Welcome back to another edition of Snagged Sports, where we ✨snag✨ all of the best stories in sports and serve them up on a screen near you. In today's edition, college basketball has taken over the sports world. Let's get into it.

Main Character: Conference Tournaments

Today, Snagged Sports turns to all things college basketball, and really, who could blame us? There were 57 games played yesterday, so to say there's a lot to breakdown is an understatement. Some teams solidified themselves as tournament teams and some teams squandered their chances at a potential ticket to the Big Dance. We'll start things off with one of the toughest and most competitive conferences in all of college basketball: the Big 12.

Big 12

The big story coming out of the Big 12 are the Cyclones from Iowa State. ISU completed the season sweep of the Baylor Bears after defeating them 78-72 as the underdog in yesterday's matchup. They will go on to face the top seeded Jayhawks who are without head coach Bill Self due to an undisclosed illness.

On the other side of the bracket, Texas handled their business against a clearly weaker Oklahoma State team as they prepare for more intense play later in the tournament. In a battle of the clashing purples, TCU pulled off the minor upset on Kansas State after putting up 80 points. The battle for Texas will determine who moves on to the Big 12 championship game.

PAC 12

Arizona State pulled off the only 'upset' in the Pac 12 yesterday after taking out the 3 seeded USC Trojans. USC tried to mount a comeback in the second half, but it was too little too late. The Sun Devils will go on to face Arizona in the battle for AZ in the semi-finals after the Wildcats booted Stanford in a high-scoring affair.

UCLA did their thing and look poised to take the Pac 12 title after defeating Colorado in what was a game that was closer than the Bruins would have liked. They did all of this in the wake of losing superstar guard, Jaylen Clark, after he tore his Achilles in the last week of regular season play. The 1 seed in the Pac 12 will move on to try and take down an Oregon squad that's looking to put together a good enough resumé to punch a ticket into the tournament for the first time since 2019.

SEC

The Razorbacks have been known to choke away late game leads this year, but the Hogs finally put together a solid end-game strategy: give the ball to your best player. Nick Smith Jr. hit a baseline jumper with seconds to go to secure the win for Arkansas as the 7 seed Auburn Tigers walk away winless in the SEC Tournament. They will go on to face one of the hottest teams in the country in the Texas A&M Aggies who have yet to play a tournament game.

Vanderbilt handled an unmatched LSU team to advance to the next round against the wishy-washy Kentucky Wildcats, and Tennessee dealt with Ole Miss in a younger-brother-like fashion as they will move on to face the Missouri Tigers in what will be a much more even, and hopefully more exciting, matchup.

Rounding out the second round of the SEC tournament was a thrilling overtime game between Florida and Mississippi State. Florida made up a 10 point halftime deficit, but the Bulldogs proved to be too much for them as they fell out of the tournament and will hope to secure an at-large bid this Sunday.

ACC

The big story out of this year's ACC Tournament is the likely demise of the preseason number one team, North Carolina. The Tar Heels, who had to make a deep run in the conference tournament to have a shot at getting an at-large bid, put up a stinker as the Cavaliers from Virginia didn't allow them to get anything going. The Cavs will go move on to face the 2 seed Clemson Tigers who dominated NC State from start to finish.

Miami was given a scare from the 9 seed Wake Forest. The Hurricanes gave up an 18 point lead in the second half, and if Daivien Williamson's (second) buzzer beater shot goes in, this becomes a much different story. Facing off against Miami will be a Duke team that is getting hot at the right time. John Scheyer's boys obliterated a good Pittsburgh team 96-69 in a game that was never close. Watch out, because the Dukies are marching with a real chance at an ACC title coming their way soon.

Big 10

Don't look now, but we might have our first Cinderella team making a run before our very eyes. The 13 seed Ohio State Buckeyes shocked the Iowa Hawkeyes after scoring 44 in the second half to secure a spot in the quarterfinals against Coach Izzo's Spartans. This team will need to continue their run to have a shot at making the tournament, but this ladies and gentlemen, is March. Welcome to the madness.

Rutgers took down a tournament hopeful Michigan team that is now very likely to miss out on a bid. Rutgers now receives the honor of taking on top dog Purdue. The Maryland Terrapins will continue their shot at the Big 10 title after a relatively easy match up against 14 seed Minnesota, but will surely be tested a bit more as they will go on to face the Hoosiers.

In a very even matchup, Penn State battled their way to a win against an Illinois team that had grand visions of making a deep run in the Big 10 tournament. The Nittany Lions are not usually known for their play on the basketball court, but all that might change after moving on to the quarterfinals. They will face a Northwestern team looking to capitalize on their chances at a finals run.

Big East

Top seeded Marquette was given a run for its money against a solid St. John's squad that really had no business doing that well against a potential 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. St. John's blew their double-digit halftime lead, but kept it close enough to force overtime. In the end, Marquette proved to be too much to handle, and the top seed out of the Big East survived a close one. They will go on to play UConn in the semifinals who *almost* let a 26 point second half lead slip through their fingers.

