LEONARD HAMILTON

Missouri is hiring wildly successful Cleveland State basketball coach Dennis Gates to help rebuild a long-floundering program that has churned through seven head and interim coaches since Norm Stewart prowled the sidelines in Columbia.

Coaching longevity is a rarity in college basketball’s top tier.

Jim Boeheim called the first losing season he has had in 46 years at Syracuse the best of his Hall of Fame career.

Syracuse star Buddy Boeheim has been suspended for the Orange's Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament game against Duke after he punched Florida State's Wyatt Wilkes in the stomach Wednesday during a second-round 's victory.

RayQuan Evans made a pair of free throws with 12 seconds left in overtime, John Butler blocked Wendell Moore Jr.‘s driving attempt in the lane with 2 seconds remaining, and Florida State stunned No. 6 Duke 79-78.

Colin Castleton had 15 points, a career-high 16 rebounds and six blocks as Florida knocked off No. 20 Florida State 71-55 to end a seven-game losing streak in the series.

The Atlantic Coast Conference is facing a changing landscape in men's basketball amid coaching retirements, roster upheaval and a bumpy showing in last year's NCAA Tournament.

The evening’s most telling stat was points in the paint: Michigan 50, Florida State 28. Other low lights for the Seminoles:— 14 turnovers, including 10 in the first half that led to 16 Michigan points. Adding to the trouble, Walker, the team’s leading scorer this season, rolled his ankle at the 14-minute mark of the second half. FSU went on a mini-tear when Osborne and Polite made back-to-back 3s to trim Michigan’s lead to five early in the second half. Driving the lane and making the extra pass underneath, the Wolverines made 11 of their first 13 shots in the second half.

Michigan dominated Florida State 76-58 on Sunday night to get within one game of the Final Four. The Wolverines beat LSU on Monday night, and coaches immediately went to work studying Florida State and assembling a game plan. (It appears most, if not all Sweet 16 teams did these activities, set up by the NCAA; Florida State certainly did). It had been two seasons since Florida State had lost by 18 points; three since it lost by more than that. “I thought they did an excellent job in their preparation and their execution,” Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton said.

ACC teams finished with a 4-7 NCAA Tournament record, marking the league's lowest win total and winning percentage in this event since 1979. Duke went 13-11, withdrew from the ACC Tournament due to a positive COVID-19 test and ended a string of 29 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. When the NCAA Tournament brackets came out, the ACC teams with the best seeds were Florida State and Virginia at No. “We weren’t quite as good at the top,” Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said after the first round of the NCAA Tournament. AdThe ACC’s one pleasant NCAA Tournament surprise was Syracuse, which sneaked into the field with a No.

The evening's most telling stat was points in the paint: Michigan 50, Florida State 28. Other lowlights for the Seminoles:— 14 turnovers, including 10 in the first half that led to 16 Michigan points. Adding to the trouble, Walker, the team's leading scorer this season, rolled his ankle at the 14-minute mark of the second half. FSU went on a mini-tear when Osborne and Polite made back-to-back 3s to trim Michigan's lead to five early in the second half. Driving the lane and making the extra pass underneath, the Wolverines made 11 of their first 13 shots in the second half.

FINAL: Michigan 76, Florida State 58The Wolverines were in control throughout and advance to the Elite Eight. SECOND HALF0:00 -- Michigan 76, Florida State 58Juwan Howard emptied the bench and brought in the reserves. 7:18 – Michigan 60, Florida State 43The Wolverines are dominating inside and have 42 points in the paint. 14:12 -- Michigan 44, Florida State 36FSU’s leading scorer, M.J. Walker, is being attended to on the floor. HALFTIME: Michigan 32, Florida State 21FIRST HALF0:00 – Michigan 32, Florida State 21The Seminoles capitalized on an offensive rebound and made a late basket to pull to within 11.

We made sure we continue to keep changing our bed linens and getting comfortable with our hotel room.”Michigan is hoping to continue its stay inside the NCAA Tournament bubble. Florida State stands in the way. The team will meet in the Sweet 16 on Sunday. Michigan and Florida State will tip at 5:00 p.m. Who: NCAA Tournament: Michigan vs. Florida State (men’s basketball)TV: CBSDay/Time: Sunday, March 28, 5:00 p.m.

