The Tournament That Wasn't

[jksander]

There goes my pick for the national champ I'm gonna get on the San Diego State bandwagon, those guys are GREAT

[PointGuard]

Championship Game

#2 seed San Diego State Aztecs (35-2) vs #9 seed Cincinnati Bearcats (25-10)

Lineups:

San Diego State Aztecs
PG—Jarvis Brown, 6’5” Sr—12.8 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 4.6 apg, 1.0 spg, 0.4 bpg
SG—Isaac Haston, 6’2” So—13.4 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.4 apg, 1.0 spg, 1.0 bpg
SF—Jay Cobb, 6’6” So—10.2 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 0.8 apg, 1.2 spg, 0.6 bpg
PF—Tarise Johnson, 6’6” Jr—7.6 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 1.2 apg, 0.8 spg, 0.8 bpg
C—Corey Porter, 6’8” Fr—12.6 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 1.0 apg, 0.6spg, 0.6 bpg
6th man—C LaMarque Davali, 6’9” So—7.6 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 0.6 apg, 0.0 spg, 0.0 bpg

Cincinnati Bearcats
PG—Earl Blevins, 6’3” So—9.2 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 5.6 apg, 1.0 spg, 0.8 bpg
SG—Jon Cravens, 6’4” Jr—14.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.6 apg, 1.0 spg, 1.4 bpg
SF—Terrance Wolfe, 6’8” So—10.6 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1.4 spg, 1.2 bpg
PF—Darnell Harris, 6’7” Jr—8.6 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 1.0 apg, 0.4 spg, 0.3 bpg
C—Kevin Hansen, 6’10” Jr—14.8 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 1.4 apg, 1.6 spg, 1.6 bpg
6th man—C Matt Peskine, 6’9” Fr—7.2 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 1.2 apg, 0.4 spg, 0.2 bpg

Few people would have predicted these either of these teams would make it to the championship game, and hardly anyone could have predicted that both San Diego State and Cincinnati would be playing for the NCAA Championship. But both teams have come up with impressive victories, winning most of their games by solid margins but also have been able to prevail in exceptionally close games. The Aztecs come to this game having survived a breathtakingly close game against Iowa. The Bearcats overwhelmed Gonzaga for their second win over a #1 seed. That has resulted in the Las Vegas odds makers slightly favoring Cincinnati.

1st Half: San Diego took the tip but Cincinnati’s C Kevin Hansen intercepted a pass and the Bearcats then worked the ball around outside the arc until SF Terrance Wolfe got some daylight and lofted up a 3 that settled throught the net to make it 3-0. The Aztecs brought the ball into the forecourt and SF Jay Cobb tied the game with a long 3 from right of the key. San Diego State score the next 5 points as well. With both teams shooting well, Cincinnati worked hard to trim that lead and with 11-1/2 minutes left in the half, SG Jon Cravens knocked down a 3 to put the Bearcats back on top 19-17. After trading baskets for the following 5 minutes, the Aztecs moved in front 25-23 when C Corey Porter sank two free throws. San Diego then played tough defense to allow them to take a 35-31 advantage off the court at the half. That defense caused Cincinnati to turn the ball over 15 times in the half. So even though the Bearcats hit 57% of their first half shots, they just didn’t get that many opportunities. SF Jay Cobb was top scorer for San Diego State with 10 points. For Cincinnati, SF Terrance Wolfe and C Kevin Hansen both scored 6 points to lead their scoring. The only player in foul trouble was the Aztecs’ C Corey Porter with 3 fouls.

2nd Half: Cincinnati scored the first 6 points in the 2nd half to take a 2 point lead. San Diego State didn’t score until the 15:42 mark. With the Aztecs struggling to score, the Bearcats took a 50-39 lead with 10 minutes left in the game. San Diego State then scored 9 unanswered points to cut the lead to 2 with 6:48 remaining. Cincinnati then held onto a very small lead until PF Darnell Harris sank a 3 to put them ahead 61-55 with 3-1/2 minutes to go. SG Jon Cravens then hit another 3 with 3:18 on the clock to make it 64-56. San Diego State was unable to overcome that lead as the Cincinnati Bearcats became the National Champs!

Cincinnati outshot San Diego State 57% to 36% and out-rebounded the Aztecs 37-27. But the Bearcats had 27 turnovers compared to just 11 for San Diego State.

Cincinnati-76 (PF Darnell Harris-16 pts; SF Terrance Wolfe-12 pts, 5 reb, 1 steal, 2 blocks; SG Jon Cravens-11 pts; C Kevin Hanson-10 pts, 13 reb, 1 steal, 3 blocks; PG Earl Blevins-8 pts, 9 assists)
San Diego State-67 (SF Jay Cobb-19 pts; C Corey Porter-12 pts, 5 reb, 5 steals, 1 block)

San Diego State’s coach Brian Dutcher said, “We gave it all we had. Cincinnati’s defense kept us from getting clear shots and that just killed our shooting.”

“Man, I’m so proud of these guys. They just never give up. The Aztecs forced us to make a lot of mistakes but we made up for it by dominating the boards and hitting the shots when we were able to get them. Kevin Hansen was a beast inside and he also neutralized Corey Porter which was big for us. Winning the championship is a testament to how our team persevered all season long,” said John Brannen, head coach of Cincinnati.

[PointGuard]

All Tourney Team (top 20 who played at least 3 games):

SF Joe Bush, Baylor—22.8 ppg, 9.5 rpg
SG Gerrod Ward, Gonzaga—22.0 ppg
C Richard Williams, Kansas—20.3 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 2.8 bpg
C JIbran Shannon, Villanova—20.0 ppg, 10.0 rpg
PF Mike Hollins, Kentucky—19.3 ppg, 10.8 rpg, 2.3 bpg
SF Xavier Ward, Gonzaga—18.8 ppg
SF Gene Barnes, Louisville—18.7 ppg, 9.7 rpg
PF David Warley, Creighton—17.3 ppg
SG Brian Butler, Baylor—17.0 ppg
PF Jabari Edwards, Saint Marys—17.0 ppg, 9.0 rpg
PG Kenny Barrett, Wright State—16.7 ppg, 5.0 apg
PG Earl Blevins, Cincinnati—9.0 ppg, 6.2 apg
PG Henry Chaney, Gonzaga—10.2 ppg, 7.2 apg
C Kevin Hansen, Cincinnati—14.0 ppg, 9.0 rpg
PG Jarvis Brown, San Diego State—11.8 ppg, 4.8 apg
C Williams Murray, Iowa—15.8 ppg
SG Drew Searcy, Ohio State—15.7 ppg
PG Marques Tucker, Wisconsin—15.7 ppg, 3.3 apg
SG Billy Horton, Duke—14.0 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 3.0 apg
PG Jeremy Cross, Brigham Young—13.7 ppg, 4.3 apg

NCAA Tournament MVP:

C Kevin Hansen, Cincinnati—a combination of great offense and defense and coming through in big games to carry the Bearcats to the championship.

[jksander]

Booooooo Bearcats suck