Men's Basketball: Five Big 12 Squads Advance to Round Two of the NCAA Tournament

Kansas, Texas, Kansas State, Baylor and TCU dance into the second round while West Virginia and Iowa State are sent packing.

The Big 12 saw seven of its 10 teams earn a bid to play in the NCAA tournament and five of them advanced to the second round. Kansas, Texas, Kansas State, Baylor and TCU all extended their seasons with a first round victory, while West Virginia and Iowa State were sent packing.

(9)West Virginia vs. (8)Maryland

The Mountaineers got off to a nearly perfect start against Maryland, grabbing a 16-4 lead with 11:07 to play in the first half. The Terrapins finished the half on a 28-14 run and took a 32-20 lead into halftime. The second half was a back-and-forth affair that saw both teams take leads. West Virginia led by eight points with 11:27 left in the game, but that lead was short lived; Maryland stormed back and held a one-point lead not even two minutes later. The lead would continue to see-saw, but it would be the Terrapins who held on to win the game, 67-65. Maryland’s Jahmir Young missed the back of his pair of free throws with four seconds left, giving the Mountaineers to tie the game or take the lead, but a Kedrian Johnson three-point attempt at the buzzer didn’t fall and Bob Huggins and his squad were eliminated.

Stat Leaders:

West Virginia:

Points: Kedrian Johnson - 27 points (8-13 shooting, 4-8 3pt, 7-7 FT)

Rebounds: James Okonkwo, Tre Mitchell - 6 rebounds

Assists: James Okonkwo - 2 assists

Maryland:

Points: Julian Reese - 17 points (6-9 shooting, 5-10 free throws)

Rebounds: Julian Reese- 9 rebounds

Assists: Hakim Hart- 4 assists

(1) Kansas vs. (16)Howard

The Jayhawks were without head coach Bill Self in their first round matchup against Howard, and they will continue to be without him against Arkansas on Saturday. Despite his absence, Kansas was able to handle its first round opponent. Howard kept it close for most of the first half, but the Jayhawks ended the first half on a 21-7 run to hold a 50-37 halftime lead. The Bison put forth a valiant effort, but they could not keep up with Kansas’ starting five, who all scored in double digits. The Jayhawks won 96-68 and advanced to the second round for the 16th year in a row. Kansas will take on the Arkansas Razorbacks on Saturday at 4:15 CT.

Stat Leaders:

Kansas:

Points: Jalen Wilson - 20 points (8-16 shooting, 2-7 3pt, 2-2 FT)

Rebounds: Gradey Dick - 11 rebounds

Assists: DaJuan Harris - 7 assists

Howard:

Points: Shy Odom - 15 points (5-9 shooting, 5-6 FT)

Rebounds: Shy Odom - 8 rebounds

Assists: Elijah Hawkins - 8 assists

(2)Texas vs. (15)Colgate

The Longhorns earned their highest NCAA tournament seed (2) since the 2007-08  season when they were led by current Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes. Rodney Terry’s group played No. 15 seed Colgate, who won the Patriot conference tournament for the fourth time in five seasons. The Raiders trailed Texas by 17 points with 7:14 left in the first half, but were able to cut the deficit to nine by the end of the half. The Longhorns did not let Colgate make up any additional round in the second half and eventually won comfortably, 81-61. They will take on Penn State, who demolished Texas’s rival Aggies, on Saturday at 6:45 CT.

Stat Leaders:

Texas:

Points: Sir’Jabari Rice - 23 points (8-14 shooting, 7-10 3pt)

Rebounds: Dylan Disu - 10 rebounds

Assists: Timmy Allen - 5 assists

Colgate:

Points: Ryan Moffatt (5-9 shooting, 1-3 3pt, 2-2 FT), Keegan Records (6-9 shooting, 1-2 FT) - 13 points

Rebounds: Keegan Records - 6 rebounds

Assists: Elijah Hawkins - Tucker Richardson, Oliver Lynch-Daniels - 2 assists

(3)Baylor vs. (14)UCSB

The Bears struggled early on against the Gauchos and trailed by one at half, but the strong second half effort was enough to help Baylor advance to the second round. Baylor reclaimed the lead immediately to begin the second half, but Santa Barbara took it back with 17:49 left in the game. An LJ Cryer three gave the Bears the lead with 16:36 left, and Scott Drew’s team held the lead for the rest of the game and pulled away late to give Baylor a 74-56 round one victory. The Bears will play the Creighton Blue Jays on Sunday at 6:10 CT in the round of 32.

