborg, Northwestern – 2 GP (20.0 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 1.5 APG, 2.0 SPG, 61.5 FG%, 50.0 3P%)
- G: Tristen Newton, UConn – 2 GP (16.5 PPG, 9.0 APG, 3.0 RPG, 1.0 SPG, 57.1 FG%)
- C: Donovan Clingan, UConn – 2 GP (16.5 PPG, 11.0 RPG, 2.5 APG, 4.0 BPG, 77.8 FG%)
3 Takeaways
#1: UConn has a great chance to become 2006-07 Florida
The Huskies won it all last year, of course, but they might (probably, even) have a better team than last season. All that stands between them and a repeat is four games, albeit against very good teams. But if there’s a team that’s had the potential to repeat in recent history, it’s this one. Connecticut has dominated ever since their last loss to Creighton over a month ago, and there’s no sign of them slowing down.
Most importantly, maybe, this team is just oh-so-balanced. They play at a solid pace, not too fast or too slow, have NBA talent, a great coach, and the best roster in the sport. It’s a simple yet somehow still underrated foundation that Hurley has built here in Storrs, and they’re playing at the highest level in college basketball in the nation for the second straight March in a row.
#2: Duke might actually be underrated
Sure, maybe the Blue Devils are a large contingency of America’s least favorite team. And maybe Flip definitely tried to Grayson Allen his opponent against UNC, and everyone and their momma is going for Houston in the Sweet Sixteen. But this is a 4-seed that’s ranked 6th in the KenPom ratings, ahead of Iowa State, Tennessee, Marquette, and their in-state rival Tar Heels.
Jared McCain is playing at an insane clip recently, and the type of performance that the Blue Devils just put together against James Madison could really beat any defense in the field. It was just such a great performance. A 38-point victory in the Round of 32 as a -6.5 favorite is insanity. Duke the underdog? Let’s see what happens. The Blue Devils haven’t beaten a team with a better seed than them in the tournament since the 1990s. I’m not joking. That’s a fact. (I saw it on Twitter.)
#3: Chris Collins is severely underappreciated
Before Chris Collins, Northwestern basketball had never made the tournament. That’s true. Since Collins got to campus in 2013, the Wildcats have made it three times, winning a game last year (Boise State) and this year (the aforementioned overtime victory over FAU) as the trajectory of the program has changed drastically. If there’s a Power 6 (Power 5 once Arizona’s season ends) program that’s just never had success historically, it’s Northwestern. If there’s a Power 6 coach that deserves much more flowers than he currently gets, it’s the 49-year-old former Blue Devil.
Lookahead for UConn
The Huskies are sitting pretty. First off, a rematch of last year’s national championship against the Aztecs, this time in the Sweet Sixteen. Then, either an Elite Eight matchup against a team with an elite defense and slightly-above average offense (Iowa State) or a team with an elite offense and slightly-below average defense (Illinois). The Cyclones haven’t lost since Mar. 9 and the Illini haven’t lost since Mar. 5. One of those streaks will end before they (presumably) play UConn in the Elite Eight, but there’s a good chance that the surviving streak will break after 40 minutes against the Huskies. This team is simply too good.
Lookahead for Duke
The road gets much more difficult for Duke at this point. In all actuality, putting aside any reasonable discussion, if they were to win the national championship, their most difficult contest might still be the upcoming Sweet Sixteen matchup. That’s because they’re playing Houston, who, despite three season-ending injuries and a recent marathon victory in overtime against Texas A&M, still has the best defense in the country. Get past Houston, and then we’ll talk. But the Blue Devils are coming off arguably their best offensive performance of the year, shooting 50.0% from deep, while Houston just allowed 95 to the Aggies. Welcome to the Twilight Zone.