Arkansas-Pine Bluff (18-15)
COACH: George Ivory, two years at Arkansas-Pine Bluff, one year in NCAA Tournament
HOW THEY GOT IN: Automatic bid (SWAC)
MATCHUP BREAKDOWN: It's a short turnaround for the Golden Lions. They traveled to Dayton Monday to meet Winthrop in the "play-in" round Tuesday night, but won the game to advance to the program's first-ever NCAA tournament appearance. UAPB wants to play a game in the 60s and will take the air out of the ball in an attempt to survive into the second half. Up-tempo teams in the NCAA tournament -- namely UTEP, Oklahoma State, Missouri and Kansas State -- outran UAPB early in the season. The Golden Lions have defended very well on the perimeter, and keeping Kyle Singler, Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith from getting their feet set and square to the hoop from 3-point range must be a defensive focus.
GO-TO GUYS: If anyone qualifies for this designation on the balanced Golden Lions, it would have to be Terrance Calvin, who led the team in scoring at 10.6 points per game and drilled a game-winner in the SWAC semifinals. Savalance Thompson is second on the squad at 10.4 points per game and also cans 37 percent of his 3-pointers. Lebaron Weathers hit for 10.1 points per game while Tavaris Washington contributed 9.4, a number which went up to 11.2 in conference games.
THEY'LL KEEP WINNING IF: They can continue to defend and rebound like they have in the last 22 games, when they've gone 18-4. Arkansas-Pine Bluff is allowing just 65.5 points per game -- 60.2 in SWAC games -- and is outrebounding the opposition by 6.8 per game, which is excellent on any level. They smothered Winthrop's 3-point shooters in Tuesday's opening round, which is vital against Duke.
STRENGTHS: Across the board, this team has played pretty good defense, limiting opponents to 41 percent field goal shooting and 33.2 percent marksmanship from the 3-point line. The Golden Lions' emphasis on rebounding allows them to finish off defensive possessions at just one shot, leading to long stretches of frustration for opponents. Balanced scoring keeps foes from zeroing in on one option.
WEAKNESSES: This isn't a good offensive team by any means, as it averages just over 64 points per game while hitting just over 41 percent from the field and less than 31 percent on 3s. UA-PB is sending opponents to the foul line nearly 28 times per game, meaning its aggression goes too far at times. And it has almost 100 more turnovers than the opposition.
