Round 2 of the American Athletic Conference Men’s basketball tournament has come and gone and with it came 4 tightly contested basketball games. From Wichita State Vs USF to start until UTSA vs ECU to close, each game came down to the wire and set up an action packed quarterfinal round on Friday.
Memphis is the only team in the conference eligible to receive an at-large bid, meaning the remaining 7 teams are fighting to continue their seasons, something that brings the best out of everyone on the court. Before those battles continue on Friday afternoon, let’s take a look back at what stood out during round 2.
Shockers fend off USF comeback with big performances from Bijan Cortes and Corey Washington
It looked to be all Shockers early on in Fort Worth, as Wichita State took a 38-28 lead into half behind 6 of 14 shooting from 3 and grew that lead to 56-40 with 10:52 to play, however USF fought back. The Bulls worked to cut the deficit over the final 10 minutes, getting good penetration into the paint consistently from Jayden Reid to cut it to 3, 64-61 with 3:12 to go, however Wichita was able to hold on and win 73-68.
Wichita State survived and advanced behind 21 points from Corey Washington and 20 from Bijan Cortes, as the two consistently put the ball in the bucket when needed for the Shockers. It wasn’t pretty at times, however WSU has a boatload of experience and teams like that find ways to win, which they did today.
For USF it’s one and done in the AAC tournament and they will most likely embark on a coaching search, as they finished the season 13-19 under interim head coach Ben Fletcher. Look for them to find their guy sooner than later and attack the portal right away, as USF was beginning to turn the corner as a program before the unthinkable tragedy of Amir Abdur Rahim’s passing this past offseason and they will look to return to that glory soon.
Owls overcome shooting struggles to knock off Charlotte
It wasn’t easy for the 5th seeded FAU Owls in their 64-59 win over Charlotte on Thursday afternoon, as 13 seed Charlotte gave them everything they could handle, but in the end it was the Owls who came out on top. FAU shot 20% from 3 and under 60% from the free throw line, however they dominated the paint, outscoring the 49ers 42-18 down low and it allowed them to overcome their shooting struggles.
FAU was led by their AAC freshman of the year Matas Vokietaitis who finished with 17 points and he was joined in double figures by Baba Miller (13) and Tre Carroll (12), as FAU relied on their big men due to their lack of shooting. This FAU squad is loaded with talent and at times this season that has been forgotten due to inconsistencies but today that was on display with their ability to overcome some struggles by shifting their game plan.
As for the 49ers, their 11-22 season ends with a loss in the second round and although they were gritty, it wasn’t enough to get the job done. Head Coach Aaron Fearne will look to rebuild this squad during the offseason in hopes of getting them back to the success he had during his interim season a year ago.
Tulsa upsets Temple behind clutch performance from Jared Garcia
Temple took a 12 point lead into the half against Tulsa and led by as much as 14, however with their season on the line the Golden Hurricane fought back and upset the Owls 75-71 to end their season. It was a gritty effort, as Tulsa was o-fer from beyond the arc deep into the second half, but they kept at it and eventually broke through, with Jared Garcia a big part of that.
Garcia finished with 20 points on the night, hitting 3 triples in the second half including 2 on back to back possessions to ignite this Tulsa squad and give them the energy boost they needed to knock off the Owls. He was joined alongside Dwon Odom (15) and Keason Willis (11) in double figures and if they can keep getting scoring efforts like that, Tulsa can keep making noise.
As for Temple, they battled through off the court issues with Lynn Greer III and injuries to Jamal Mashburn, leaving them without arguably their two top scoring threats at various points throughout the year. Adam Fisher is a great X’s & O’s coach and this year was a chance to flex that ability alongside a solid portal class, however now it is back to the drawing board with a TU fan base that wants answers.
ECU bounces back from bad loss to end regular season with win over UTSA
The Pirates regular season closed with the opposite of momentum, as ECU went into Boca and lost to FAU 81-53, getting dominated in all facets in the process, but today was a different story. ECU got their scorers back involved, as RJ Felton (17 points), Jordan Riley (22 points) and Cam Hayes (16 points) all had big days and in the end they found a way to slow down UTSA’s big 3 of Smurf Millinder, Primo Spears and Damari Monsanto en route to a 70-65 win.
It’s been one of the best seasons in a long time in Greenville, as the Pirates won 10+ conference games for the first time since 1975 and their win tonight allows for that dream season to continue. This ECU squad has veteran leadership, with CJ Walker, Jordan Riley, RJ Felton and Cam Hayes all having 4+ years of experience and if they continue to perform like they did tonight, they will be a team to watch the rest of the way.
For UTSA, first year Head Coach Austin Claunch’s first season ends with a loss in the second round and they will have to work in the transfer portal to replace the lost scoring from Primo Spears, something that will not be easy. Regardless, Claunch executed a fun offense in San Antonio and with some additions this offseason, there is a culture to build on now at UTSA.
Quarterfinals:
12:00 PM Est: #1 Seed Memphis vs #8 Seed Wichita State (Memphis -9.5)
2:00 PM Est: #4 Seed Tulane vs #5 Seed FAU (FAU -3.5)
6:00 PM Est: #2 Seed UNT vs #10 Seed Tulsa (UNT -13.5)
8:00 PM Est: #6 Seed ECU vs # 3 Seed UAB (UAB -4.5)