March Madness 2015 Schedule: TV Info, Live Stream and Final 1st-Round Picks
Day 1 of the 2015 NCAA tournament is in the books after Tuesday's pair of First Four contests, locking in two second-round matchups for Thursday. On Wednesday, we'll have the Round of 64 all figured out.
Day 2 features tilts between Atlantic Sun champion North Florida and Robert Morris of the Northeast Conference, and later Boise State from the Mountain West and home-court team Dayton.
Here's a look at the last day of first-round matchups before the schedule gets hectic on Thursday, when the Round of 64 opens, which will include two of the four teams lacing up on Wednesday.
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Day 2 Schedule
| Wed, March 18 | (16) North Florida vs. (16) Robert Morris | 6:40 p.m. | truTV | March Madness Live |
| Wed, March 18 | (11) Boise State vs. (11) Dayton | 9:10 p.m. | truTV | March Madness Live |
No. 16 North Florida (23-11) vs. No. 16 Robert Morris (19-14)
After Atlantic Sun Cinderellas Florida Gulf Coast and Mercer danced their way into our hearts with thrilling early-tournament victories, it's now North Florida's chance to make history. This marks the school's first-ever appearance in the tournament, after winning its conference tourney over South Carolina Upstate in the final.
The Ospreys upset Purdue 73-70 on Dec. 6, an eventual No. 9 seed in these NCAAs. They've lost just twice since Jan. 6 and have gone undefeated since Feb. 14.
If Florida Gulf Coast was Dunk City, North Florida's campus resides in Three City. The team heaved 788 threes this season, ranking 16th in the entire nation. Their 39.1 percent clip from beyond the arc was good for 21st in the country as well. Their 112.1 offensive rating ranked 24th in the nation.
Dallas Moore is the Ospreys' leader, draining 16 points a night to go along with a team-high 3.6 assists out of the backcourt. He takes 4.5 threes a night and drains them at a 39 percent clip, but even that respectable percentage is good for just fourth-best on the team. Seriously, this squad loves the trey ball.
North Florida coach Matt Driscoll nearly found himself on the other end of this matchup. After coach Mark Schmidt's departure in 2007, Driscoll was on Robert Morris' coaching radar, according to TimesOnline.com.
This marks Robert Morris' eighth NCAA tournament berth, most recently giving Villanova an upset scare in the 2010 first round, falling to the Big East powerhouse 73-70.
This particular matchup could favor North Florida, as Robert Morris favors a zone defense—which could be picked apart by the Ospreys' three-point prowess.
The Colonials feature three 14-point scorers, including 6'6" senior Lucky Jones. After two straight NIT appearances, featuring wins over Kentucky and St. John's, Jones is excited for the program's chance to grab a victory in the Big Dance, punching a ticket to take on No. 1 seed Duke.
“The light is on. You know it is going to be a great atmosphere. You know, let’s just go out there and shock the world again,” Jones said, according to Rick Dayton of CBS Pittsburgh.
The Colonials will have their work cut out for them, taking on a North Florida team that hasn't lost in over a month and one that deploys a scheme that could be the Colonials' kryptonite.
Prediction: North Florida 82, Robert Morris 80
No. 11 Boise State (25-8) vs. No. 11 Dayton (25-8)
This bout between two No. 11s fighting for a chance to take on No. 6 Providence in the round of 64 has the potential to be an early-tournament thriller. Boise State, winners in 15 of its last 16 regular-season matchups, comes in with the 33rd-ranked offense and 39th-ranked defense in the nation.
An older team, with nine juniors and seniors and only two freshmen, Leon Rice's Broncos have been led by senior guard Derrick Marks' 19.3 points on 49 percent shooting, including 44 percent from beyond the three-point line. The 6'3" Marks eclipsed the 25-point mark nine times this season, leading all Mountain West players by a healthy margin.
"We don't want tomorrow to be our last time wearing that Boise State jersey," Marks said Tuesday, via IdahoPress.com. "So we're going to do everything we can for that not to happen."
They'll be taking on a Dayton team playing on its home court in the tournament—something that hasn't happened in 28 years. Since 1989, teams have been barred from playing tournament games on their home floor—though First Four games are an exception.
The Broncos went 8-5 on the road this season, but the atmosphere inside UD Arena will likely be the toughest any opponent will face this March.
But according to USA Today (via The Associated Press), Dayton coach Archie Miller isn't sleeping on Boise State's upset ability:
""When we're playing a home game, we have about as good of a home-court advantage as anyone does in college basketball," coach Archie Miller said. "But I'll also tell you that anyone who is billing this as a home game or a walk-through, I just think they're really underappreciating how good Boise State is.
"If we were playing a regular-season game at home versus Boise State, you'd be sick to your stomach because you know what you're in for."
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SB Nation summed up Dayton's tumultuous 2014-15 campaign, which somehow ended with a tournament berth:
"It is a minor miracle that Archie Miller and his Flyers are in the NCAA Tournament. Forget last year's Sweet 16 team: This year's Flyers lost one big man to a knee injury, another to lasting concussion symptoms, another to academic ineligibility, and both their starting and backup centers after an alleged theft. That left them with six scholarship players, none taller than 6'6... and yet, they put together a resume good enough to dance. That's preposterous and wonderful.
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With so many players missing from the lineup, the Flyers don't suit up any players taller than 6'6". Nearly half of Boise State's roster is 6'6" or taller. But this size discrepancy has played to Dayton's advantage more often that you'd suspect. Having such a speed advantage has led to frequent trips to the free-throw line—its 789 attempts this year ranked 17th in the nation.
For Dayton, such a turbulent regular season ending in a tournament berth is an accomplishment in itself. Win or lose, this one is sure to come down to the wire on the Flyers' home floor.
Prediction: Boise State 76, Dayton 75
Follow me on Twitter at @JSDorn6.
Stats from Sports-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.
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