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College basketball conference tournament live blog for March 11

Follow along with all the action right here as we watch the games with one eye on the court and the other on the betting lines

Arizona Wildcats guard Nico Mannion shoots a free throw after a technical foal against Washington Huskies in the second half at McKale Center.  Jacob Snow-USA TODAY Sports

9:05 p.m. What did we just witness between St. John’s and Georgetown??

The Johnnies ended the game on a 23-0 run (!!) and went from losing 62-52 with 6:30 left... to winning 75-62. Georgetown didn’t just lose, they also easily blew the cover as four-point underdogs. An absolute meltdown in MSG by Patrick Ewing... well that’s something we’ve never seen before!

Also there’s 6:28 left in the Patriot League Final between Colgate and Boston, and with BU up 56-53 on the road. Get to CBS Sports Network for what should be a great finish!

8:21 p.m. Colgate leads Boston at halftime 33-29, and covers the 1st half spread by all of 0.5 points! Meanwhile solve this riddle: Georgia was +3 before tip off is up 57-43 on Ole Miss anyway... and the ‘Dawgs best player Anthony Edwards is 1/9 from the floor with three points. Save that one for a Sphinx.

Iowa State is also in upset mode: the Cyclones are +7, but winning 50-42 with 13 minutes remaining. Prentiss Nixon has 19 points on 8/13 from the floor already.

Here comes the ends of the early games, and the kickoffs to the late night tip-offs. Settle in!

7:48 p.m. Notre Dame jumps out to a 36-21 lead and easily covers the -6 first half, and well on their way to the -10.5 cover.

Also the Colgate Raiders have tipped off against the Boston Terriers in the Patriot League title game, and the Raiders are up 12-10 on their home floor. Winner heads to the NCAA Tournament, and it’s the only automatic bid being handed out tonight.

Minnesota also finished their game big, eliminating Northwestern and keeping the Big Ten’s Wildcats from the Sweet 16 for the 500 millionth consecutive year.

7:15 p.m. The 7 p.m. games are underway, as the ACC, SEC, and Big East all begin their night sessions. And in Indianapolis begin Minnesota is up 10 with 11:20 to play on Northwestern.

And No. 5 Arizona looks like they’ll avoid the humiliation of dropping two straight to the last team in the Pac-12: they’re up 63-51 on No. 12 Washington with 6:10 to play.

6:33 p.m. Welp, it looks like at least one team doesn’t want to keep playing in front of empty arenas: Delaware State was a 10-point underdog to North Carolina Central in the MEAC quarterfinals... and right now they’re down 35-14 with five minutes left in the first half. Yikes.

Arizona heads to halftime with a 1st half cover of Washington, as it was 35-30 and the ‘Cats were -3. While we also have Minnesota out to an early 17-14 lead over Northwestern (+8).

Strange day for college basketball, especially with fans in the buildings now but not later. We’ll keep it going with the late games tonight, as well as the only automatic bid to be determined tonight: the Patriot League championship between Boston U & Colgate starting at 7 p.m.

5:36 p.m. Apologies for the break, as we’re still updating and learning what’s going to happen with the NCAA Tournament. It appears NCAA President Mark Emmert might be looking at downscaling certain arenas in addition to having no fans as well. It does look like the broadcast teams and media will still be there.

So... if you’re sent home from work, join us and watch basketball! Bet on it too! Let’s hope everyone stays safe.

And on the court right now: the underdogs finally started barking! Oregon State came back to beat Utah, but the Utes lose by two when giving 3.5. Also Fordham came to play in Brooklyn, whereas GW just didn’t: the Rams were getting three points they didn’t need as they won 72-52 anyway.

4:41 p.m. This will make the current games take a backseat for a bit: no fans at the NCAA Tournament in 2020.

