By Tiffany Williams –
March Madness intensity hit full throttle this weekend, delivering clutch shots, blowouts, and buzzer-beater chaos. Friday opened with 18th-ranked St. John’s holding off Hall, 72-65, Zuby Ejiofor pouring in 21 points. New England cruised past NCAT, 88-72, Mike Loughnane leading with 18 while Lewis Walker had 17.
Saturday saw high drama across the boards. Cambridge edged St. Bonaventure, 96-89, Jeremiah Johnson scoring 20, but Andrej Shoshkikj dropped 35 in a losing effort. Drexel stunned New England, 84-77, Eli Beard with 21 as Mike Loughnane scored 29. Towson outlasted Hampton, 74-68, Tyler Tejada exploding for 35 points. William & Mary toppled Elon, 72-62, Tunde Vahlberg Fasasi with 25.
Duke flexed on UNC, 76-61, Cameron Boozer dominating with 26. UVA held off Virginia Tech, 76-72, Ugonna Onyenso 16 while Ben Hammond led VT with 21. Louisville squeaked past Miami, 92-89, Ryan Conwell scoring 24. Boston College edged Notre Dame, 77-69, Fred Payne 24. Clemson narrowly defeated Georgia Tech, 79-76, Butta Johnson 15 holding off Jaeden Mustaf 28.
FSU blasted SMU, 91-78, Chauncey Wiggins 31, Boopie Miller 32. Stanford pulled out a thriller over NC State, 85-84, Ebuka Okorie 33. Wake handled Cal, 80-73, Juke Harris matching Dai Dai Ames with 31. Pitt survived Syracuse in OT, 71-69, Cameron Corhen 21, Naithan George 26. Marquette stunned 4th-ranked UConn, 68-62, Nigel James Jr. 19.
Sunday delivered more fireworks. Cambridge handled UNCW, 85-70, DJ Smith 20, Patrick Wessler 21 for the Seahawks. Monmouth upset Drexel, 65-57, Jason Rivera-Torres 14, Kevon Vanderhorst 15. Towson crushed College of Charleston, 81-56, Tyler Tejada 30. Hofstra obliterated William & Mary, 92-61, Cruz Davis 30.
Lehigh beat Colgate, 76-69, Hank Alvey 30. Boston University edged Navy, 73-72, Chance Gladden 26, tying Aidan Kehoe’s 26. Tyler Tejada is unstoppable, Andrej Shoshkikj proved he’s a scoring machine, and upsets like Marquette over UConn show the bracket is far from safe. Every night, someone steps up, and if you blink, you’ll miss the highlight that defines a team’s tournament hopes.