Since there is going to be no NCAA tournament this year, I decided to do a simulation of the NCAA tournament based upon my final projected bracket for the season (http://rfsbracketscience.blogspot.com/p/current-projected-bracket.html). Rather than simply do a quick W/L simulation I decided I wanted to go a little more in-depth with it. I adjusted the depth charts for the teams based on minutes played in recent games and used some online software to project the outcomes along with play-by-play. Here I will include the results of the games along w/ a brief recap. This will be broken up into different segments and will likely be posted over the course of several days (as there is no way I'm going to do this all in 1 sitting).

Round of 64 games in St. Louis:

1 Baylor 72
16 Robert Morris 59

First half is very tight and competitive with several lead changes and neither team able to get up by more than 3. Robert Morris actually leads at the half 33-31 led by a strong performance by Josh Williams w/ 14 first half points. 2nd half remains close with it still being a 2 point game with about 8 minutes to go. With 5 minutes to go Baylor goes on a 12-2 run (8 of which are scored by Jared Butler) to finally pull away. Player of the game is Jared Butler with 22 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists.


8 Illinois 88 OT
9 USC 80

Illinois jumps out to an early 5 point lead at 9-4. USC then goes on a 16-4 run to take a 7 point lead. USC is in control most the first half leading by as much as 10 points and goes into the half with a 36-29 lead. USC continues in control of the game through most the 2nd half and has a 65-56 lead with 4:19 left to play. Illinois goes on a 10-1 to tie the game with 2:56 left to play. They trade baskets the next few possessions with FSU up 76-73 with 21 seconds left following a slam by Onyeka Okongwu. Alan Griffin from Illinois knocks down a 3 point shot with 14 seconds left to tie the game, and Okongwu misses the game winning shot at the buzzer. After trading some baskets in the OT period, Ayo Dosunmu hits a couple of back to back threes to put Illinois up 86-60. After a couple FTs they win 88-80. Player of the game is Ayo Dosunmu with 22 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists.


3 Creighton 84
14 Bradley 73

Game starts out close with Creighton ahead by just 2 points at the 10:45 mark. Creighton then goes on a 14-2 run to take a 14 point lead. Creighton stays in control the rest of the game with their lead never dropping below 8. Not much else to say about this one. Player of the game is Marcus Zegarowski with 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists.


6 Michigan 89
11 Richmond 96

Things are pretty back and forth in the 1st half. Michigan has a 27-24 lead at the 6:29 mark and proceeds to go on a 12-4 run with 9 coming from Isaiah Livers. Richmond goes on an 11-0 run to tie the game w/ 59 seconds left in the half. Eli Brooks hits 3 point shot at the buzzer to give Michigan a 44-41 lead at halftime. 2nd half is close with several ties and lead changes. Richmond has a 70-67 lead at the 8:46 mark. They go on a 17-5 run over the next 3 to 4 minutes to take an 89-74 lead with under 5 minutes left. Michigan goes on a 9-0 run to cut the lead to 6 with 1:41 left then again to 5 with 0:18 left but can't get any closer than that as Richmond pulls off the upset. Player of the game is Blake Francis with 22 points and 5 assists.


Round of 64 games in Spokane:

1 Gonzaga 86
16 Siena 77

Siena hangs tough keeping it close in the first half and even leads 35-34 with under 3 minutes to go in the 1st half. In the closing minute of the half Gonzaga goes up by 4 on a layup by Petrusev followed by Jordan King from Siena knocking down a 3 point shot from the left wing to cut the lead to 41-40 at the half. It stays close in the 2nd half with it still only being a 2 point game (57-55 Gonzaga) with just over 10 minutes left to go. Gonzaga finally starts to slowly pull away and ends up winning by 9. Player of the game is Filip Petrusev with 17 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks.


8 Arizona 67
9 Providence 54

Providence starts the game with some serious offensive ineptitude going 3-19 from the field with 7 TOs as Arizona builds to a 31-6 lead with 7:30 left in the 1st half. Providence finally gets things going and goes on a 15-4 run before Koloko from Arizona ends the half on a dunk. Arizona is up 37-21 at halftime. The teams play pretty even in the 2nd half, but the closest Providence can close the gap is 13 points which is the final spread of the game. Player of the game is Zeke Nnaji with 25 points, 16 rebounds, and 2 blocks.


3 Oregon 83
14 Eastern Washington 91

First half is competitive with both teams trading leads. Eastern Washington goes on 7-2 run in final 2 minutes of 1st half to take a 40-35 halftime lead. In the 2nd half Eastern Washington goes on 14-4 run to take a 72-58 lead with 10 minutes left. Oregon pulls within 5 with about 3 minutes left but can't get any closer than that. Payton Pritchard had a great game for Oregon with 27 points, but Easter Washington shot 12-25 from three to pull off the upset. Player of the game is Jacob Davison with 22 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals.


6 BYU 88
11 East Tennessee St 98

BYU takes an early 10-5 after a TJ Haws 3 pointer 3 minutes into the game. ETSU ties it up at 12, and it's tied again at 16 and at 18. ETSU then goes on a 10-3 run to take a 28-21 lead. An open shot by Harding and a couple Seljaas FTs close the gap to 3. BYU cuts it to 2 after a Childs FT and then to 1 after a Childs 3 pointer with 5:35 left in the half. ETSU then hits 5 3-pointers and a couple FTs to close the half on a 17-6 run and are up 53-41 at halftime. ETSU starts the 2nd half on a 6-0 run. BYU finally responds with a 9-0 run of their own. Childs scores the next 8 point for BYU as they basically trade buckets with ETSU. A Haws 3-pointer cuts the lead to 6 with 10:05 left. Two Harding FTs, a Tooson 3, and a Childs jumper bring BYU within 2 at 70-72 with 8:44 left to go. Haws is fouled and scores on a 19 foot pull-up jumper. His FT gives BYU a 77-76 lead with a Seljaas shot extending the lead by 3. Haws buries a step back jumper from the right corner with 3:55 left to extend the lead to 83-78. BYU then fails to score over the next 3 minutes as Toolson tries to take over the game but fails miserably (Toolson missed 3-point shot, Toolson TO, Toolson missed layup, Toolson missed jumpshot). ETSU goes on a 14-0 run taking a 9 point lead with 45 seconds left. Harding finally ends the drought with a 3 pointer at the top of the circle to bring it back to 6. That's the closest BYU would come, though, as TJ Haws fouls out of the game and BYU misses four 3-pointers in the final minute. Childs had a great game with 24 points and 10 rebounds. Haws added 20 points and 5 assists, but it's not enough to offset the hot 3-point shooting of ETSU who went 11-18 from deep after missing their first 3 of the game. Player of the game is Daivien Williamson with 21 points, 6 assists, and 2 rebounds. Isaiah Tisdale also added 14 points and 5 steals for ETSU.