Stat Leaders:

Baylor:

Points: Adam Flagler - 18 points (7-10 shooting, 3-5 3pt, 1-2 FT)

Rebounds: Johnathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua - 9 rebounds

Assists: Adam Flagler - 5 assists

UCSB:

Points: Miles Norris - 15 points (6-8 shooting, 2-4 3pt, 1-2 FT)

Rebounds: Andre Kelly - 7 rebounds

Assists: Ajay Mitchell - 4 assists

(6)Iowa State vs. (11) Pittsburgh

Pitt came into this game with some momentum after beating Mississippi State in the play-in on Tuesday, but nonetheless, this was the worst performance by any of the Big 12 schools. The Cyclones went down 13-1 to start the game and really never recovered. The Panthers extended that lead to 22-2, but a mini run by Iowa State cut the halftime deficit to just seven. The Cyclones seemed to have captured the momentum after ending the half on a 21-8 run and pulling within five to start the second half, but that was not the case. Pittsburgh dominated the second half and eventually won the game, 59-41. Iowa State only scored 18 points in the second half.

Stat Leaders:

Iowa State:

Points: Jaren Holmes (6-17 shooting, 0-6 3pt), Gabe Kalscheur (4-14 shooting, 1-8 3pt, 3-5 FT) - 12 points

Rebounds: Tamin Lipsey - 10 rebounds

Assists: Jaren Holmes - 4 assists

Pitt:

Points: Nelly Cummings - 13 points (5-11 shooting, 2-5 3pt, 1-1 FT)

Rebounds: Greg Elliott, Guillermo Diaz Graham - 8 rebounds

Assists: Nelly Cummings, Jamarius Burton - 3 assistant

(3)Kansas State vs. (14) Montana State

The Bobcats kept it close throughout most of this game, thanks to a masterclass performance from RaeQuan Battle. Battle scored 27 points for Montana State, but in the end, Kansas State’s talent would prevail. The Wildcats turned a six-point halftime lead to a 12-point, 77-65 victory. In his first season as head coach, Jerome Tang took a Kansas State team that finished 14-17 in 2022 to a first round victory in 2023. Tang and the Wildcats will play the John Calipari and the Wildcats on Sunday at 1:40 CT.

Stat Leaders:

Kansas State:

Points: Keyontae Johnson- 18 points (8-15 shooting, 0-2 3pt, 2-2 FT)

Rebounds: Keyontae Johnson - 8 rebounds

Assists: Markquis Nowell- 14 assists

Montana State:

Points: RaeQuan Battle - 27 points (9-17 shooting, 3-5 3pt, 6-8 FT)

Rebounds: Great Osobor- 7 rebounds

Assists: Darius Brown II- 9 assists

(6)TCU vs. (11)Arizona State

Arizona State had to play Nevada on Wednesday in a play-in game to earn a spot in the field of 64. The Sun Devils were totally dominant against Nevada, as they came away victorious, 98-73. Arizona State’s hot shooting in that game seemed to carry over into the TCU game, as the team shot 60% from three in the first half, which helped them in building a 44-37 lead at halftime. But TCU and Mike Miles did not go away. The Frogs trailed by eight points with under five minutes to play but the Horned Frogs finished the game on a 15-5 run and won the game 72-70 thanks to a JaKobe Coles floater to take the lead with one second remaining. Jamie Dixon and his team will see Gonzaga on Sunday at 8:40.

Stat Leaders:

TCU:

Points: Mike Miles - 26 points (6-15 shooting, 2-5 3pt, 12-14 FT)

Rebounds: Emanuel Miller - 7 rebounds

Assists: Damion Baugh - 8 assists

Arizona State:

Points: DJ Horne - 17 points (5-9 shooting, 4-5 3pt, 3-4 FT)

Rebounds: Warren Washington - 8 rebounds

Assists: Four-way tie- 2 assists 

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