New England Guide to Day 1 of NCAA Tournament
The NCAA tournament gets into full gear today and that means people across the country will be glued to their televisions. New England basketball fans will have plenty to look forward to as 14 of Thursday's 16 games feature a former New England product.
Here's a breakdown of what to watch, where to find it, and who to look for:
12:15 – CBS – Princeton vs. Notre Dame
Princeton: JR forwards Mike Leblanc are both New England natives and alums of New Hampton School and Milton Academy respectively; SR forward Pete Miller is from Massachusetts and graduate from Northfield Mount Hermon.
Notre Dame: JR forward Bonzie Colson is from Massachusetts and graduated from St. Andrew’s.
12:40 – TruTV – UNC Wilmington vs. Virginia
Virginia: Soph forward Jarred Reuter is from Massachusetts and graduated from Brewster Academy.
1:30 – TNT – Winthrop vs. Butler
Winthrop: FR guard Patrick Fisher graduated from Vermont Academy last year.
Butler: SR forward Andrew Chrabascz is from Rhode Island and graduated from Cushing Academy.
2:00 – TBS – South Dakota State vs. Gonzaga
South Dakota State: FR guard Sergio El Darwich graduated from Lee Academy last spring.
Gonzaga: JR guard Dustin Triano did a post-graduate year at the New Hampton School.
2:45 – CBS – Bucknell vs. West Virginia
West Virginia: JR guard Daxter Miles Jr. spent a year at Notre Dame Prep while JR big man Elijah Macon graduated from Brewster Academy.
3:10 – TruTV – East Tennessee State vs. Florida
4:00 – TNT – Middle Tennessee vs. Minnesota
4:30 – TBS – Vanderbilt vs. Northwestern
Vanderbilt – FR big man Djery Baptiste began his high school career at Wilbraham & Monson Academy.
Northwestern – Soph forward Aaron Falzon is a Massachusetts native and graduate of Northfield Mount Hermon School. Soph forward Rapolas Ivanauskas attended Brewster Academy two years ago.
6:50 – TNT – Xavier vs. Maryland
Xavier – FR forward Tyrique Jones is originally from Connecticut and graduated from Vermont Academy. Assistant coach Luke Murray graduated from St. Luke’s School in Connecticut and began his coaching career with the New England Playaz.
Maryland – JR guard Jaylen Brantley is from Massachusetts and graduated from Notre Dame Prep.
7:10 – CBS – Mount St. Mary’s vs. Villanova
Villanova – Redshirt FR Omari Spellman attended both MacDuffie School and St. Thomas More. Soph forward Eric Paschall also attended St. Thomas More. SR big man Darryl Reynolds did a post-graduate year at Worcester Academy.
7:20 – TBS – VCU vs. St. Mary’s
VCU – Soph forward Issac Vann graduated from Bunnell High School in Connecticut.
7:27 – TruTV – Vermont vs. Purdue
Vermont – SR forwards Kurt Steidl and Darren Payen graduated from Ridgefield High School and Hamden Hall, both in Connecticut. JR forward Samuel Dingba graduated from Salisbury School, also in Connecticut, while fellow JR Josh Hearlihy is an alum of Northfield Mount Hermon. FR guard Ben Shungu is a Vermont native who graduated from Burlington High School. Associate head coach Kyle Cieplicki is also a Vermont native while assistant Ryan Schneider was previously an assistant at NMH and Director of Operations Greg Snyder on staff with the New England Playaz.
Purdue – Graduate student Spike Albrecht is another NMH alum while Soph big man Jacquil Taylor is a Massachusetts native and Beaver Country Day alum.
9:20 – TNT – Florida Gulf Coast vs. Florida State
Florida State – Soph guard Terance Mann is from Massachusetts and a graduate of the Tilton School. JR guard Xavier Rathan-Mayes began his high school career at Cheshire Academy.
9:40 – CBS – Virginia Tech vs. Wisconsin
Wisconsin – JR guard Jordan Hill did a post-graduate year at Phillips Exeter Academy and sophomore forweard Alex Illikainen spent his final year at Brewster Academy.
9:50 – TBS – North Dakota vs. Arizona
North Dakota – SR guard Corey Baldwin graduated from Harding High School in Bridgeport, Connecticut. JR guard Jafar Kinsey is from upstate New York but played with Metro Boston on the travel circuit.
Arizona – Massachusetts native, Worcester Academy alum, and former Brewster Academy post-graduate Austin Carroll is currently a graduate assistant.
9:57 – TruTV – Nevada vs. Iowa State
Iowa State – SR swingman Deonte Burton previously attended Brewster Academy.