Eye on the Draft: Sweet Sixteen Day 1 recap


- In the first game of the night, 11th seeded Dayton knocked off Stanford (10) 82-72 in the all-underdog matchup.  The Flyers jumped out to a 33-23 lead with six minutes to go in the first half, and never really looked back.  For the game Dayton's bench outscored Stanford's 34-2.  After finishing the regular season tied with UMass for 5th place in the Atlantic 10, the Flyers will now play for a berth in the Final Four.

Senior power forward Dwight Powell scored 17 points to go along with 9 rebounds for the Cardinal; Powell is a possible second round draft pick.

- The second contest of the evening was even less dramatic than the first, with the outcome never in doubt.  Wisconsin (2) held Baylor (6) to just eight points through 13 minutes of action, leading 18-8 with seven minutes to go before halftime.  The Badgers shot 52% from the field, while holding the Bears to just 31.6% en route to an easy 69-52 victory.

Baylor has two potential draftees, sophomore center Isiah Austin, and senior power forward Cory Jefferson.  Both would likely be taken in the second round if selected.  Austin had 12 points, 5 rebounds, an assist and 2 blocks, while Jefferson put up 15 points and 7 rebounds, along with 1 assist.

- The third game saw Florida (1) hold off UCLA (4), 79-68.  The Bruins were done in by poor three-point shooting, going 3-18 (16.7%) from beyond the arc.

Despite being the #1 team in the country, the Gators aren't loaded with NBA talent.  Their top prospect is senior center Patric Young, who may go in the second round.  Young battled foul trouble all night, and scored just 4 points with 3 rebounds in only 20 minutes of action.

On the other hand, UCLA has a trio of guys who could be chosen in the first round.  Sophomore small forward Kyle Anderson posted 11 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals.  Freshman guard Zach LaVine scored just 5 points with 2 rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench.  And Sophomore shooting guard Jordan Adams had a team high 17 points, along with 4 rebounds, 2 assists, a block and a steal.

- The final matchup of the evening was easily the most entertaining, as Arizona pulled away from San Diego St. down the stretch for a 70-64 win.  The Aztecs led much of the game despite recording just four assists as a team.  After trailing by as many as eight in the second half, the Wildcats took their first lead since the 11-minute mark at 50-49 with 7:21 left to play.

San Diego State's senior point guard Xavier Thames shows up as a late pick in some mocks drafts, and last night he led all scorers with 25 points (although he had just 1 assists and 1 rebound).

Arizona's junior shooting guard Nick Johnson might go in the late first or early second round.  Johnson started the game 0-10 and was scoreless through 37 minutes.  However, in the final three minutes he went 2-2 from the field and 10-10 from the free throw line to finish with 15 points, as well as 8 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal.

Saving the best for last, the Wildcats' freshman forward Aaron Gordon is expected to be picked in the 6-8 range overall, and could very well wind up in Boston.  Gordon had a solid all-around game, scoring 15 points on 7-9 FG attempts (1-1 3PT), along with 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks in 39 minutes.  His most glaring weakness did come to light though; for the season Gordon is a 42% free throw shooter, and he missed all three of his attempts yesterday.  He did however throw down this ridiculous alley oop:





Follow Mark Vandeusen on twitter @LucidSportsFan