NBA News NBA News, Match Reports and Updates
PHILADELPHIA — Before Virginia men’s basketball was named the No. 3 seed in the Midwest Region of the Men’s NCAA Tournament on Selection Sunday, Thijs De Ridder never really knew what March Madness was.
“Not much,” De Ridder told USA TODAY Sports on Thursday.
Advertisement
REQUIRED READING: March Madness bracket, live scores: NCAA Tournament first round update
You can’t necessarily blame him: The Cavaliers’ 6-foot-9, 238-pound forward was playing professionally for Bilbao Basket in the Liga ACB league, the top professional basketball division of the Spanish basketball league, just last season.
“When I was 17 and younger, I thought it was another tournament like others. I did some brackets when I was younger, but that was just for fun,” De Ridder said.
It’s what makes the 23-year-old freshman from Brasschaat, Belgium excited to play in Virginia’s first round game against No. 14 seed Wright State.
Advertisement
“Every time (there was) an American guy on my team (overseas), they always talked about March Madness,” De Ridder said. “Now that I’m here, it’s such an organization, and it just made me really excited to play here. Hopefully, we can do some great stuff.”
1 / 5
March Sadness hits hard in the NCAA Tournament
Thomas Dowd of the Troy Trojans reacts after coming out of the game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second half in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Paycom Center on March 19, 2026 in Oklahoma City, Okla.
1 / 5
March Sadness hits hard in the NCAA Tournament
Thomas Dowd of the Troy Trojans reacts after coming out of the game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second half in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Paycom Center on March 19, 2026 in Oklahoma City, Okla.
2 / 5
March Sadness hits hard in the NCAA Tournament
Ohio State Buckeyes forward Amare Bynum (1) and Ohio State Buckeyes forward Brandon Noel (14) react after losing to Texas Christian University Horned Frogs during a first round game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena on March 19, 2026 in Greenville, SC.
3 / 5
March Sadness hits hard in the…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/thijs-ridder-filled-brackets-overseas-152300823.html
Author :
Publish date : 2026-03-20 15:23:00
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
