March Madness Update – Mon 28 March
Sam Waardenburg and Miami University Hurricanes great run at the NCAA Championships came to an end on Monday morning.
In its first Elite 8 appearance in programme history, the 10th-seeded Hurricanes were defeated 76-50 by 1st-seed Kansas after leading 35-29 at half time.
Waardenburg’s preparations for his freshman season in 2017 were interrupted by Hurricane Irma – and five years later, his career ended in a storm as his team charged through the early rounds of the NCAA Division I Championship, winning three games in eight days.
Miami beat USC (68-66) in the opening round, Auburn (79-61) in the second round and Iowa State (70-56) in the Sweet 16.
Waardenburg produced an outstanding performance in the defeat of Iowa State, the former Junior Tall Black finished with 13 points (5/9FG), a team high 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 blocks and a steal in 35 minutes of high quality basketball.
Facing 1st-seeded Kansas in front of 20,241 fans at the United Centre in Chicago, Waardenburg posted 5 points, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks and a steal, but fouled out for just the second time in his collegiate career.
Picked pre-season to finish 12th in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), the Hurricanes contradicted all pundits by posting the third most wins (26) in programme history and a first ever appearance in the quarter-finals at the Big Dance.
Despite the loss, Waardenburg was full of praise for the camaraderie that had been generated by the team.
“They’ve been amazing and they’ve been like this all season long.
“Coach (Jim Larrañaga) has built a family environment for us in this programme. I want every one of our guys to be super proud. I think it’s not going to be a couple of weeks or so that it really hits us, that we made Elite Eight and we made history for this programme.
“I want them all to be proud and hold their heads high. I just love them.”
Miami’s run in the play-offs meant that we had Kiwi representation in the quarter-finals of the Men’s NCAA Division I Championship for the first time since Jack Salt and the University of Virginia Cavaliers won the title in 2019.
Waardenburg will no doubt look back on his season as one to be happy about. He started 34 of Miami’s 35 games this season, while leading the team in 3-point shooting (making 41 from 98 at 42%) and blocked shots (47).
The one-time Rangitoto College and Harbour standout finished his collegiate career with 711 points and 502 rebounds in 118 appearances – 69 as a starter. His record places him tenth on the New Zealand Men’s all-time NCAA Division I list for both points scored and games played.
It will be intriguing to see where the 6’10” (208cm) forward begins his professional career.
