COLUMBUS, Ohio – Everyone was thinking the same thing. This could happen!
When
Tucker Richardson made two free throws with 12:09 remaining in Friday's NCAA South Regional First Round game, 15th-seeded Colgate had its first lead at 49-48 over second-seeded Tennessee.
Richardson hit a 3-pointer from deep in the corner and the Raiders were within 60-58 with 5:34 showing and the Nationwide Arena ticket-buyers – those not wearing orange – had their Cinderella.
She was wearing a Bicentennial Colgate C.
Colgate played the Vols lights-out to the bitter end, eventually dropping a 77-70 decision in their first NCAA appearance in 23 years.
Jordan Burns produced an NCAA March Madness performance, finishing with 32 points on 8-of-13 shooting from 3-point distance. The Raiders as a team made 15 of their 29 attempts from long range.
A pair of dagger 3-pointers by Tennessee's Admiral Schofield inside the final two minutes closed the lid on Colgate's trending upset bid. The Vols were just 7-of-24 from distance at the time but made enough plays over the course of 40 minutes to advance.
All of this despite
Rapolas Ivanauskas sitting out the entire second half because of eye irritation that worsened as the game progressed. The Patriot League Player of the Year was Colgate's leading scorer this year at 16.4 points per game, and yet his NCAA score line showed zero points on 0-of-4 shooting.
Second-Half Springboard
Late 3-balls from
Will Rayman and Burns, plus a pair of buckets from the hard-working
Dana Batt, pulled the Raiders within 42-30 at halftime.
To start the second half, Colgate kept the 3-point mojo working as
Jack Ferguson, Rayman and Burns all found the range in the opening five minutes as Colgate crawled within 48-44.
Despite three consecutive 3-point misses that drew groans from the crowd of 19,641 – Nationwide was ready to erupt – Colgate's defense kept denying the Vols any breathing room.
Francisco Amiel swished from the corner and the Raiders were within 48-47. Ferguson's set shot for the lead wouldn't fall, but Colgate finally took its first leads 49-48 and 52-50 on Richardson's heroics – five straight points from the Patriot League Rookie of the Year.
That capped Raider runs of 14-3 and 22-8 to start the second half before Tennessee regained its footing and rallied to win.
The day began with Tennessee scoring the game's first nine points, converting on four straight possessions while limiting Colgate to a single shot attempt and forcing two turnovers. Batt finally ended the 9-0 run with a short banker at the 17:25 mark.
Burns then picked up right where he left off in Cotterell Court nine days earlier, swishing a pair of long-range 3-pointers that pulled the Raiders within 11-8 with 15:39 showing.
Ferguson got in on the 3-point fun by arching one home from the shadow of the Tennessee bench to pull the Raiders within 20-18 with 8:17 to play. But just like that, the Vols answered with six consecutive points to begin a 16-2 run that pushed the lead to 36-20 at the 2:48 mark.
Bottom Line
• No. 6 Tennessee 77, Colgate 70
Record Updates
• Colgate's 11-game winning streak and season comes to an end at 24-11.
• Tennessee reached the 30-win plateau, improving to 30-5 on the season.
From the Source
Colgate Postgame Press Conference Quotes
• Colgate head coach Matt Langel:
"Obviously a fantastic NCAA basketball game. I thought the venue was terrific. The hospitality has been unbelievable. I thought the fans and the energy in the building was everything you dreamed it could be.
"I gotta give Tennessee credit. They had all the pressure. We have one chance to get here. So as the game got tight and close, I thought Tennessee managed it really well. Obviously Schofield stepped up and made huge corner jump shots. It ends up being the difference in the game. But for the most part we got to show who we are and what we can do and made some good plays to get some open shots and stepped up and knocked them down.
"I do feel good about the program we've built. And I told the seniors in our locker room, as they were exiting, they don't get to put the uniform on anymore, but they should be really proud and hopefully will be for some time of the program that they've helped build."
Key Raider Notes
• Burns reached the 30-point plateau for the second straight game after going off for 35 in the Patriot League Tournament championship.
• His eight 3-pointers were a career high and came just one shy of a program record for a single game, set by Tucker Neale in 1994.
• Neale was in attendance for today's game.
• Ferguson led Colgate in rebounds for the first time this season with seven boards.
• The Raiders held National Player of the Year candidate and two-time SEC Player of the Year Grant Williams to just nine points.
• Williams came in leading the SEC averaging 19.3 points per game.
• Colgate's 15 3-pointers were two shy of its season high.
• The Raiders shot a blistering 51.7 percent (15-of-29) from beyond the arc.
• Colgate outscored Tennessee 40-35 in the second half.
• Tennessee was the first ranked foe of any stature on the Colgate schedule since the Raiders went to No. 24 Notre Dame in December 2016.
• In four postseason games, the Raiders finished with double-digit treys each time.
• Colgate in the postseason shot 45.2 percent from downtown, converting 47-of-104.
• That's nearly an average of 12 treys per game.
Season Highlights
• Colgate for the first time in school history reached 20 wins this season.
• The Raiders' 24 wins were the most in program history.
• Colgate has set the wins record in back-to-back seasons.
• Colgate's 13 league wins were the most in school history.
• The previous high was 12 wins, which was matched in 2014-15 and 2017-18.
• Colgate this year finished with 15 wins at Cotterell Court, besting the previous record of 13 (2017-18, 1926-27) for the most in a campaign.
• The Raiders won their fourth overall regular-season title and first since 1996.
• Colgate has advanced to three NCAA Tournaments, all after earning the No. 1 seed in the Patriot League Tournament.
• Burns passed Austin Tillotson (2015-16) for most assists in a single season (171).
• Richardson now holds the record for most assists in a season as a freshman (132), passing Josh Farrell's 1983-84 mark of 120.
• Burns' 5.8 assists per game average shatters a record that has stood since 1950-51 by Joe Stratton (1950-51).
• Francisco Amiel is the new all-time Colgate leader in games played (130).
