It did not disappoint. It never disappoints.
The NCAA Tournament provided its annual thrills on Day 1 with multiple upsets and riveting finishes destroying millions of brackets.
Here’s a recap of the highlights for anyone who was unable to spend 12-plus hours in front of one or more screens on Thursday — a look ahead to Friday’s busy slate:
Biggest upset
New Jersey shook up the nation for the second straight year. Following in the footsteps of the magical Saint Peter’s run last March, No. 15 Princeton scored the final nine points of its first-round game against No. 2 Arizona to secure a stunning 59-55 win.
The Tigers, who earned their first NCAA Tournament win since 1998, took their first lead with 2:03 remaining and held the Pac-12 champions scoreless for the final 4:43.
It was the third straight year — and 11th time since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1985 — that a No. 15 seed topped a No. 2 seed. Princeton will face No. 7 Missouri — which beat No. 10 Utah State, 76-65 — in the second round on Saturday.
Play of the day (of the tournament?)
No. 13 Furman, appearing in its first tournament since 1980, trailed No. 4 Virginia by 12 with just over 15 minutes remaining. Against a Tony Bennett defense, it was the equivalent of a 20-point deficit.
Yet the Paladins clawed back to get within two in the final seconds. Following a made free throw, Furman trapped senior guard Kihei Clark in the corner of the court. Clark, who famously saved Virginia’s 2019 title season with a brilliant, buzzer-beating assist in the Elite Eight, surprisingly panicked — failing to use the team’s remaining timeout or see the open teammate across the court — and heaved a desperation pass towards midcourt.
Garrett Hien intercepted it and passed the ball to JP Pegues, who drilled a deep 3-pointer with 2.2 seconds left to give Furman a 68-67 win.
It was the third time Virginia has been upset in the first round of the tournament in its past four trips, beginning with the 2018 upset to 16-seed UMBC. Furman will next face No. 5 San Diego State in the second round.
Player to watch
Brandon Miller. The top overall seed’s biggest star was held scoreless — going 0-for-5 from the field — and played just 19 minutes in Alabama’s 96-75 win over No. 16 Texas A&M Corpus-Christi.
Crimson Tide coach Nate Oats later revealed Miller has been battling a groin injury since the SEC Tournament. The SEC Player of the Year’s health likely will determine whether Alabama can reach the Final Four for the first time in school history.
Coach to watch
Bill Self. The two-time national champion was absent from Kansas’ first-round win over No. 16 Howard.
Former St. John’s coach Norm Roberts filled in for Self, who also missed the Big 12 Tournament after undergoing a heart catheterization. Self is currently with the team, but his timeline to return to the sideline is uncertain.
Worst beat
If you also took Charleston, you already know. The No. 12 seed trailed San Diego State by three with 25 seconds remaining and looked set to get the ball back when Jaylon Scott was whistled for a questionable foul on a desperation 3-pointer by Matt Bradley, who hit two attempts. Still, the Cougars were in great shape to cover the +5.5 line, holding the ball, down four (after a layup followed by a SDSU free throw), in the final seconds.
After Micah Parrish collected a missed drive with five seconds left, Charleston tried to snatch the ball back. The clock continued running. Then, just before the buzzer sounded, a foul was called with 0.7 seconds remaining. Parrish then hit both free throws to give the Aztecs the cover.
Disgusting.
Today’s men’s schedule:
** = Howie Hoops’ best bets for the day
12:15 p.m. ET, CBS: No. 7 Michigan State (-1.5) vs. No. 10 USC
12:40 p.m. ET, truTV: No. 3 Xavier (-12.5) vs. No. 14 Kennesaw State
1:30 p.m. ET, TNT: No. 3 Baylor (-10.5) vs. No. 14 UC Santa Barbara
2:00 p.m. ET, TBS: No. 5 Saint Mary’s (-4.5) vs. No. 12 VCU
2:45 p.m. ET, CBS: No. 2 Marquette vs. No. 15 Vermont (+10.5)**
3:10 p.m. ET, truTV: No. 6 Iowa State vs. No. 11 Pitt (+4.5)**
4:00 p.m. ET, TNT: No. 6 Creighton (-5.5) vs. No. 11 NC State
4:30 p.m. ET, TBS: No. 4 UConn (-9.5) vs. No. 13 Iona
Read more: SERBY: Rick Pitino lives for March Madness
Iona on UConn matchup: ‘We have to almost play perfect’
6:50 p.m. ET, TNT: No. 1 Purdue (-22.5)** vs. No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson
Read more: CANNIZZARO: Don’t tell FDU they can’t upset Purdue
7:10 p.m. ET, CBS: No. 6 Kentucky (-4.5) vs. No. 11 Providence
7:25 p.m. ET, TBS: No. 5 Miami (-1.5) vs. No. 12 Drake
7:35 p.m. ET, truTV: No. 3 Gonzaga (-15.5)** vs. No. 14 Grand Canyon
9:20 p.m. ET, TNT: No. 8 Memphis (-1.5) vs. No. 9 Florida Atlantic
9:40 p.m. ET, CBS: No. 3 Kansas State (-7.5) vs. No. 14 Montana State
9:55 p.m. ET, TBS: No. 4 Indiana (-4.5) vs. No. 13 Kent State
10:05 p.m. ET, truTV: No. 6 TCU (-5.5)** vs. No. 11 Arizona State
Today’s back page
Read more:
🏈 The issues holding up Jets-Packers’ Aaron Rodgers deal
🏈 New Giant Bobby Okereke won’t repeat his Daniel Jones mistake
🏒 Chris Kreider’s late goals lead Rangers to win over Penguins
⚾ MUSHNICK: Why I was surprised Joe Pepitone lived to 82
Edwin Diaz: See you in 2024?
