The Atlanta Hawks, usually gearing up for another playoff run at this point, just got eliminated from the playoffs for the first time in 10 seasons. With not much to cheer for in the Highlight Factory, now is a good time to look back on how the Hawks did in the NCAA Tournament during their college days.
As another March rolls around, basketball viewers nationwide shift their focus (at least for a short time) from the pros to the collegiate game, and Hawks fans should be no different. With plenty of tantalizing prospects playing in the tourney in the coming weeks, let’s take a look at how current Hawks fared in the Big Dances of years past.
(Note: Dennis Schröder, Dewayne Dedmon, Malcolm Delaney, Tyler Cavanaugh, and Antonius Cleveland never made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament, though Cavanaugh did win the NIT Tournament in 2016 with George Washington).
Kent Bazemore – Old Dominion
Kent Bazemore played four seasons for the Monarchs of Old Dominion. His first appearance was in the 2010 Tournament in which he helped lead OD to an 11 seed, and just the University’s tenth ever berth in the Big Dance.
In a low scoring, nail-baiting upset, Dominion beat 6 seed Notre Dame 51-50. Bazemore wasn’t exactly a force in the win, however, as he totaled just four points in 28 minutes of action. He did notch two steals in what was a defensive clinic put on by the Monarchs.
Looking to become the next double-digit seed to make the Sweet Sixteen, Bazemore and company ran into the Baylor Bears who put an end to their season, 76-68.
They were back the following season, and were rewarded with a 9 seed after a 27-6 regular season record. OD got no favors from the NCAA Committee however, and received an unlucky matchup with the Butler Bulldogs in the first round.
Former Hawks backup point guard Shelvin Mack led Butler past the Monarchs 60-58, en route to a second consecutive Championship game loss.
Total: Two appearances, one win
DeAndre’ Bembry – St. Joseph’s
In three seasons of collegiate ball, DeAndre’ Bembry only failed to make the Big Dance once. In his first season of 2014, Bembry was assisted by Detroit Pistons guard Langston Galloway and earned a 10 seed. Similar to Bazemore’s Old Dominion team, Bembry and squad got a tough draw.
They gave it their all in the matchup against a juggernaut UConn team, eventually losing in OT. Shabazz Napier went on to lead that UConn team to the title against Kentucky.
After missing the tourney in 2015, The St. Joseph Hawks were back in 2016 and beat the Bearcats of Cincinnati in the first round, in which Bembry contributed 23 points, five assists and three steals.
St. Joseph’s next matchup was with the top-seeded Oregon Ducks. They held their own and lost by only five points. Bembry put up 16 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in his final college game.
Total: Two appearances, one win
John Collins – Wake Forest
The electrifying rookie John Collins technically never made the Tourney, but he was a part of the ever-entertaining play-in game last year, which was his final season for the Demon Deacons.
In a game to determine the rights for the 11 seed in the South Region, Kansas State prevailed against Wake Forest.
Collins acquitted himself well in that game and was the best player on the court. JC was the game’s leading scorer with 26 points on 9-13 shooting and added a game-high 9 rebounds.
Total: One appearance
Tyler Dorsey – Oregon
Rookie guard Tyler Dorsey has one of the most impressive March Madness resumes on the entire Hawks roster. His freshman season ended with the Ducks winning the Pac-12 tournament and being awarded a 1 seed in the West.
With the help of Dorsey and fellow current NBA players Dillon Brooks and Jordan Bell, they smoked Holy Cross in the first round then advanced to the Sweet Sixteen after beating current teammate DeAndre’ Bembry’s St. Joseph’s team.
Oregon moved on to the Elite Eight after they handily beat a powerhouse Duke team 82-68. They eventually lost to the Buddy Hield-led Oklahoma team. Dorsey didn’t make much noise in his games, never scoring more than 14 points in a game.
That would change in his second and final season as a Duck. Oregon dropped to a 3 seed, but they were arguably more talented. Dorsey bounced back early after his disappointing 2016 showing, scoring 24 in their first win and 27 in their second round matchup with a feisty Rhode Island team.
Oregon reached the Final Four by riding the scoring of Dorsey, who scored at least 20 points in each game and was his team’s leading scorer in each game of the Tournament. His collegiate career then ended in a one-point, heartbreaking loss to eventual champion North Carolina.
