For a long time, fans of the Gonzaga University men’s basketball team were aware that there was a great chance the GU would be placed in Portland for the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament, where numerous bracketologists had them slated as a three-seed. After capturing the WCC title, the Zags earned that projected No. 3 seed and were indeed set to battle at the Moda Center in Portland, where they would play No. 14 Kennesaw State in the last of four games in a busy opening day.
If GU fans were present for the first three games of the day, they were treated to all the gifts that March Madness has to offer.
Two upsets rocked the Moda Center as No. 12 High Point stunned No. 5 Wisconsin in a tournament classic, birthing another token March Madness star, and No. 11 Texas upended No. 6 BYU and projected top pick AJ Dybantsa (35 points, 10 rebounds). Meanwhile, No. 4 Arkansas and potential lottery pick Darius Acuff Jr. (24 points, seven assists) put on a show in its 19-point win over No. 13 Hawai’i with a flurry of stunning plays from the SEC Tournament champions.
The first game of the day was High Point versus Wisconsin, one of the popular 12-over-5 upset picks in people’s brackets, as High Point entered the game 30-4 with one of the country’s top offenses against a streaky, volatile Wisconsin team with two guards (Nick Boyd and John Blackwell) that averaged over 19 points per game, the only duo in the country to do so. The game featured a hot start from Wisconsin, where Boyd started with seven straight and Blackwell scored 20 first-half points.
The Badgers held a 70-62 lead late in the second half, and that’s when HPU’s Chase Johnston began an offensive explosion that will be remembered in March Madness history. The 6-foot-3 senior guard, with a full shot clock, pulled a transition three from just a pace inside the halfcourt line that sizzled through the air and barely graced the rim on its way through, igniting a large HPU crowd and cutting the lead to five.
Johnston would then hit two straight highly-contested 3-pointers from each wing to cut the deficit to just one. Boyd, who finished with a game-high 27 points, drove to the rim and had his shot blocked and Johnston ran out ahead of the pack in transition, where HPU guard Rob Martin (23 points, 10 assists) found Johnston who layed it up and in for the lead. It was Johnston’s first made 2-pointer of the entire season, and it turned out to be the eventual game-winner for HPU.
“When Rob threw that up, I was just like, ‘I gotta put this in,’” Johnston said. “Just to be on this stage and play a game like this is something you dream about.”
As the Portland crowd reeled from that masterpiece, No. 4 Arkansas and No. 13 Hawai’i went through their warmups. The Razorbacks entered the game as one of the hottest teams in the country, and proved that as they cruised to an easy victory.
Yet, the game featured some plays that had even legendary head coach John Calipari shocked. In one sequence, 6-foot-10 forward Trevon Brazile snatched a pass from Malique Ewin with one hand, cocked it back and threw it down from a seemingly impossible angle. The very next possession, Brazile swatted away a layup attempt, where Razorback freshman guard Meleek Thomas collected it and threw a lob to Billy Richmond, who corralled it with two hands and finished it at the rim.
Calipari, who’s been coaching for 34 years, including winning a national championship at Kentucky in 2012 and coaching numerous lottery picks in the NBA draft, was stunned at the display.
“Did you see that dunk? I sat down. I don’t even know. I think Malique [Ewin] threw him a bad pass, and [Trevon Brazile] got it behind his head,” Calipari said. “And I just sat down because everybody on the bench was looking at me. I’m like ‘Don’t look at me.’ I can’t believe that, how he ever got to that ball.”
All the while, first-team All-American Darius Acuff Jr. was putting his offensive talents on full display, cruising to his 24-point performance with a certain swagger only seen in the NBA. Acuff Jr. showed his incredible three-level scoring display and got his teammates involved as Arkansas dropped 97 points in the first round and set up what should be an incredibly high-paced second round matchup with High Point.
After a break, it was the nation’s leading scorer AJ Dybantsa (25.2 ppg) and No. 6 BYU’s time to shine against No. 11 Texas, who sneaked into the tournament field in the Last Four In. Despite Dybantsa’s offensive flurry, the Longhorns were upset-minded and led the game from the jump.
Nonetheless, Dybantsa put on a show in the Moda Center, an arena he will play in as an NBA player as soon as next season. Dybantsa finished with almost half of BYU’s 71 points, including a baseline drive where he threw down a two-handed reverse slam that brought the Moda Center to its feet.
But, it was the Longhorns that came away with the eight-point victory as big man Matas Vokietaitis had the best game of his young career with 23 points and 16 rebounds. Now, it’s Graham Ike’s turn to battle against the freshman on Saturday, where fans in Portland are hoping to see another spectacle as the four victors meet again in the NCAA Tournament’s second round on Saturday.
No. 3 Gonzaga will face No. 11 Texas at 4:10 PST, then No. 4 Arkansas will meet High Point at 6:45 PST. Both games will be broadcast live on TBS.