Players Era day 2 observations: How point differential pushed Michigan, Gonzaga into final

LAS VEGAS — In some ways, the Players Era Festival has a distinctly youth basketball tournament vibe. Lots of the best players in their respective classes roaming around hotels (or getting their caffeine fix at Starbucks, like Iowa State star Milan Momcilovic), former college All-Americans sitting courtside (Carmelo Anthony, Jackie Young and Nick Collison among them), overpriced concessions and entry tickets.

And then, of course, there are the scheduling quirks.

“It’s bringing me back to the AAU days,” Michigan’s Roddy Gayle Jr. said shortly after the No. 7 Wolverines annihilated San Diego State 94-54 on Monday night at Michelob Ultra Arena in Mandalay Bay. “It reminds me of what it feels like to be young.”

Gayle, a 22-year-old senior guard, is not exactly close to collecting Social Security checks. But we see his point: Three games in three days is often reserved for the high school crowd. The same goes for point differential.

Point differential reemerged this week as one of the tiebreaking criteria used to determine who’s playing for the championship (and additional cash). No. 7 Michigan, which blasted No. 21 Auburn 102-72 on Tuesday, was the clear No. 1 seed for the championship game. They’ll meet second-seeded Gonzaga with an extra $1 million on the line (second place gets $500,000), after the No. 12 Zags beat Maryland 100-61. No. 17 Tennessee and Kansas will play for third place.

The point differential tally led to an awkward in-game situation. On Tuesday afternoon, No. 15 Iowa State led Creighton 78-60 with the clock winding down. Bluejays coach Greg McDermott gave Iowa State coach TJ Otzelberger his start, hiring him in 2006 as an assistant at ISU. Otzelberger considers McDermott a mentor and good friend, so he didn’t want to run up the score.

On the game’s final possession, Momcilovic had the ball. He glanced up at the scoreboard, then turned to the sideline to ask Otzelberger if he should shoot, clearly aware of the point differential criteria that would help determine Iowa State’s third opponent. Momcilovic ultimately opted not to shoot, holding the ball and solidifying Iowa State’s overall margin at plus-19. And because of that, the 2-0 Cyclones will meet 0-2 Syracuse in what could easily become a blowout.

After all of the results Monday and Tuesday, here’s how the tiebreakers worked:

1. Record
2. Head-to-head
3. Plus/minus tiebreaker (capped at 20 points per win)
4. Total points scored
5. Total points allowed
6. AP ranking as of Monday

Important caveat: In seeding the first four teams, previous or future schedules were not considered. For teams seeded Nos. 5-18, schedules were considered.

Fortunately, we, the sportswriters, were not in charge of figuring out the math and who was seeded where. So with the help of the math professionals, here’s the upcoming schedule (note that the four “worst” teams have Wednesday off and will play Thursday instead. Happy Thanksgiving to them.)

St. John’s rebounds against Baylor

No. 14 St. John’s has two losses already, and when it’s still November and you’re living in Rick Pitino’s orbit, that can be an uncomfortable setting. Pitino was salty Monday after losing by a point to Iowa State, but his mood shifted between games.

“I think what I enjoyed the most last night was the devastation in the eyes of our players,” Pitino said. “And you really know a team with class — I don’t mean the way they act off the court, which they act great — but a class team really, really focuses in, doesn’t hang their heads, and brings it, and these guys did.”

The Johnnies responded with a dominant 96-81 win over Baylor on Tuesday. Pitino said he could tell how dialed in his players were during film because of how many questions they asked, then said it was the best walk-through they’ve had all season.

It certainly helped the offense. Both Bryce Hopkins (26 points) and Oziyah Sellers (22 points) scored season highs, and the Johnnies shared the ball well, finishing with 19 assists. The one lowlight was Baylor grabbing 26 offensive rebounds one day after St. John’s allowed Iowa State to grab 17. Pitino says that with his team’s athletes up front — he’s starting three bigs in Hopkins, Zuby Ejiofor and Dillon Mitchell — that’s an area where they should be better, but he was bubbling with optimism.

“I think this team has potential to be a good team as we grow,” Pitino said. “But they’re new to each other. We see a lot of mistakes by being new to each other. … When you get guys that are just as crushed as the coaching staff, you got the makeup of a good basketball team.”

— CJ Moore

Lipsey likely a game-time decision for Iowa State

One of the newsiest nuggets from the first day of the Players Era tournament? Iowa State guard Tamin Lipsey — an All-Big 12 honoree last season, and one of the better veteran guards in the country — took a groin shot with 2:09 left in the Cyclones’ eventual 83-82 win over St. John’s, which immediately sent him to ISU’s locker room. Otzelberger said afterward that Lipsey was “day to day” with a lower-body injury.

Lipsey didn’t suit up Tuesday against Creighton. Considering the Bluejays beat the Lipsey-less Cyclones six weeks ago in a preseason exhibition, it was fair to wonder how Iowa State would respond.

But Iowa State didn’t need its star guard at all in a resounding 78-60 win.

The Cyclones led for the entirety of the second half, with Otzelberger’s typically stingy defense making life hell for Creighton. The Bluejays only made 12 of their 30 2-point attempts — and three of their 14 layups — and were forced into 17 turnovers, which ISU converted into 19 points. And just to show how good the Cyclones have been defensively this season, en route to the program’s first 6-0 start since 2022? Those 17 turnovers are actually going to lower the Cyclones’ average per game; they entered Tuesday eighth nationally in turnovers forced, with 18.6 on average.

ISU’s other guards — French freshman Killyan Toure and graduate Nate Heise — more than stepped up. Heise played a season-high 39 minutes in his first start of the year, while Toure — a sub-100 recruit who has emerged as a surprise every-game starter — poured in his best college effort yet, with a game- and career-high 20 points.

“Killyan out there showed everything that he’s learned from Tamin,” Otzelberger said, “and put that into play.”

As for Lipsey’s status Wednesday, Otzelberger said he had “no idea,” but noted that while ISU wants to win every game it plays, Lipsey’s long-term health — especially as it relates to the Cyclones’ Big 12 and national title goals — is more important than one result.

“We want him to be healthy,” Otzelberger said. “We want his body to feel great, and we want him to be at his best. And we’ll be disciplined until that time comes.”

— Brendan Marks

All bets are … stressful?

It’s interesting to be at such a big event in Las Vegas given how much gambling has been in the news lately — and not in a positive light. A handful of former college hoopers have been banned for life by the NCAA for various gambling infractions. And NCAA membership backtracked on legalizing betting on pro sports for college athletes.

During the Kansas-Syracuse game Tuesday, I was sitting next to a group of rabid Orange fans who were living and dying with every shot, clearly stressed about how few points ‘Cuse was putting on the scoreboard. I asked the fan next to me if they had money riding on the game. He nodded gravely.

“A lot,” he said. “Like, if we lose (the bet), borderline we might not be able to fly home.”

They assured me that putting money on the game doesn’t make it less enjoyable to watch — it’s just a more intense experience as they “ride the highs and lows of the betting rollercoaster.”

Just a reminder that the 2028 men’s Final Four will also be in Vegas.

— Lindsay Schnell