HoopsHD continues its series leading up to Selection Sunday and March Madness, as we simulate what would have happened in TTTW (The Tournament That Wasn’t). Up next is Conference USA — the conference that plays its first two rounds by having multiple games going on simultaneously with a giant curtain separating the two courts. We love the curtain here at HoopsHD, and have one more round of curtain play to go in the quarterfinals, before moving on to the semis and the title game. North Texas, Western Kentucky and Louisiana Tech all battled for the regular season title with the Mean Green coming out on top, but could we be in for a surprise at Curtain Madness? It is time to find out!
CONFERENCE USA QUARTERFINALS
The Curtain was back up at the Conference USA Tournament as the quarterfinals got underway with two games being played simultaneously in the same building. On Court A, six players scored in double figures for North Texas, led by Umoja Gibson’s 18, as the Mean Green held off Florida Atlantic 85-76. Meanwhile, on Court B, Charlotte rallied from a 10-point deficit to knock out Florida International 87-83, thanks in part to 24 points from Jordan Shepherd.
In the late session, it was Western Kentucky versus UAB on Court A while Louisiana Tech took on Marshall over on Court B. The WKU-UAB game was tight throughout, and in fact when regulation ended, the two teams were knotted up at 66 apiece. WKU was finally able to seize control in the extra frame and win 82-78. 16 points and 14 rebounds from Carson Williams led the way for the Hilltoppers. On Court B, Louisiana Tech was able to open an 8-point lead early in the second half and keep Marshall at arm’s length the rest of the way, winning 84-76.
CONFERENCE USA SEMIFINALS
The semifinals of the CUSA Tournament were both played on the same court. Game 1 proved to be a thriller as 4th-seeded Charlotte took on top seed North Texas. The surprising 49ers held a three point lead at halftime, but neither team was able to pull away from the other at all during the second half. An open jumper from Charlotte’s Luka Vasic gave his team a three point lead with just under a minute to play, but UNT came right back down, and James Reese nailed one from long distance to tie the game at 76 with 28 seconds to play. Luka Vasic was not done, however, as his shot with 1 second left to play found the bottom of the net and sent the surprising Charlotte 49ers to the Conference USA title game by a final score of 78-76.
Game 2 saw a back-and-forth battle throughout the first half between Louisiana Tech and Western Kentucky. However, the second half of the game clearly belonged to the Hilltoppers. WKU extended their lead out to as many as 14 points and held on to win 73-62. Carson Williams led the way for his team, scoring 18 point and pulling down 13 rebounds.
CONFERENCE USA CHAMPIONSHIP
The Charlotte 49ers entered the CUSA title game seeking their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2005. This team had been picked to finish near the very bottom of the league standings preseason, and their run to an upper division finish and a spot in the title game had become the talk of Frisco, Texas. Despite having a 2 point lead at the halftime break, the Cinderella story finally came to an end. WKU was able to take the lead early in the second period, and finally pulled away from the 49ers late to win 72-63 and punch their Dance Ticket. Taveion Hollingsworth led the Hilltoppers with 24 points and Jared Savage added 23 for the champions.