4:16 p.m. It’s gone Wheels Up for Pitt, they’re gonna lose and fail to cover. Meanwhile Utah... Utah! They lead 44-31 as 3.5 point underdogs in Vegas. Alfonso Plummer is going insane with 26 points after having 23 in just the first half. The Utes did beat the Kentucky Wildcats in this same building earlier this year... maybe Larry Krystkowiak and his team have a favorite meal at Eataly or The Crack Shack next to the arena??

4:00 p.m. NC State is starting to pull away here, and Jeff Capel looks frustrated with his Pitt Panthers. It’s 61-49 at the under-8, and that 5.5 points is looking quite cover-able right now.

Also the Fordham Rams and George Washington Colonials have tipped off, and the three-point underdogs at Fordham have jumped out nicely. It’s 20-11 Rams with five minutes left in the first half. Could we finally seen an underdog cover today??

3:32 p.m. As Oregon State jumps out to an early 15-13 lead over Utah at the under-12 TO (remember the Utes somehow beat Kentucky this year and now play an 8/9 game in the Pac-12 because what??), we’ve also got an article and chart of all the decisions being made regarding conference tournaments, the NCAA tournament, and coronavirus. For now, it appears the Governor of Ohio Mike DeWine will not allow fans at either the First Four or the 1st & 2nd rounds in Cleveland.

Yes, we know this is a very weird live blog. Utah is catching 3.5 right now in Vegas, and we’ll keep an eye out for updates about how Covid-19 effects college basketball.

Timeout Pitt after NC State starts the second half on a 4-0 run! We’re keeping an eye on the Congressional testimony of Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institute of Health! What a day!

3:15 p.m. After a couple misses, the first half of Pittsburgh vs. NC State ends 35-32, exactly on the first half number of the Wolfpack -3.

Back out in Boise, Southern Utah leads the Idaho Vandals 40-37 with 15 minutes remaining. The Thunderbirds were giving 12.5 points pregame, so they’ve got some work to do for the cover.

3:02 p.m. Wow. A three-point attempt from Ryan Daly with one second left misses, and that means George Mason gets the cover! They win 77-70, and beat the 5.5 but would have failed to if the jumper went. Gambling! It’s the best!

Also a mini-run for Pitt brings them to within four, as it’s 31-27 at the under-4 timeout in the first half. Pitt is catching 5.5 today, we’ll see if a dog can get at least one cover today.

2:45 p.m. George Mason is starting to pull away here, and the first season with out Phil Martelli on Hawk Hill should end shortly. St. Joe’s ends 2019-20 at 6-26, 2-17 in the A-10. They’ve got a long way to go to get back. It’s 67-56 with under two minutes left.

Meanwhile Devon Daniels has started strong for the NC State Wolfpack with five points, and they lead 17-12 at the under 12 timeout.

2:20 p.m. Look, let’s be honest here: unless you’re an Indiana fan... we’re all really interested to see the Hoosiers play tonight, right? Archie Miller isn’t exactly endearing himself to all of college basketball, and to watch that team just fall apart down the stretch has been remarkable. They could play themselves out of the tournament tonight... but Nebraska is pretty awful, and won’t have their two best players due to suspension. A win doesn’t do much for IU, but a loss might be deadly.

Meanwhile George Mason has gone on a 7-0 and leads 54-46 over St. Joe’s with 9:38 left. The Hawks will need to make a run to keep it within the 5.5 spread.

2:04 p.m. The Tigers are going through, as Clemson advances over UM 69-64 despite a furious comeback by the ‘Canes, and they also BARELY cover the 4.5 due to the way they handled the end of the game. Though Clemson’s Aamir Simms makes just one of two free throws to go up five, the heave from Chris Lykes goes well wide, and the Canes decide not to foul again after the rebound with four seconds left. A tough break for UM backers as the close looked like it might help them get there.

