Dayton’s First Four returns for the third season. The selection committee has added excitement by including a local team in the play-in.
The NCAA loves the University of Dayton arena because, regardless of who is playing, the fans fill it up for all four games. This helps put on a great show for a national television audience that is hungry for March Madness.
The First Four will now have an unofficial home team at Wright State. Its own basketball arena can be found just 15 minutes away.
The Horizon League champion Raiders (21-13) will face Bryant (22-9), in Wednesday’s early game before Rutgers faces Notre Dame.
On Tuesday, Indiana will be back in the tournament, making its first appearance since 2016, and the first year with Mike Woodson as its coach. The Hoosiers (20-13), will face a Wyoming team, which finished 25-8 in the Mountain West and earned an at-large bid.
The five-year absence of the Hoosiers — which did not include 2020 when the coronavirus epidemic decimated the tournament — was their longest since 1968-72.
Trayce Jackson Davis, forward for the Hoosiers, said that Coach Woodson has “truly brought a light to my life.” “I feel like Indiana basketball is in darkness for so many years now.”
Although Indiana was not stellar throughout the season, they were on a roll and beat Michigan and upset top-seeded Illinois at the Big Ten tournament. Then, they lost to eventual champion Iowa by three.
The Cowboys will be back in action for the first time since 2015 when they won their conference tournament. Wyoming was defeated by Boise State, the top-seeded team in the tournament semifinals.
Coach Jeff Linder of Wyoming said, “We knew that we would be right there on the bubble.” “Thankfully, the committee was able to see our work throughout the season.”
Jackson-Davis will face off against Graham Ike, Cowboys’ forward. Both are sophomore forwards at 6’9 and lead their respective teams in scoring as well as rebounding. Jackson-Davis averages 18.1 points per game and 8.2 rebounds. Ike averages 19.6 points per games and 9.6 rebounds each game.
The No. The winner will be the No. 12 seed in the East regional. They will face St. Mary’s, which is fifth on Thursday.
TEXAS SOUTHERN (16), VS. TEXAS A&M CORPUS CHRISTI (16).
Texas Southern (18-12), won the Southwest Athletic Conference tournament and was given an automatic bid. The Tigers won the First Four games in 2018, 2021, and lost one in 2014.
Texas Southern is a skilled team, but it lacks a major-time scorer. John Walker III (9.5 points per game) and Joirdon Karnick (6 rebounds per game) lead the way.
Brison Gresham, senior forward, stated that the experience is a big help to us because there are 68 teams. Brison Gresham also said that many people don’t realize how difficult it is to win, especially in March Madness. “I believe all the experience that we have now is a favor to us.”
Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi (23-11), got in by winning Southland Conference tournament. The Islanders will be making their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2007. Steve Lutz, a former assistant coach at Purdue, brought his team to this tournament in his first season as college head coach.
Isaac Mushila is the Islanders’ junior forward at 6 feet 5 and averages 13.5 points per game. He also grabs 9.5 rebounds per contest.
Based on KenPom ratings, Texas A&M Corpus Christi is the lowest-ranked tournament team. The Islanders rank 243 among 358 teams. Texas Southern is slightly higher at 188.
The Midwest Regional winner will face Kansas on Thursday, which is the top-seeded team.
DAYTON IN THE SPOTLIGHT
The red carpet is always laid out for the First Four at the UD Arena, which was recently renovated. This event is a major draw for the city and generates around $4.5million in direct spending for the local economy.
The arena seats approximately 13,400 and hosts both boys and girls high school championships. The First Four is included in the total of 28 games played over 11 days, with approximately 100,000 people watching.
UD Arena was able to secure the play-in match in 2001 when the field was increased to 65 teams. This was due to the fact that it had been an opening-round venue in 2001. This started a tradition. This single game was played for ten years. In 2011, the play-in field was increased to four.
