Jacksonville State basketball wanted Duke in NCAA Tournament, but will be ready for Auburn
JACKSONVILLE — Fans aren't the only ones who pay attention to bracketology when it comes to March Madness.
That's why there was an audible sigh that could be heard from Jacksonville State men's basketball team when the West Region, the first region to be revealed, did not have the Gamecocks pitted against Duke in the NCAA Tournament.
Players and fans let out a audible sigh after the West Region 15-2 matchup was announced. Sounds like they were expecting to play Duke and Coach K in Greenville, South Carolina
— Ehsan Kassim (@Ehsan_Kassim) March 13, 2022
Instead, Cal State Fullerton will take on the Blue Devils.
"Everybody had been talking about us playing Duke," JSU senior Darian Adams said. "We were preparing ourselves to play Duke. We was ready to step up to the challenge."
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ESPN's Joe Lundardi was among a few brackets that had the Gamecocks pitted up against the Blue Devils and legendary coach Mike Krzyzewski in Greenville, South Carolina in the opening round.
Instead, No. 15 JSU will play in-state No. 2 Auburn in Greenville in the Midwest Region.
"Duke is a great team," JSU senior Jalen Gibbs said. "I think we all wanted to play the big team. But Auburn we have to prepare for them just like Duke. We have to get back to work tomorrow, go hard in practice and get ready for the game."
JSU coach Ray Harper said he had warned his players to not jump too ahead of themselves and look at predictions for the brackets.
"You can't pay any attention to those," Harper said. "I pretty much told everyone we were going to play Auburn. Did I know more than anyone else? No. But looking at it I could tell we'd play Auburn in Greenville, especially when they lost (to Texas A&M in the SEC Tournament)."
Jacksonville State (21-10) last went to the NCAA Tournament during the 2016-17 season after winning the Ohio Valley Conference to earn a spot in March Madness.
As a No. 15 seed, JSU lost 78-63 to No. 2 Louisville in the Midwest Regional in Indianapolis.
Contact Ehsan Kassim at 256-300-5313 or ekassim@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Ehsan_Kassim.
This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Jacksonville State wanted Duke, gets Auburn in March Madness