And while we’re here, let’s make some picks! Arizona is only laying six to Washington in the 5/12 game of the Pac-12 tournament. Washington beat Arizona by six in Tucson to close the regular season on Saturday, but that’s not happening again. Arizona is in freefall, but they’re not going to let a very bad UW team do it twice. We’ll take Nico Mannion and U of A -6, and hit it reasonably hard. As the tournament is in Las Vegas, let us salute it from across the world!

1:45 p.m. We’re coming down the stretch in Greensboro, where Clemson is on a 6-0 run since the under-4 and it’s 59-53. The ‘Canes have been pretty terrific under Jim Larranaga, but this might be the end of what can generously be called a down year.

Meanwhile it’s halftime in Brooklyn, where George Mason leads Miami 38-27, as AJ Wilson for the Patriots has 17 points on 7/10 from the floor in the opening 20 minutes.

1:40 p.m. What Chris Lykes is doing for Miami here is remarkable. He can barely see due to a severe eye injury, he’s wearing a mask for a broken nose, and he’s got 15 points as a waterbug for the Hurricanes at the under-4 timeout in a 53-53 game. Get to ESPN to watch the finish of this one, as the winner gets No. 1 Florida State tomorrow.

1:25 p.m. Just as Sac State appears advance to the Big West quarterfinals 62-54, the A-10 tips off in Brooklyn with the Saint Joe’s Hawks and George Mason Patriots. It looked for awhile there like St. Joe’s might go 0-fer the conference this season, but they pulled out a pair of wins against Davidson and Fordham to get off the schnide. GMU ended as a 5.5 point favorite at tip-off, and they were 5-13 in the league this year.

1:10 p.m. It’s still a game in Boise as SSU leads Weber State 51-44 at the under 4 timeout. Izayah Mauriohooho-Le’afa has 13 points, but Osi Nwachukwu leads all scorers with 16 as the Hornets and their All-Name Team look to advance. Sac State also competes in the American Conference in rowing, making the AAC America’s biggest conference in terms of geography.

12:48 p.m. It’s 23-21 at halftime of the Miami-Clemson game, and we have yet another reminder of how Covid-19 is affecting college basketball, as the CBI Tournament has been cancelled for 2020. The organizers say they’re ready to bring it back in 2021. The South Florida Bulls defeated the DePaul Blue Demons in a best two-out-of-three games to win last year’s event.

12:12 p.m. Over in the Miami-Clemson game, Chris Lykes has checked in for Miami. That’s a legit stunner considering the severity of the injury to his eye and nose that took place last week. He was listed as “out for the season” due to that injury in our injury report this morning. Let’s hope he stays healthy while competing for the Hurricanes today.

12:00 p.m. Anyone else watching this Sac State-Weber State classic? It’s on a service called Pluto TV (which has a free website and a free app you can download if you’re at work!), and it’s 26-16 Sac State Hornets over Dame Lillard’s alma mater with 6:26 remaining in the first half.

I think Pluto is using an iPhone 7 as their main camera, Izayah Mauriohooho-Le’afa has eight points for Sac State early, and that name is why this is the best week in sports.

11:32 a.m. Before we get started with some Sacramento State -4 vs. Weber State opening round action (at 9:30 a.m. local time in Boise!), here’s a look at some of our college basketball coverage for the day.

Here’s our viewers guide for all of today’s action so you can follow along with the times and spreads and a bit of context for the games.

A breakdown of some odds to make the Final Four, where you’ve got to lay $2 to make $1 for Kansas to make it.

The bubble teams playing today, and what they need to do to make the tournament.

Enjoy the action!

Welcome to our live blog of college basketball for Wednesday, March 11th!

We’ll follow along with all the action today, both on tv and on the DraftKings app and web page as we look for ways to win without cutting down the nets. We’ll also keep an eye on how the coronavirus is changing how everyone will watch, participate in, and enjoy the 2020 conference tournaments and NCAA tournament.

So if you’re trapped at your desk, follow along here. And leave a comment below to chip in to the discussion on what should be a terrific day of college basketball!