Wait ’til next year.
The trumpets fell silent yesterday, as Mets general manager Billy Eppler announced All-Star closer Edwin Diaz will likely miss the entire season with a torn right patellar tendon, which he suffered while celebrating Puerto Rico’s win Wednesday night in the World Baseball Classic.
Diaz, who needed a wheelchair to exit the field in Miami, underwent surgery Thursday afternoon. Eppler said Diaz is expected to return in eight months while noting rare recoveries from the injury could take six months.
“We will see how the recovery starts and how much he is able to weight-bear and how active he is,” Eppler said. “I’m thinking we are not updating this timeline for a while.”
Diaz, 28, was coming off an incredible season in which he recorded a 1.31 ERA with 32 saves and 118 strikeouts in 62 innings, earning a five-year, $102 million deal with the Mets this offseason.
Diaz authored one of the best local comebacks in recent years, bouncing back from a 5.59 ERA in his first season with the Mets, incessant booing from fans at Citi Field and a demotion to become a dominant force and fan favorite.
His next shot at redemption likely won’t come until this time next year.
These bizarre injuries hurt our brain
Diaz will be with us all season. His name will be uttered at the end of close games. His injury will color late-inning collapses. His absence may define the legacy of a team expecting to win the franchise’s first World Series since 1986.
But strangely, the odd circumstances surrounding Diaz’s devastating news pales in comparison to some of the bizarre injuries suffered by notable New York athletes in recent years:
Plaxico Burress
The Mets may be able to achieve their ultimate goal without Diaz. The Giants couldn’t without their star receiver. The defending Super Bowl champions looked primed to repeat, winning 10 of their first 11 games. Then, Burress — who caught the title-winning touchdown less than one year earlier — accidentally shot himself in the leg with a gun he brought to a nightclub. The Giants lost four of their final six games — including a home playoff game to the Eagles — and Burress served 20 months in prison.
Geno Smith
The former Jets quarterback’s breakout season could have come much sooner, if not for a sucker punch — from teammate IK Enemkpali — stemming from an unpaid gambling debt. At the start of a press conference during the Jets’ 2015 training camp, coach Todd Bowles revealed that Smith — the team’s starter the previous two years — suffered a broken jaw and required surgery. He would appear in just one game that season as veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick led the Jets to a 10-6 record.
Jason Pierre-Paul
On July 4, 2015, the Giants’ All-Pro defensive end infamously damaged his right hand in a fireworks accident. Pierre-Paul’s right index finger was amputated, among 10 surgeries required following the career-threatening injury, yet he miraculously returned with a padded club on his hand to play eight games with the Giants that season.
Joba Chamberlain
He could do nothing about the midges. This 2012 incident was on him, though. Days away from the start of the season, the Yankees right-hander suffered a dislocated ankle while bouncing at a trampoline park in Tampa with his son, Karter. The former top prospect was sidelined until August.
Mariano Rivera
The legendary closer’s remarkable stretch of good health came to an end on May 3, 2012. During a routine session of shagging fly balls before a game in Kansas City, Rivera, then 42, tore his ACL and collapsed on the outfield warning track. Rafael Soriano performed well in his place (42 saves, 2.26 ERA) then departed the next year as Rivera returned to pitch his final season.
Yoenis Cespedes
The Mets should never see a stranger injury occur than the one experienced by their one-time star. During an offseason incident at his ranch in 2019, Cespedes suffered a mysterious fall that resulted in a fractured ankle. The Post later revealed the slugger was injured after stepping in a hole during an interaction with a wild boar. He would miss the entire season and only play eight more games with the Mets.
Aroldis Chapman
The seven-time All-Star was a punching bag and a punchline during his final season in pinstripes. Last year, Chapman missed nearly a month of the season due to a leg infection from a new tattoo — a portrait of his sister — he received.
Aaron Boone
Fresh off ending the 2003 ALCS with one of the biggest home runs in baseball history, Boone was set to be the starting third baseman the next season. But in January 2004, the future Yankees manager suffered a torn ACL while playing pick-up basketball, prompting the Yankees to trade for a new third baseman. More than a dozen exhausting years with A-Rod would follow; Boone’s playing career in pinstripes lasted a total of 71 games.
Amar’e Stoudemire
The Knicks were already in trouble. The seventh-seeded underdogs had dropped the first two games of their 2012 first-round playoff series to the LeBron James-led Miami Heat. Following the Game 2 loss, Stoudemire punched the glass door of a fire extinguisher case in the visitors’ locker room, and suffered a laceration on his left hand, requiring stitches. He would miss Game 3 of a blowout loss in Madison Square Garden, and the Knicks would lose the series in five games.
Jerry Blevins
The Mets traded for Blevins at the start of their 2015 pennant-winning campaign, but only received five innings from the southpaw. In April, Blevins suffered a fracture in his pitching arm after being hit by a line drive. In August, the lefty was set to return when he slipped on a curb and re-injured his arm, sidelining Blevins for the rest of the season.