Weekly College Sports Roundup 3/12

For those of you out there who can never seem to get enough college sports like us, have no fear! Each week we will bring you the latest college sports news in a roundup including scores and game highlights, coaching changes, recruiting information, and all things college sports. 

With the regular season behind us, college basketball fans quickly turn their attention to postseason play.  Before college hoops’ conference champions are crowned and the field of 68 is set, let’s recap the final week of the regular season and the beginning of Championship Week.  This week, we witnessed some great late-season upsets as teams look to impress while some mid-majors try out their dancing shoes after punching their tickets for March.

• Hoosiers Bounce Back: On Tuesday, the no. 14 Ohio State Buckeyes upended no. 2 Indiana on Senior Night 67-58 to avenge a loss to the Hoosiers earlier this season.  In their first matchup, the Hoosiers dominated throughout, putting up 81 points—70 of which came from Zeller, Watford, and Oladipo.  However, on this night, it was the Buckeyes’ defense that led the charge, holding the Hoosiers’ below 40% from the field while forcing 12 turnovers.  Indiana would bounce back on Sunday with a big win over Big Ten-rival Michigan 72-71 to clinch the Big Ten regular season championship, the program’s first Big Ten outright title since 1993.
• All We Do Is Win: Over the past eight seasons Belmont has created a winning tradition in the Atlantic Sun Conference, and on Saturday they continued that tradition.  Belmont defeated league power Murray State 70-68 in overtime to cap its first season in the Ohio Valley Conference as conference champions.  Senior Kerron Johnson provided the late game heroics, tying the game late in the fourth quarter and eventually hitting the go-ahead basket with 1.2 seconds left in the extra period.  Preseason All-American Isaiah Canaan showed signs of brilliance, recording 22 points, 9 rebounds, and 10 assists in a losing effort.
• Gaining Momentum: For the Kentucky Wildcats, hopes of an invitation to the big dance have been an issue of concern in Lexington.  On Saturday, the Cats dramatically increased those odds with a huge upset of no. 11 Florida 61-57.  The Wildcats played inspired basketball, headlined by freshman Cauley-Stein on defense—8 boards and 4 blocks—and Archie Goodwin on offense.  The Wildcats now begin preparation for the SEC tournament as they look to strengthen their case for an NCAA bid.
• Tutton Lifts Heels Over Princeton: On Saturday, the no. 11 North Carolina lacrosse team defeated no. 5 Princeton 16-15 in Chapel Hill.  Carolina scored twice in the game’s final 37 seconds—the game-winner coming from Heels sophomore Chad Tutton with three seconds remaining.  There was no shortage in offense as both teams combined for 31 goals on 99 shots.  In the end, shot accuracy proved to be the difference—65% of Carolina’s shots were on target as opposed to Princeton’s 44%.

In other news, the latest from a pair of NCAA child abuse scandals and a Georgia sports agent finds himself on the brink of a lawsuit.

• Sandusky Files Appeal: It’s been almost a year since Jerry Sandusky was convicted on 45 counts of child abuse, but he shows no signs of throwing in the towel.  On Monday, Sandusky’s attorney, Norris Gelman, filed a pair of reports outlining Sandusky’s appeals claim.  In the report Gelman cites multiple claims critical to Sandusky’s effort to overturn the conviction including, the number of years passed before the abuse was reported, failure to report, and insufficient time to prepare.  Sandusky was convicted on June 22, 2012, and is currently serving 30 to 60 years at a state prison.
• Repeat Offender: The University of Utah announced Monday it will hire two outside investigators to review allegations of abuse by former Utah swim coach Greg Winslow against his swimmers.  Winslow was fired when allegations surfaced last week claiming Winslow sexually abused a teenage girl six years ago in Arizona.  Utah athletic director Chris Hill said he is not aware any of the allegations at Utah to be sexual.  Winslow has not been arrested or charged in either state.
• Carolina Blues: North Carolina investigators are claiming Terry Watson violated sports agent laws by sending cash along with other prohibited benefits to former North Carolina football players.  Investigators with the Secretary of State’s office issued search warrants Monday stating Terry sent $2,000 in cash to Marvin Austin in 2010.  They also say Watson was in contact with players before registering with the state, both illegal under state law.  If convicted, Watson could be facing up to 15 months in prison and civil penalties upwards of $25,000.
• Losing Wins Championships: The Liberty Flames defeated Charleston Southern on Sunday to win the Big South title, punching their ticket to the NCAA tournament despite a 20-loss season, becoming only the second team to reach the big dance with 20 losses.  Liberty opened its season losing its first 8 contests by an average of 14.8 points and had not won more than three in a row until the conference tournament.  Liberty’s .429 (15-20) winning percentage is the lowest for any NCAA tournament team since Oakland (.400) in 2005.

Featured photo credit: cseeman via photopin cc