Sports

This is Mike Reiter and I am live inside Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina for the second and third rounds of the NCAA tournament.

The Georgia Bulldogs will face the Washington Huskies tomorrow night at 9:45 for the right to take on the winner of North Carolina vs. Long Island.

Other games are underway, but today’s action from Charlotte consists of practices and press conferences.

Game times for tomorrows action:

(9) Tennessee vs. (8) Michigan: 12:40 EST. TruTV
(16) Hampton vs. (1) Duke: 3:10 EST. TruTV
(15) Long Island vs. (2) North Carolina: 7:15 EST. CBS
(10) Georgia vs. (7) Washington: 9:45 EST. CBS

Announcers (for all games): Jim Nantz, Clark Kellog, Tracy Wolfson (sideline)

Stay tuned to WUOG Sports for continuous updates of today’s action.

Mark Fox talking with CBS crew during Practice at Time Warner Cable Arena

9:35: The first slate of games for the night session have concluded. (2) Florida has defeated (15) UC-Santa Barbara 79-51. (3) BYU 74 beat (14) Wofford 74-66. (4) Wisconsin has defeated (14) Belmont 72-58. (3) Connecticut beat (14) Bucknell 81-52.

6:45: Georgia has taken the court here in Time Warner Cable Arena. They will practice for 40 minutes.

6:42: It wouldn’t be a tournament without a 5-12 upset, and it just happened. (12) Richmond has defeated (5) Vanderbilt 69-66 and they will face Morehead State Saturday in Denver, CO.

6:41: (2) San Diego State has defeated (15) Northern Colorado 68-50. They will play Temple Saturday in Tuscon, AZ.

6:30: Quotes from Georgia Head Coach Mark Fox.

“I’m really proud of our team for playing us into this position and excited to be in the NCAA Tournament to play a terrific Washington team.

“One of the things that helps us is that we are on spring break. Good for players to be by themselves and to get grounded again”

On Washington’s tempo: “We have to find a way to slow it down. We have always tried to play as fast as we can play. We will have to find that balance.”

6:10: Notable quotes from the Washington press conference.

Isaiah Thomas: “It’s win or go home now, or win six in a row and win the National Championship. It’s alot different (than the regular season) … every possession counts, everything we do counts in practice, and just be ready because the bright lights are on now.

Head Coach Lorenzo Romoar: “We are obviously excited to be here. We’ve traveled quite a distance to get here, but it’s definitely worth it. Anytime you’re in the NCAA Tournament, consider it a privilege. Definitely not a right. So we’re excited to be here”

Isaiah Thomas warming up in Time Warner Cable Arena on Thursday, March 17, 2011

5:43: Whether it wass just for fun, or real practice, Washington just took the last couple minutes shooting half-court shots. #15 Scott Suggs and #30 Desmond Simmons were the only players to make the shots.

5:38: The first number one seed has advanced to the second round. (1) Pittsburgh has defeated (16) UNC-Ashville 74-51 . The Panthers will play Butler Saturday in Washington D.C.

5:21: Washington has taken the court here in Charlotte, North Carolina. Isaiah Thomas really stands out. He is only 5′9” (Yes, that is not a typo), but averages 16.1 points per game. As a whole, the Huskies don’t have the physical presence of Georgia, but they have the speed to run up and down the floor.

5:10: The first of the second slate of games on this great Thursday of tournament action has gone final. (4) Kentucky survives an upset scare and defeats (13) Princeton 59-57 on a driving lay-up with 2 seconds left. The Wildcats will face West Virginia on Saturday in Tampa Bay.

4:48: Washington players and head coach Lorenzo Romar are at the podium now. Quotes will follow.

4:12: The last of the early games is final. (7) Temple has defeated (10) Penn State 66-64 on a jumper with 0.4 seconds left. The Owls will face the winner of (2) San Diego State and (15) Northern Colorado on Saturday in Tuscon, Arizona.

3:56: Third of the early games has gone final. (13) Morehead State has upset (4) Louisville 62-61 on a game winning 3-point basket with 4.2 seconds left. Morehead State will face the winner of (5) Vanderbilt and (12) Richmond.

3:21: Brief break in the action right now here in Charlotte, NC. Roy Williams press conference is at 4:00 followed by UNC’s practice at 5:10.

Georgia’s student athletes will take place at 6:00 p.m. followed by Mark Fox at 6:15. The Bulldogs will begin practice at 6:40.

2:52: Second game in the books. (8) Butler has defeated (9) Old Dominion 60-58 with a game winning lay-up at the buzzer. The Bulldogs will face the winner of (1) Pittsburgh and (16) UNC-Ashville.

View from outside Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, NC

2:30: First final of the day. (5) West Virginia has defeated (12) Clemson 84-76 and will advance to play the winner of (4) Kentucky and (13) Princeton.

2:10: Duke and Coach K are about to take the court, and there are a couple hundred Blue Devil fans that are in the arena.

Duke fans love their basketball like SEC fans love their football.

The Devils come into the 2011 tournament with the number one seed, and are one of the favorites to win the West regional.

Their first opponent is the (16) Hampton Pirates and should they advance, they will play the winner of (8) Michigan and (9) Tennessee.

1:15 p.m.: The early afternoon practices are underway and the Tennessee Volunteers have already taken the court, and the Hampton Pirates are currently on the floor.

Georgia and Washington will practice later today at 6:40 and 5:10, respectively. More to come including interviews from players and coaches.