[ad_1]
0 out of 8
John Minchillo / Associated Press
The 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament is officially launched, while the first pair of First Four matches was launched Tuesday in Dayton, Ohio.
The Fairleigh Dickinson Knights defeated the A & M Panthers 82-76 at Prairie View early in the game, coming off a 13-point deficit in the second period. They got the right to play the number 1 Gonzaga on Thursday.
No. 11, Temple and Belmont, clashed in the second and Belmont dominated 81-70. They will then face No. 6 Maryland in the East region during the round of 64.
Here are the winners and losers of the first day of the March Madness action.
1 of 8
John Minchillo / Associated Press
Darnell Edge, the senior UDF guard, was electric on Tuesday night, leading all scorers with 33 out of 9 shots on 13 and throwing seven three-pointers in nine attempts.
The Knights literally got nothing from their bench. The five starters scored 82 points, while Jahlil Jenkins added 22, alongside the Edge score blast. Without the same depth as Prairie View A & M, they needed Edge and the rest of the entrants to get involved meaningfully.
They did it.
2 of 8
John Minchillo / Associated Press
That would have been the first NCAA tournament win for one or the other school at the start of the game.
The Panthers qualified for the Big Dance only once in the history of this program, losing as No. 16 seed to Paul Pierce and No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks in 1998.
Twenty-one years later, they are still looking for their first win in March Madness. They were lucky enough to get it, with 13 points in the second half before a late collapse did not leave them anymore.
Meanwhile, FDU earned its first win after five previous defeats, although its tournament run will probably end on Thursday when the No. 16 seed will face No. 1 Gonzaga.
3 of 8
John Minchillo / Associated Press
Last year, UDF coach Greg Herenda spent just over two weeks in the hospital with blood clots and a high fever.
His Knights won the first NCAA tournament in school history one season after this near-death experience. They played the tournament for the last time in 2016, bowing to the Gulf Coast of Florida in the first four match. Now they are heading to the round of 64.
Even though Fairleigh Dickinson loses Thursday against Gonzaga, who ranks first, and that there is every reason to believe, Herenda's perseverance in facing a serious health problem and March Madness's first win in the program gave a good first impression to the nascent tournament of 2019.
4 of 8
John Minchillo / Associated Press
Gary Blackston, Prairie View A & M's goaltender, was outstanding on Tuesday, scoring 26 points to lead his team. One of his six three-point shots allowed the Panthers to stay within range of the end of the second half, but they eventually failed.
Leading the program to his first tournament victory would have been a fantastic note at the end of Blackston's college career. Unfortunately, he and the Panthers saw their brief race end on Tuesday.
5 of 8
John Minchillo / Associated Press
Belmont senior guard Kevin McClain led the Bruins in the back and led all scorers with 29 points. He was the driving force behind their strong performance in the second half, which sealed the win and a move to the 64th finals against No. 6 Maryland.
McClain scored 8 to 14 on the field against Temple – the last outstanding performance of his season during which he averaged 16.3 points, a career-high, while scoring 36.7% over a distance of three points. He drained four more three starts Tuesday while he managed only seven attempts.
Another night like this could make Belmont a difficult choice.
6 of 8
Chris Szagola / Associated Press
Fran Dunphy recently ad he would retire at the end of the 2018-19 season. Thus, the game of the first four on Tuesday night will become the last game of his career.
Temple competed in the NCAA tournament in eight out of 13 seasons under Dunphy, although the Owls never reached Sweet 16. This match, which would have resulted in a duel with No. 6 Maryland, was his last chance to go deeper.
Dunphy retired after nearly five decades on the sidelines of college. He spent the last 30 years as a head coach and served as Temple in 2006 after 17 years at Penn's helm.
7 of 8
John Minchillo / Associated Press
Seventy points was the the lowest total won by one of the four teams that played Tuesday.
Belmont has not quite reached its average of 87.4 points, Temple having managed to slow it down slightly. But the Bruins still control the rhythm of the match and it pays off while they held their enemies at the lowest score of the night.
In the previous game, both teams have logged on over 40% of their looks from three points. Prairie View A & M fired 15 times out of 28 (53.6%) from outside the bow, while winner Fairleigh Dickinson hit nine of his 21 shots (42.9%).
The frantic pace of the first two games contributed to an entertaining opening night of March Madness action.
8 of 8
Matt Slocum / Associated Press
Justyn Hamilton scored six bench points for Temple and Alani Moore II added three.
Apart from that, the Owls' Bench does not provide anything, leaving the starters to do most of the work.
On the other hand, the three Belmont Reservists who saw the court score, relieved the first unit and prevented the opening quintet from assuming the full offensive charge. In the end, this difference in score allowed the Bruins to move away and get a place in the 64th.
[ad_2]
Source link