Midwest Region: Interim coach looks to keep LSU on track

Interim coach for LSU looks to stabilize situation

Kevin Nickelberry’s lone postseason game in 12 years as a Division I head coach was a 2019 loss to Coastal Carolina when he was in charge of the Howard program.

The stakes will be slightly higher for his Louisiana State debut.

Nickelberry will serve as the Tigers’ interim coach for the NCAA Tournament after the No. 6 seed saw coach Will Wade and top assistant Bill Armstrong fired over the weekend for allegations of repeated infractions by the NCAA.

LSU will face No. 11 Iowa State on Friday. Nickelberry intends to make the most of the opportunity.

“Obviously, this time a couple of days ago, I didn’t think I was going to be sitting here,” he said Sunday. “But right now, I’m charged with the responsibility of getting these young men focused on the task at hand, which is the NCAA Tournament on Friday.”

LSU was in a somewhat similar situation in 2019 when Wade was suspended by the school during the tournament for refusing to cooperate with an investigation into allegations. They won two games before being eliminated in the Sweet 16 under the direction of Tony Benford.

The regional will take place in Chicago.

Four players to watch

■ Ochai Agbaji, Kansas — There are plenty of superlatives to demonstrate just how good Agbaji has been this year, but perhaps the easiest place to start is that he became just the fifth player to follow a Big 12 player of the year award by winning MVP in the conference tournament in the same season. He put up big numbers in leading the Jayhawks to the tournament title, but his efforts will more likely be remembered for one of the best highlights of the season when he traveled to the solar system to throw down a dunk on Texas Christian.

■ Keegan Murray, Iowa — After averaging just 7.2 points per game last year as a freshman in the shadow of Luka Garza, Murray’s stock has soared with a breakout campaign that has seen him put up 23.7 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Murray also blocks two shots per game and shoots 40 percent from 3-point range, as does his twin brother Kris.

■ Johnny Davis, Wisconsin — Not much was expected of this Badgers team outside of being typically hard to play against, but Davis emerged from out of nowhere to help carry Greg Gard’s team to a Big Ten regular-season title. Davis put up 19.7 points and 8.2 rebounds per game and catapulted himself into an almost certain top-five pick in the NBA draft. He was injured late in the season and looked out of sorts in the Big Ten tournament. But Gard expects him to be better in the NCAA Tournament.

■ Jabari Smith, Auburn — The freshman arrived on campus with aspirations of being the top pick in the NBA draft after one year in college and has done nothing to make anyone believe he won’t achieve that goal. Smith averaged more than 17 points per game for a team that spent time ranked No. 1 in the nation for the first time in school history.

Three potential matchups

■ Providence vs. Richmond, second round — If experience is indeed a factor this time of year, this could be a great game. Six of Richmond’s top seven players are seniors, including four so-called super-seniors who are graduate students taking advantage of an extra season of eligibility. The Friars are similarly constructed with six seniors, including four graduate students, and a fourth-year junior among their top seven players.

■ Kansas vs. Iowa, Sweet 16 — This one is more about current form than storyline. Both teams come into the tournament hot; the game would also feature a matchup of two of the more exciting college players in Murray and Agbaji. Here’s a bonus: The Jayhawks could play San Diego State in the second round, eight years after the Aztecs went into Lawrence and ended Kansas’ 68-game home winning streak against nonconference opponents.

■ South Dakota State vs. Colgate, Elite Eight — OK, so there’s really not much of a chance of this happening. But isn’t this tournament all about dreaming? The top two 3-point shooting teams in the nation are in the same region and could meet should they both make Cinderella runs. South Dakota State and Colgate are the only teams in the country that shoot over 40 percent from beyond the arc.

Two bracket busters

■ Miami — The Hurricanes look like a fairly pedestrian team on paper, but there are a few factors that warrant deeper inspection when looking for a long shot that could make some noise. Miami went 4-1 against Quad 1 opponents in the regular season, so it has more than held its own against elite competition. The Hurricanes also went 10-2 on the road and don’t need to rely on home cooking for success. Those are helpful traits in a neutral site tournament.

■ South Dakota State — Plain and simple, the Jackrabbits can score. They averaged nearly 87 points and led the nation by shooting 45.3 percent from 3-point range and nearly 60 percent on 2-pointers in league play. South Dakota State has not lost since December and will give defenses nightmares.

Last team standing

Kansas

Bill Self doesn’t have the greatest history in the NCAA Tournament, but he got a bit of a break with this draw. Second-seeded Auburn stumbled down the stretch with turnovers and an inability to shoot the ball. Wisconsin is fairly limited outside of Davis, and Providence lacks top-end talent.

Adam Hill Las Vegas Review-Journal