Dorsey ended the 2017 Tournament as the leading scorer and made the All-Region Team.
Total: Two appearances, seven wins, Final Four Appearance
Miles Plumlee – Duke
Miles was the first of three Plumlees to play for Duke University, and in each of his four seasons, the Blue Devils made the Tourney. In 2009, Miles’ freshman season ended with Duke claiming a two seed. They won two games, and Miles only appeared in their first round beatdown of 15-seed Binghamton.
In 2010 Duke was the #1 overall seed. Miles came off the bench in a sixth man role, but contributed enough to be considered a important part of the team. That team rattled off wins against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Cal, Purdue, Baylor and West Virginia before beating Gordon Hayward’s Butler team in the Championship game.
Their 2011 quest for a repeat got off to a good start with another 1 seed rank and wins against Hampton and Michigan. Although star point guard Kyrie Irving came back from injury to play in their next game versus Arizona, The Blue Devils lost 93-77. Plumlee scored just 2 points.
In his final season, Plumlee and company were a 2 seed, and were famously upset by an upstart, 15-seed Lehigh University team led by future Portland Trail Blazers star C.J. McCollum. In his final college game, Miles scored only 4 points in 27 minutes.
Plumlee’s Duke teams had great success in the tournament but Miles himself never really made much of an impact.
Total: Four appearances, ten wins, National Champion
Mike Muscala – Bucknell
In addition to being one of the greatest players to ever come out of the Patriot league, Mike Muscala helped get his Bison to the Tournament twice.
First in 2011, where they were absolutely no match for Kemba Walker, who had one of the best Marches in recent history. Muscala led Bucknell with 14 points in an 81-52 loss.
After missing 2012, Bucknell was back in 2013 for Muscala’s senior season. An 11 seed, and a popular pick for a Cinderella that year, they did end up losing to Butler. Muscala had nine points and ten rebounds in his final game.
Total: Two appearances
Taurean Prince – Baylor
After failing to make the Tournament in Taurean Prince‘s freshman season (Baylor did win the NIT that year), the Baylor Bears reached the 2014 Tourney as a 6 seed. Although they did advance to the Sweet Sixteen, Prince wasn’t a big of the rotation, scoring just 5 points in limited minutes throughout March.
Prince’s final two runs for a championship both came to a similar end. In 2015, 3rd-seeded Baylor lost to 14th seed Georgia State 57-56 on a miracle comeback from the Panthers. Prince came off the bench for 18 points and was the only Bear to score more than nine points.
In 2016, they were upset in the first round again, this time at the hands of the Ivy League’s Yale. Prince once again led Baylor in scoring with 28. After the game, when asked about how Baylor was outrebounded by Yale, Prince had one of the best responses in college basketball interview history:
Total: Three appearances, two wins
Isaiah Taylor – Texas
Isaiah Taylor, who played a career-high 27 minutes for the Hawks in Sunday’s loss to the Chicago Bulls, was part of three Texas Longhorn teams that made the postseason. In the 2014 Tournament, 7-seed Texas beat 10-seed Arizona in the first round. They then lost to Michigan in a game in which Taylor put up 22 points and five assists.
Like several other Hawks, Taylor fell victim to Butler in the following season. The 11th seeded Longhorns scored less than 50 points en route to a 56-48 defeat.
In his final season in Austin, Texas were a six seed, but drew a tough draw by having to play a mis-seeded Northern Iowa team. Taylor scored a game high 22, but it wasn’t enough to beat the Panthers.
Total: Three appearances, one win
Andrew White III – Kansas, Nebraska, Syracuse
Andrew White III had a very interesting college run. He transferred from Kansas and sat out a year to play more minutes for Nebraska. He then shortly committed to the NBA Draft before withdrawing his name to retain college eligibility. He played his final year for Jim Boeheim and ‘Cuse.
His first two seasons for the Jayhawks saw little playing time for him. They were a 1 seed in 2013, winning two games. White played in just one game and didn’t record a shot. In ‘14 Kansas was a 2 seed but the future Hawks wing didn’t play a single minute.
Next: Atlanta Hawks Mock Draft 2.0
Although playing solidly in his two seasons away from Kansas, both the Huskers and Orange failed to make the Tourney during his tenure.