March Madness 2017: Top Social Media Highlights for Saturday's Elite 8

Friday night’s Elite Eight games were a tough act to follow.

Florida Gators guard Chris Chiozza knocked down an all-time wild buzzer-beater to defeat the Wisconsin Badgers in overtime in the late game. Earlier, the Kentucky Wildcats silenced LaVar Ball the UCLA Bruins, which started the Twitter fire that Chiozza poured gasoline on.

The South Carolina Gamecocks beat the Baylor Bears, and the North Carolina Tar Heels outlasted the Butler Bulldogs, too.

Saturday’s games were no joke, though. Below are some highlights of the Gonzaga Bulldogs and the Oregon Ducks punching their tickets to the Final Four.

Gonzaga vs. Xavier

The top-seeded Bulldogs pummeled the 11th-seeded Xavier Musketeers from the get-go. The final score, 83-59, reflected a game that was never close in the second half.

Four Bulldogs reached double figures, led by juniors Nigel Williams-Goss and Johnathan Williams, who scored a respective 23 points and 19 points to pace Mark Few’s squad in the rout. J.P. Macura scored 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting in the loss.

Gonzaga rained triple after triple down upon the Musketeers to start the game. The Bulldogs buried nine of their first 14 tries from deep, finishing 12-of-24. The NCAA’s March Madness Twitter account passed along some looks at a few shooter’s rolls:

The threes might’ve been painful for Xavier to experience, but this actually hurt. Macura was absolutely rocked by a screen from 7-footer Zach Collins in the first half.

It was a sign of things to come. Bleacher Report tweeted out the crushing pick:

Xavier made a run to close the first half, and luck seemed to be on its side when RaShid Gaston got credited with this bucket. Bleacher Report passed along the peculiar clip:

Seconds later, Macura, somehow still conscious after that screen, converted a full-court chest pass through the net to close the half. One problem: It didn’t count.

The March Madness account posted video of the would-be buzzer-beater:

It was more of the same in the second half. Xavier never stopped competing, as evidenced by Tyrique Jones’ two-handed flush with about 10 minutes to go, via March Madness:

But the Zags treated the Final Four like sharks treat a drop of blood. They never relented. Here’s Collins with a back-breaking follow-up bucket in transition to help seal the deal, courtesy of the March Madness account:

The Musketeers made one last defensive stand—and it wasn’t even from a member of the team. It was from one of the workers underneath the hoop. Josh Perkins had to slow down as a girl with a mop scurried off the floor, via Bleacher Report:

Here they are—the West region champions:

Gonzaga will face the winner of Sunday’s clash between the fourth-seeded Florida Gators and seventh-seeded South Carolina Gamecocks.

Kansas vs. Oregon

Kansas was on its heels all night long as Oregon’s Jordan Bell and Tyler Dorsey played like bullies. The Ducks seldom felt their stranglehold on the game loosen. After a late flurry from Kansas, Oregon won, 74-60.

Four Ducks starters reached double digits in the scoring column, and Bell wiped the glass clean. His 13 boards were far and away a team-high as well as a game-best.

The junior out of Long Beach, California, set the tone early with a dunk on one end, followed by an emphatic rejection on the other, courtesy of Bleacher Report:

Oregon led 44-33 at halftime after Dorsey banked in a three-ball. It was just that kind of game for the Ducks. Here’s the shot, via Bleacher Report:

As noted by the March Madness account, Kansas had been in the driver’s seat most of the month. The Jayhawks steamrolled through their first three games, all blowouts.

Kansas started the second frame in crafty fashion. Freshman guard Josh Jackson, who could be NBA lottery-bound, drew a whistle with an overly dramatic flop. From Bleacher Report:

Despite the slick move, Kansas couldn’t garner any momentum. Bell, who flirted with a triple-double—11 points, 13 rebounds and eight blocks—seemed unstoppable. March Madness captured his expression for most of the game:

With nine minutes left, Bell pinned Landen Lucas’ dunk attempt off the glass. Bleacher Report accurately called him a one-man block party:

Kansas cut Oregon’s lead to three points with around three minutes to go. Jackson’s acrobatics played a role in the brief comeback, courtesy of March Madness:

Oregon’s Dorsey, repeatedly referred to as “Mr. March” by TBS announcer Reggie Miller, nailed a dagger three-pointer with under two minutes to play. He finished with 27 points on 9-of-13 shooting while splashing six of his 10 looks from deep. That marked Dorsey’s seventh straight game with 20-plus points.

CBS Sports captured Dorsey’s mean mug and highlighted his temperature.

Yeah, it’s cold:

The Ducks pulled away, 74-60, to advance to the Final Four. As noted by March Madness, it’s been a while:

Oregon will face the winner of Sunday’s high-profile showdown between top-seeded UNC and the second-seeded Kentucky Wildcats.