1 seed Michigan Wolverines (22-4) vs. No. 4 seed Florida State (18-6)Where: Bankers Life Fieldhouse (Indianapolis)When: Sunday, March 28, 5:00 p.m. ETPoint spread: Michigan -2.5Watch: CBS (Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery, Tracy Wolfson)Listen: Ann Arbor: WTKA-1050 AM; Detroit: WWJ-950 AM; national: Westwood OneFollow: Andrew KahnMichigan and Florida State are similar. It should make for a competitive matchup inside Bankers Life Fieldhouse, home of the NBA’s Pacers. Pregame reading:Scouting report on Florida State, Michigan’s Sweet 16 opponent, from ACC coachJuwan Howard to face father figure, mentor Leonard Hamilton in Sweet 16 matchupGolf, giraffes, and lots of time inside a hotel: Michigan basketball and the NCAA Tournament bubbleNew Michigan starter Brandon Johns Jr.: ‘My confidence is at an all-time high’What four straight Sweet 16s says about Michigan basketballMichigan is the last Big Ten team standing in the men’s NCAA Tournament

(AP Photo/AJ Mast)INDIANAPOLIS – It's not that Juwan Howard doesn't love his old friend and mentor, Leonard Hamilton. Howard and Hamilton struck up a strong friendship in 2000, when Howard was wrapping up his time with the Washington Wizards and Hamilton was coaching there. He said even if his late grandmother, Jannie Mae Howard, was alive and playing basketball, "I'd play her 1-on-1. “Johnny is young,” UCLA coach Mick Cronin said after the BYU game. He’s improved immensely.”___More AP College Basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball; and https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket

The members of the Michigan men’s basketball team are spending way more time inside a hotel than they’d prefer. Michigan is among the 16 teams remaining in the NCAA Tournament. Michigan arrived there on March 11, the day before its first Big Ten Tournament game, and hasn’t left. After winning their first two NCAA Tournament games, including a second-round matchup against LSU on Monday night, the Wolverines are not set to play again until Sunday, in the Sweet 16 against Florida State. As the only Big Ten team left in the NCAA Tournament, the Wolverines have been in Indianapolis longer than any other team.

Michigan’s men’s and women’s basketball teams are still dancing, but how long will their NCAA Tournament runs last? 1 seed men’s team opened with an 82-66 win over No. 16 seed Texas Southern before downing No. 4 seed Florida State at 5 p.m. Sunday in the Sweet 16. Meanwhile, the sixth-seeded women’s team is in the Sweet 16 for a first time.

Shortly after Juwan Howard was hired to coach the Michigan men’s basketball team, he visited Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton. Hamilton coached Howard in the NBA, and the their relationship grew over the next two decades. “We’ve enjoyed a friendship and relationship that transcends basketball,” Hamilton told MLive in early March, a week before the bracket revealed Florida State and Michigan in the same region. Howard and Hamilton are the only Black head coaches in the Sweet 16. We understand that Florida State is looking to spoil our goals and our dreams.

Florida State defeated UNC-Greensboro 64-54. We didn’t want to settle for jump shots.”The Spartans closed within 51-50 with 4:52 remaining, but Florida State held them scoreless for nearly four minutes after that. Socially distanced Florida State fans saluted players with the tomahawk chop as they left the court. AdLangley's 3-pointer in the opening seconds of the second half tied the game at 29, but Florida State responded with a 12-0 run. STAT LINESGreensboro wasn’t much better than Florida State from 3-point range.

In 2016, 2013 and 1991, seed lines 1-15 all had a team reach the second round. UMBC in 2018 is still the only 16 seed to make the round of 32, but no 15 seed won that year. Ad___8:00 p.m.Don’t expect a track meet when Villanova and North Texas play in the second round of the South Region on Sunday. The matchup between the fifth-seeded Wildcats and 13th-seeded Mean Green features two of the most deliberately paced teams in the NCAA Tournament. UNC Wilmington’s John Goldsberry holds the record for most 3-point attempts without a miss in an NCAA Tournament game.

There’s no way to know if Howard is the best coach in men’s college basketball this season. There was skepticism two years ago when Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel hired Howard to replace John Beilein, the program’s all-time winningest coach. Michigan assistant coach Phil Martelli said recently that the word that comes to mind with Howard is respect. “Coach Howard really did a good job of keeping our eyes on the road -- our journey, what we want to do, what goals we want to accomplish,” Livers said. Hamilton was comfortable speaking for Howard to say Howard does not prioritize individual awards.

Juwan Howard's coaching acumen was never in doubt when he took over as Michigan's coach in 2019. Howard's 2021 class, rated No. The first day of the early signing period was Wednesday, but Michigan won't officially announce its 2021 recruiting class until the last player in it has signed on Friday. 4 overall recruiting class, topped by Trey Patterson, a 6-7 forward from Somerset, New Jersey, rated No. Coach Leonard Hamilton and the Seminoles still have three more commits expected to sign soon, including five-star players Matthew Cleveland and Jalen Warley, in a class rated No.