Cal State Fullerton looks to continue spoiler role against Duke in NCAA tournament

Cal State Fullerton knocked off its rival on the way in which to the NCAA event. Now the Titans get an opportunity to finish Mike Krzyzewski’s teaching profession.

Contemporary off a Huge West event championship, the Titans realized their postseason destiny Sunday, incomes a No. 15 seed within the West Area to play No. 2 seed Duke in Greenville, S.C., within the first spherical at 4:10 p.m. PDT on Friday. The Blue Devils, who misplaced to Virginia Tech within the ACC event last, are taking part in to increase Kryzyzewski’s profession because the longtime coach inches towards retirement.

Fullerton (21-10) earned its second NCAA event look in 5 years with a one-point victory over Lengthy Seashore State within the Huge West championship recreation Saturday.

The Titans, who had been picked to complete seventh within the Huge West by the convention coaches, celebrated their fourth NCAA event berth in class historical past at a public choice present occasion Sunday. Gamers tied items of the championship web into their Huge West champion hats and snapped photographs of tv screens when the bracket revealed their postseason vacation spot.

Fullerton has not gained an NCAA event recreation since an Elite Eight run in 1978, getting knocked out within the first spherical in 2008 and 2018.

Senior ahead E.J. Anosike leads the Titans with 16.5 factors and eight.3 rebounds per recreation. He led Fullerton’s comeback victory over Lengthy Seashore State with 12 of his team-high 22 factors within the second half. Fullerton rallied from a 14-point first-half deficit to knock off the regular-season convention champions and ship Lengthy Seashore State to the NIT to face No. 2 seed Brigham Younger within the first spherical.

The Seashore, led by Huge West participant of the 12 months Colin Slater, had been making an attempt to make their first NCAA event look since 2012. Slater had 23 factors and 4 assists within the Huge West championship recreation, however the level guard couldn’t orchestrate a game-winning shot try on the sport’s last possession with Fullerton main by one.

Lengthy Seashore State will make its first postseason event look since 2016. After 5 consecutive shedding seasons, the Seashore had been picked to complete eighth within the convention by Huge West coaches. As a substitute, they put collectively their third 20-win season below coach Dan Monson, who was named convention coach of the 12 months.

For the primary time, the NCAA launched the ladies’s event area on the identical day as the lads’s bracket, which meant UCLA, below coach Cori Shut, didn’t have to carry its breath on the bubble for lengthy.

After ending seventh within the Pac-12 and 14-12 total, the Bruins didn’t make the NCAA event for the primary time since 2015.

With key wins over NCAA tournament-bound Washington State (19-10) and Arizona (20-7), UCLA was thought of among the many first groups out of the NCAA area. The Bruins will as an alternative accept the WNIT, which they gained in 2015.

UCLA was forty first within the last NCAA Web rankings after shedding to Oregon within the second spherical of the Pac-12 event and is in line to host its first-round WNIT matchup.

UC Irvine can also be certain for the 64-team WNIT after falling quick within the Huge West event championship recreation for the second straight season. The Anteaters (21-11) had been in search of their second NCAA event look in class historical past and first since 1995 however will play of their second WNIT look. Irvine beforehand performed within the postseason event in 2018, shedding to Nevada within the first spherical.

Attracts for the WNIT shall be launched Monday with first-round video games starting Wednesday.