On the other side of the bracket, the Big East's 2 seed, Xavier, was nearly upset by a DePaul team with absolutely nothing to lose. The Blue Demons put up nearly 50 in the first half, and for a majority of the second half, looked like they were going to be another Cinderella team, but Xavier snapped back to their usual selves and escaped with a win. The Bulldogs will go on to face Creighton as they took care of Villanova with all 5 of their starters ending the game in the double-digits.

Notable At-Large Tourneys

Guess who's baaaaack?! The best 15 seed in NCAA Tournament history is making a run at yet another tournament bid. The new-look 10 seed Saint Peter's Peacocks are just two wins away from winning the MAAC after defeating 7 seed Fairfield and 2 seed Rider. They have a very winnable game against 11 seeded Marist, and will likely face Iona for a trip to the Big Dance. The Peacocks have that tournament magic in them.

🤍 Wholesome Content 🤍

There's something about a hole-in-one that brings out the youthful joy in us all. Watch as Hayden Buckley holes his shot on the iconic 17th hole.

Buckley did this as just the second group of the day to tee off on the hole. What a way to get a round started!

💰 The Cover Corner 💰

Thursday's Results:

✅ NY Islanders +120 vs. Penguins

❌ Bruins -172 vs. Oilers

** ✅ Texas -6.5 vs Oklahoma State

About last night...

Mr. Editor, I want it on the record that I sent in Texas -6 but it was not included in the write up, so I actually finished the night 2-1. The haters are sick! They said “oh Covers you won’t ever win another bet,” and kept sending me screenshots of my 0-3 night. It was mean and cruel and mean, and I am not going to stand for it. 2-1. Take that haters!

 🏀 CBB: UConn ML -168 and -3.5 vs. Marquette

MY Huskies looked great yesterday despite almost losing their massive lead. Nonetheless, I firmly believe that this is a great spot to take UConn, and mark my words, they will handle their business.

Side note: the Big East tournament has been by far the best conference tourney thus far. Tune in if you want a taste of what to expect once the real tourney begins.

🏀 CBB: Michigan State -4.5 vs. Ohio State

January, February, IZZO. The Buckeyes are 4-10 ATS as a dog, and MSU is 10-8. The Spartans beat this same team by 6 and by 21 earlier this year, so really, is it that tough of a decision? I might even spice things up and sprinkle a little bit on Michigan State first half -2.5 as well. The Buckeyes improbable run stops here.

🔮 March Madness Futures 🔮 

Mr. Covers has been sharing his best futures for this year's Big Dance, and we hope you've been paying attention as this is the last one you'll get from him. As per usual, do what you must with this valuable information.

Saint Mary’s: +3300

I cannot tell a lie, part of the reason why I am picking Saint Mary’s is because it's fun, and if you aren’t having some fun while betting, then why do it in the first place. With that being said, Saint Mary’s is still a very good team, and has a real shot at making something special happen.

Pros: Defense. The age old saying that defense wins championships has continued to ring true throughout the years. Many games in March will come down to a team needing one stop to advance, and given that St. Mary’s is 5th in Kenpom adjusted defensive efficiency, I like their ability to get stops and punish bad offenses. Not to be the old man hitting you with a “back in my day", but Saint Mary’s does not rely on the three like most other teams these days. The Gaels are 7th in overall efficiency according to Kenpom, and they do it with an inside-out style of offense that, when executed, is very efficient.

Cons: Woof, this offense does not light up the scoreboard. The Gael's are averaging just 71 PPG which is good for last in the WCC. Speaking of their conference, it isn't a very good one outside of Gonzaga and, well, themselves. Many of the past Gonzaga teams have come out of their 30-point conference tournament championship game win and claimed that this was their year, only to lose in the Elite 8. Mid-majors can only do so much damage, so taking one is a risk in and of itself.

🐣 Tweet of the Day 🐣

Those are fighting words if I've ever heard them. The Warriors and Grizzlies are a current playoff matchup, and if the NBA gods have any sense of decency, they will give us this series.

⚡️ Feature Friday ⚡️

We will continue to feature Undrafted Sports until Snagged's readers realize it's the place to consume quality sports content. As you should know by now, Undrafted Sports was founded by a two cousins who started making sports content, and somewhere along the way, their friends joined them to create a sports page unlike any other.

Be sure to check them out because sometimes, the best players, and sports news accounts, go Undrafted.

Quick Hits 🥊

• Surprise leader, Chad Ramey, shot 64 to take a one stroke lead after Day 1 of the Players.

• Future Cowboy, I mean, free agent Odell Beckham Jr. is holding a workout for interested NFL parties today.

• Bruins' 10 game win-streak was snapped by the Oilers.

• Things got chippy to say the least as the Grizzlies blew by the Warriors in what is turning into a heated rivalry.

• Patrick Ewing is out of a job after six seasons with Georgetown.

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