Ben Howland’s coached in 29 NCAA Tournament games since making his Big Dance debut with Northern Arizona in 1998. He’s been to five Sweet 16s, three Final Fours and led UCLA to a national runner-up finish in 2006.
“I know what an NCAA Tournament team looks like,” Howland said Saturday after helping Mississippi State to a 76-61 win over South Carolina. “That’s one that we played today.”
The Gamecocks dropped to 14-13 overall and 9-5 and into a tie for fourth place in the SEC standings with the latest result. They led the Bulldogs (20-7, 8-6) by 16 points with four minutes to go in the first half before being overwhelmed by a team pegged this week by ESPN’s Joe Lunardi as a No.