Bucs clinch NCAA berth
Isaiah Tisdale scored 24 points and top-seeded East Tennessee State defeated upset-minded Wofford 72-58 to win the Southern Conference tournament on Monday night and earn an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
Tray Boyd III added 11 points for the Buccaneers (30-4), who became only the fourth team in conference history to win 30 games. It will be East Tennessee State’s first appearance in the NCAA tournament since 2017.
Seventh-seeded Wofford was looking to become the first Southern Conference team since Clemson in 1939 to win four games to capture the conference tournament title. The Terriers (19-16) entered the tournament having lost their final seven games, but found some magic in Asheville, N.C., with an impressive run that fizzled when they fell behind by 15 with four minutes remaining.
Tisdale was named the tournament’s most outstanding player.
Hofstra 75, Delaware 61: Eli Pemberton had 24 points and the Pride (25-8) secured their second straight trip to the championship game of the Colonial Athletic Association tournament in Washington.
Hofstra will try to secure its first NCAA tournament berth since 2001.
Northeastern 68, Elon 60: Jordan Roland hit five of 12 three-point attempts and scored 21 points as the sixthseeded Huskies (17-15) led wire to wire in a CAA tournament semifinal.
Illinois Chicago 73, Wright State 56: Tarkus Ferguson tied his career high with 25 points and the Flames (18-16) advanced to their first Horizon League championship game since 2004 with a win in Indianapolis.
Northern Kentucky 80, Green Bay 69: Jalen Tate made 10 of 15 free throws and scored 23 points, including a go-ahead layup with 9:52 to play for the Norse (22-9) in the Horizon League semifinal.
North Dakota State 75, Oral Roberts 69: Tyson Ward had 21 points as the Bison (24-8) topped the Golden Eagles (17-14) in the Summit League Conference tournament semifinals in Sioux Falls, S.D.
North Dakota 73, Purdue Fort Wayne 56: Kienan Walter scored 20 points with nine rebounds and the sixth-seeded Fighting Hawks (15-17) reached the Summit League final.