CTC Day 1 Recap: Perfect Day for Ina Gets it Going

Ina, no longer an underdog, gets off to a perfect start on Day 1.

DAY 1:
Ina-52
Bry-44
J-44
Waters-44
Alexi-40
Doogan-32
Stri-32
Lynch-24

BIG SOUTH QUARTERFINALS:
A home-court sweep in the Big South semis last night, leads to a final four of the top 4 seeds.  Ina and Waters both go four-for-four, while Lynch, whose bracket has ended here, finished with only 4 points from this conference.

• #1 Radford 82 – #8 High Point 58.  The top-seeded Highlanders flexed their muscles and hammered a bad High Point team, at home.  Everyone had this pick.  Bry and Stri keep their champion pick alive.
• #2 VMI 96 – #7 Coastal Carolina 76.  VMI runs and guns its way to a 20-point win that was actually a lot closer at the half.  This must have been a fascinating game, as the two teams combined for 77 three-point attempts.  Doogan, Stri, and Lynch all went for the big upset points with Coastal Carolina.  Lynch, actually had Coastal Carolina in the title game.  J and Waters’s title pick is still alive.
• #3 Liberty 88 – #6 Gardner-Webb 77.  Liberty started with a 22-4 lead and never looked back.  They led by 15 at the half and held on, despite a late run by G-Webb.  Only Lynch got this one wrong, going for the upset points.  Ina, Doogan, and Alexi keep their title pick alive.
• #4 UNC-Asheville 76 – #5 Winthrop 68.  Winthrop’s 4-year Big South championship streak has came to an end early this year, and very early in this game, as UNC-Asheville scored the first 14 points at home and never looked back.  This game had pretty big CTC implications, as well.  Only Ina and Waters got this pick correct.  Lynch lost the most here, as he had Winthrop winning the Big South title.  In fact, Lynch is finished in the Big South.

OHIO VALLEY QUARTERFINALS:
Another quarterfinal night where all four favorites win, setting up a final four of the top 4 seeds.  Ina, J, and Alexi all went 4-for-4 in the OVC.  Lynch, who took a couple chances with upset points, only got one correct, and is fininshed in this conference, also.  He finished with 4 points from the OVC.

• #1 UT-Martin 93 – #8 Tennessee Tech 75.  Lester Hudson had 42 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists, as the top-seed in the OVC opens at home with an easy win over on overmatched Tennessee Tech.  Everyone had this pick, but only Bry has them winning the tournament.
• #2 Austin Peay 57 – #7 E. Illinois 54.  Down 10 points in the second-half, it looked like the Governors were in trouble, but they rallied for a quarterfinal victory over E. Illinois.  Lynch took the biggest hit with this comeback, as he was the only one that went for the 10 upset points by picking EIU.  The Austin Peay comeback helped Bry the most, as he is the only one that does not have them losing the semifinals.
• #3 Murray St. 88 – #6 Tennessee St. 74.  Everyone’s OVC darling Murray St. ended Tennessee St.’s six-game winning streak with a pretty convincing quarterfinal victory, including close to 60% shooting from the floor.  Lynch was the only one that lost Tennessee St. and it was a big loss, as he had them winning the whole tournament.  Bry was, along with Lynch, rooting for Tennessee St., as everyone else has the Racers of Murray St. winning the OVC.
• #4 Morehead St. 91 – #5 E. Kentucky 72.  A popular upset pick, Morehead St., quieted the critics last night with a convincing 19-point victory over a solid E. Kentucky team.  Only Ina, J, and Alexi had Morehead moving on in this game, with Alexi being the most relieved, as he has Morehead moving on to the finals.  Lynch’s loss of E. Kentucky (which he had in the finals), along with losing champion pick, Tennessee St., means that he is finished in the OVC with only 4 points.

HORIZON LEAGUE OPENING ROUND:
The Horizon League got underway last night, as four opening-round games tipped off on different campuses around the league.  After sweeps by the favored teams in the Big South and the OVC, the Horizon at least saw one minor upset last night, but it was mainly a home-team/favorite dominated event again.  Ina and Bry both got all four correct.  Everyone else got three correct, but some losses hurt more than others.

• #3 Cleveland St. 56 – #10 Detroit 43.  Holding a bad Detroit team to just 18-47 shooting was the difference in the game for Cleveland St, as they move on to the quarterfinal round in the Horizon League this weekend.  Everyone got this pick correct, but an upset would have helped Waters and Stri the most, as they both have CSU losing next round, while the other 6 of us have them moving on to at least the semis.
• #4 Wright St. 68 – #9 Valparaiso 56.  Led by Scott Grote’s 19 points off the bench, the Raiders of Wright St. beat the former darling of the Horizon, Valpo.  Surprisingly, because of their past success, only 2 (Lynch and Waters) thought Valpo would win this game.  Waters, though, had them going to the semis.
• #5 UW-Milwaukee 77 – #8 Loyola (IL) 68.  A 35-17 halftime deficit was just too much to overcome for a game Loyola squad, as UW-Milwaukee moves on to the quarters to face Wright St.  This does not have major CTC implications, as only J had Loyola (and he only had them winning one game).  Alexi and Lynch are both happy, as they have UW-Milwaukee winning again in the quarters.
• #7 Illinois-Chicago 73 – #6 Youngstown St. 68.  The only upset in a relatively “Madness”-free opening night came in Youngstown, OH, as the #7 UIC Flames knocked off YSU by 5.  Bry, Ina, J, Waters, and Lynch all had this upset pick (worth an additional 2 points).  Waters even has UIC going to the semis.  The big loss in this one was for Stri, who had Youngstown St. going all the way to the finals, before losing to Butler.

We’ll be back later with a preview of Day 2.