David Yapkowitz Articles - Page 52

This college basketball season in particular, it seems as if the freshman class of 2024 is making a huge impact across the country. From USC Trojans star JuJu Watkins to Notre Dame Fighting Irish sensation Hannah Hidalgo, it’s been a special freshman group. One name that has not come up as much, but should be […]

The USC Trojans have advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1994, and that’s largely due to the phenomenal play of freshman sensation JuJu Watkins. Watkins opened up the NCAA Tournament in style in the first round against Texas A&M Corpus Christi when she set the school record […]

Missing nearly an entire season is tough for any basketball player, let alone their first year of college basketball. But that was the reality for UConn Huskies forward Ice Brady who was sidelined for the entirety of her freshman season last year after suffering a knee injury before the season began. Brady was a highly-touted […]

The South Carolina Gamecocks have been cruising through the regular season and the NCAA Tournament so far. But they had a brief scare on Friday against the Indiana Hoosiers in the Sweet 16. After building a 22-point lead, South Carolina saw Indiana slice that deficit down to two points in the fourth quarter. While South […]

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish saw their season come to an end at the hands of the Oregon State Beavers in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. It’s been a tough season for the Fighting Irish who had only six available players during the Tournament. But perhaps the biggest storyline of the game was […]

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish’s season came to an end in the Sweet 16 against the Oregon State Beavers, 70-65. It’s been a tough season for Notre Dame as they’ve dealt with numerous injuries to the roster. Amid Notre Dame’s March Madness loss was the issue of star freshman Hannah Hidalgo and her nose ring. […]

It’s probably safe to say that growing up, most kids with serious NBA aspirations have dreams of playing for their hometown team. But how often does that actually happen? Some players might not want that outcome, while others embrace that challenge. For Sacramento Kings guard Jordan Ford, this is the ultimate dream. Ford grew up […]

The Virginia Tech Hokies were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament this past weekend by the Baylor Bears. The Hokies suffered a major blow before March Madness even began when it was announced that star center Elizabeth Kitley would be sidelined for the duration of the tournament. With Kitley’s eligibility exhausted, it looks like Virginia Tech […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder’s rise in the Western Conference has been one of the top storylines of the 2023-24 NBA season. The Thunder are very much in play for the top seed in the West heading into the playoffs as they’re led by MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. But it’s possible the Thunder could be without […]

The Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder game erupted into a mini fight as the Thunder’s Josh Giddey and the Rockets’ Dillon Brooks exchanged pleasantries following a stoppage in the game. Brooks is certainly no stranger to on court antics, but was he at fault at all in this situation? Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. […]

The USC Trojans had a disappointing 2023-24 season. Despite the talent they had on their roster, they finished near the bottom of the Pac-12 standings and were eliminated in the second round of the conference tournament. While most of the roster decided what to do for next season, it appears as if the Trojans will […]

The Los Angeles Clippers made a major move in season when they signed Kawhi Leonard to a contract extension, ensuring that their franchise player remains in uniform through the 2026-27 season. The other half of that equation for he Clippers is Paul George who can hit unrestricted free agency if they don’t agree on a […]

Life on a 10-day contract in the NBA is tough. Players have a limited amount of time to prove they belong on a roster. Every possession matters, every second counts. And it’s the situation that DJ Wilson has found himself in, in recent seasons. The Philadelphia 76ers recently signed DJ Wilson to a 10-day contract, […]

The subject of load management was at the forefront of all the major storylines before the 2023-24 NBA season tipped-off. It’s carried over into the regular season as players feel the effect of the NBA’s new 65-game directive to be eligible for postseason awards. Prior to the Los Angeles Lakers game against the Milwaukee Bucks […]

The Wisconsin Badgers had an up and down, uneven regular season, but the made an appearance in March Madness this year thanks to a strong Big 10 Tournament run. They knocked off the favorite in Purdue before ultimately falling to Illinois. The Badgers couldn’t keep their momentum going though as they were upset by James […]

The LSU Tigers are the defending national champions, but the biggest storyline surrounding them as March Madness has gotten underway is a rumored upcoming article from the Washington Post that threatens to expose LSU head coach Kim Mulkey. Hints of the article first surfaced on social media by Pat Forde of Sports Illustrated. Forde reported […]

When Taiyanna Jackson was a junior at Kansas, she became the first Jayhawk to be named to the Big 12 All-Defensive Team. One of the nation’s leading shot blockers, Jackson has established herself as one of the best defensive anchors in college basketball as March Madness has tipped-off. She averaged 3.1 blocks per game this […]

The North Carolina Tar Heels and head coach Hubert Davis came into March Madness with championship aspirations. With a No. 1 seed in hand, the Tar Heels rolled past Wagner in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. But in the second round, they faced a tough challenge in Tom Izzo-led Michigan State. But North […]

It’s been quite the freshman season for USC Trojans star JuJu Watkins. The Pac-12 Conference freshman of the year has been setting records left and right. In many instances, Watkins has surpassed Trojan legend and Hall of Famer Cheryl Miller. So it seemed fitting that in Watkins March Madness debut, an 87-55 win against Texas […]

One of the best things about March Madness is the unpredictability. Every season an unexpected lower seed knocks off a top seed and sends the country into a frenzy. The Yale Bulldogs just became one of those teams with a 78-76 win against Auburn. For longtime Yale head coach James Jones, this win was against […]

