NCAA Tournament: What to watch for Friday

Two of the nation’s best offenses, coming off impressive second halves of the season, dueled in an exciting first-round matchup to begin Friday’s tournament action, with No. 7 seed MI pulling off a 92-91 win over the No. 10 seed Cowboys in Indianapolis, thanks especially to absurdly prolific 3-point shooting.

A pair of clutch D.J.

Oklahoma State found its groove as the first half continued, going on a 7-0 run to increase its lead to 18-11. Game time is yet to be determined. Walton became the first player to reach 24 points and 11 assists in a tournament game since Marquette’s Dwyane Wade in 2003 … elite company.

Davon Reed had a decent game with 12 points and three rebounds.

No. 7 MI 92, No. 10 Oklahoma State 91: In a high-scoring matchup, the Wolverines hung on for the win, led by Derrick Walton Jr.’s 26 points and 11 assists. He was bested by MI star Derrick Walton Jr. It’s like a consolation prize, but for Forte, the school’s all-time leading three-point shooter and Hammonds, it’s not.

Oklahoma State could have – should have – gone into the half with a lead for the first time in four games. In the first game of the series, they used some fortunate bounces to come back from a one-goal deficit in the third period. We did a great job on Walton the first half.

Brown also had a slick pass underneath the basket to Ebuka Izundu, who threw down a dunk to give Miami a 19-8 lead. I feel like I’m gonna regret some of that when I saw the second half (of Kansas’ win) on TV, but then again think about how we played three different teams this year that were ranked No. 1 at one time so now we get a fourth.

MI went 4-1 against that group. The star guard missed a critical front end of a 1-and-1, and Walton made it hurt with a conversion in the lane for an 86-79 lead.

It’s hard to tell if Michigan’s dominance on Friday stemmed from a sudden awakening, or a fortuitous pairing with a slumping Miami squad that limped into the playoffs having won just one of its last three games.

Walton, Jr. and D.J. Wilson each sank two pressure-packed free throws during the final 10 seconds, and MI held off a late rally.

Wilson finished with 19 points (6-12 FG, 6-6 FT), five rebounds and four blocked shots.

There are 16 first-round games today as the field of 48 dwindles down to 32. The Rams will need every bit of toughness they have in them, as OR handled their business the way the tops seeds should, running up 55 points in the first half, and cruising to victory. MI committed just four turnovers all day, continuing its nation-low turnover ratio. With a little under eight minutes to go in the first half, the Wolverines made six of their 20 shots and were two for nine from beyond the arc. This game is a clash of philosophies, and in the process will serve as an introduction to URI’s unique shorts (they have a picture of a Ram on the waistband) as well as Hassan Martin, a 6-foot-7 big with massive hands – they measure 10.5 inches long (larger than those of the San Antonio Spurs’ Kawhi Leonard). Once we get a stop and a defensive rebound and let Jawun do his thing, that’s been our motto. The Wolverines move the ball with balletic grace around the perimeter, cut with élan and use that movement to create open three-point looks.