Cinderella Is Dead, but Feel-Good Stories Remain in March Madness

Arkansas made the clock strike midnight before Cinderella could enter the ball on Saturday.

The No. 4 seed Razorbacks knocked out No. 12 seed High Point 94–88 in the West Region of the NCAA tournament. A lower seed advancing past the first week of the tournament, known as the Big Dance, gets informally dubbed Cinderella.

There won’t be one this year as the High Point was the last mid-major and double-digit seed to carry the torch on Saturday. Arkansas star Darius Acuff Jr. came up big for head coach John Calipari’s squad with 36 points.

“It’s how I was raised. Always wanted to be in the big moment,” Acuff told reporters afterward.

High Point and VCU were the only teams from mid-major conferences to advance past the first round this season, and No. 3 seed Illinois knocked out No. 11 seed VCU 76–55 earlier on Saturday in the South Region. March Madness last had a true Cinderella team make the second weekend of the tournament when St. Peter’s made the Elite Eight as a No. 15 seed.

While the gap between Power Five conference teams and mid-majors has increased amid name, image, and likeness policies, the tournament still has feel-good stories ahead. One came about when No. 11 seed Texas upset No. 3 seed Gonzaga 78–68 in the West.

While Texas is in the powerhouse SEC, the Longhorns slipped into the tournament as an at-large bid and did it via the First Four. The Longhorns beat N.C. State on March 17 in Dayton, Ohio, and bounced BYU in the first round on March 19.

Texas prevailed over Gonzaga in a back-and-forth contest as Camden Heide buried a back-break three-pointer from the corner in the final minute to secure the win.

“He didn’t even sweat,” Miller told TNT Sports afterward. “He’s fresher than I am. It’s great to see him make that shot.”

Texas is the last-remaining double-digit seed in the tournament, despite being from a major conference. Though a No. 4 seed, Nebraska is very much a feel-good story since the Cornhuskers had never won an NCAA tournament game in eight tries since 1986. The Huskers resolved that on March 19 with a blowout win over Troy, and Nebraska held on against No. 5 seed Vanderbilt on Saturday with a 74–72 victory.

Vanderbilt’s Tyler Tanner attempted a last-second shot from just beyond halfcourt, but it rattled out. Tanner described the moment afterward when he talked with Vanderbilt Commodores on Sports Illustrated.

“That one, it’s probably going to haunt me forever,” Tanner said. “I want to just focus on being grateful for how good of a year it was for this team. We made history in a lot of ways, but I’m definitely gonna end up thinking about this a good amount just because that was the last play of this season.”

Speaking of history, Michigan State’s Jeremy Fears Jr. surpassed Magic Johnson for the most assists in an NCAA tournament game for the Spartans. Fears touted his school’s tradition of guard play after MSU’s 77–69 victory over Louisville in the East Region.

“This is point guard university,” Fears told CBS Sports on Saturday.

Michigan also advanced with a 95–72 win against St. Louis in the first game of the day. Wolverines star Yaxel Lendeborg led the way with 25 points.

Duke also took care of business with an 81–58 win over TCU. Blue Devils star Cam Boozer stepped up with 19 points and 11 rebounds in the win.

“He affects the game in all ways,” Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer told CBS Sports on Saturday. “That’s how we got separation.”

Houston also won comfortably with an 88–57 rout of Texas A&M. The Cougars move on to play near campus in the Sweet 16, but head coach Kelvin Sampson downplayed the proximity for the next round.

“Our focus is on playing Cougar basketball, not where we’re at,” Sampson told CBS Sports on Saturday.