The Colorado Buffaloes came into the NCAA Tournament as an underdog and they just keep winning. This time, they punched their ticket to the round of 32 after a thrilling 102-100 win over Florida in an upset. Junior guard KJ Simpson hit the game winner and following the game, head coach Tad Boyle had a […]

When it comes to March Madness, a win is a win no matter what. The LSU Tigers may have found themselves in a dogfight with the underdog Rice Owls, but they hung on for a 70-60 win to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Following the game, both head coach Kim Mulkey […]

Despite having a roster made up of potential NBA players, the Kentucky Wildcats suffered another humiliating March Madness exit on Thursday. This time, at the hands of the No. 14 seed Oakland Golden Grizzlies. Within the past four years, Kentucky has lost in the first round twice, lost in the second round and missed the […]

With day one of March Madness in the books, several teams have already punched their ticket to the round of 32. In one of the more intriguing matchups of the second round, the Oregon Ducks and head coach Dana Altman will square off against his former team, the Creighton Bluejays. Oregon advanced to the next […]

Heading into the first round of March Madness on Thursday, the No. 2 seeded Arizona Wildcats against the No. 15 seeded Long Beach State seemed like an ultimate David vs. Goliath showdown. The storylines were fantastic as well considering Long Beach State head coach Dan Monson once recruited Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd when the […]

The No. 8 seeded Nebraska Cornhuskers are preparing for their opening round March Madness matchup against the No. 9 seeded Texas A&M Aggies and the program recently gave head coach Fred Hoiberg a contract extension. Throughout the 2023-24 college season, it wasn’t always clear that the Cornhuskers were going to make the NCAA Tournament, but […]

One of the most popular pastimes among fans and media alike when it comes to March Madness and the NCAA Tournament is debating which teams got snubbed and actually deserved to be there. One team noticeably absent is St. John’s and head coach Rick Pitino blasted the selection committee for not including the Red Storm. […]

With the NCAA Tournament set to tip-off this week, NBA scouts are preparing to hit the road and do some scouting in advance of the NBA Draft. While college success does not always translate to NBA success, players have used March Madness as a means to improve their draft stock. There are a few players […]

The NCAA Tournament is finally here and one of the top storylines every year is the coaches who are looking to make a statement. Maybe it’s a coach looking to get their program some respect or maybe it’s a coach who is shockingly looking for their next opportunity. Or it could be a coach who […]

The Kansas Jayhawks and head coach Bill Self had a poor finish to the 2023-24 season and into the Big 12 Tournament. Despite that, the Jayhawks, with a 22-10 record, were selected as a No. 4 seed in Midwest Regional. But the biggest question facing Kansas is the health of their top two players in […]

The Dallas Mavericks are currently fighting for playoff positioning in the Western Conference standings. They’re currently neck and neck with the Sacramento Kings for the sixth seed and avoiding a play-in game. They needed a win on Sunday and Kyrie Irving delivered with a crazy game-winner. Following the shot, Mavericks star Luka Doncic dropped to […]

What was supposed to be a major clash between the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers with Western Conference seeding implications, instead turned into a referendum on the NBA’s replay policy. A major malfunction with the shot clock in the fourth quarter stopped play for about 16 minutes. Following the game, Warriors head coach […]

The Los Angeles Lakers came into Saturday with a huge game against the Golden State Warriors in terms of potential Western Conference seeding implications. Both teams are jockeying for the final two play-in spots in the West. But perhaps the biggest story in the Lakers vs. Warriors game turned out to be the NBA’s own […]

All season long, the Houston Cougars have been the top team in the Big 12 Conference. They’ve been ranked No. 1 in the nation for a good portion of the 2023-24 season and they headed in to the Big 12 Tournament as the top overall seed. But the Iowa State Cyclones pulled off a mini-upset […]

March Madness is finally here and with it come all the ups and downs, joys and heartbreaks. Sometimes those heartbreaks are quite tragic and such was the case during the Mid-American Conference Tournament. Akron and Kent State squared off in the MAC Tournament championship game and it looked like Kent State was about to punch […]

The Charlotte Hornets have been one of the bottom-feeding teams in the NBA this season, but have actually played a bit better since the trade deadline when they acquired a few new players. While a few other notable rookies have garnered the majority of the attention, Hornets rookie wing Brandon Miller is having a noteworthy […]

The Memphis Grizzlies have been plagued with injury issues this season. They’ve had one of the lengthiest injury reports in the NBA and have needed some of their rookies and two-way contract players to play major minutes so they can field a roster. But as the season winds down, they’re slowly but surely getting players […]

UCLA’s string of NCAA Tournament appearances under head coach Mick Cronin will come to an end this season after the Bruins loss to Oregon in the second round of the Pac-12 Tournament. It’s been a tough year for the Bruins and Cronin who has garnered headlines this season for some of his postgame comments. But […]

Rick Pitino and the St. John’s Red Storm had the opportunity to pull off an upset in the Big East Tournament Semifinals going up against the defending NCAA champion UConn Huskies. They fell short in their attempt, 95-90. St. John’s will hope for a little luck from the seeding committee to make the NCAA Tournament. […]