WATCH: Charles Barkley gets trolled by 2X NBA champ Kenny Smith after No. 4 Auburn's first-round loss to No. 13 Yale
Another game day, another massive upset in March Madness 2024. This time, fourth-seed Auburn was knocked off the NCAA Tournament by 13th-seed Yale, 78-76, and well-known Tigers alum Charles Barkley is not hearing the end of it from two-time NBA champion Kenny "The Jet" Smith.
CBS Sports College Basketball posted a video on X of Smith trolling Barkley with some "banner waving" shenanigans, using what looks like a tissue sheet as a sash on which he wrote "Yale" with drawings of hearts. He also jokingly referred to himself as the "Homecoming King."
Meanwhile, Barkley jokingly pretended to be on a phone call with Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo, saying "Please bring me home tomorrow."
The TNT crew was reporting on the new first-round upset which is now fast becoming a trending topic on social media, most notably on X. With the win, the Yale Bulldogs will face last year`s runners-up, the San Diego State Aztecs, in the second round to be held in Spokane.
Yale also joins an already veritable number of lower-seeded teams defying expectations early in the tournament. They follow the South region`s 14th-seed Oakland Golden Grizzlies upsetting third-seed Kentucky, among others.
How did Yale beat Auburn?
The game started well enough for the Tigers, with them going into the break leading 41-36. By then, they didn`t seem to have any reason to believe they`d lose the game, but the second half came and their shooting deserted them at the worst possible time.
Yale outscored Auburn 44-35 in the second half, keeping the game close until the final moments. Junior guard John Poulakidas bannered the Ivy League Tournament champs with a game-high 28 points, including a huge stepback three-pointer with 2:10 remaining to give the Bulldogs a 73-72 lead. He hit six of nine threes in all, and every single one of them was critical to his team`s success.
The game was still in Yale`s favor, 75-74, by the time it got to just 33.6 ticks left. On the inbounds play for the Bulldogs, Auburn`s Johni Broome attempted a steal during a full-court press and committed a foul that sent August Mahoney to the line (they were in the bonus).
Mahoney calmly sank the two foul shots to make it 77-74. In the ensuing play, the Tigers went to Trey Donaldson to try and tie it with a heave from downtown that clanged right off the back rim. Tigers players gang-rebounded and kept getting second-chance points, but just couldn`t convert in traffic in the lane.
Forced to foul, Auburn sent a relatively poor FT shooter in Yassine Gharram to the line, where he expectedly split his shots. Now down 78-74, the Tigers got the ball to K.D. Johnson who exploded to the basket for an and-one layup, only to miss his bonus free throw. Another rebound scramble sent Donaldson back to the line, missing both free throws for the final nail in the coffin and Auburn`s season.
This is the first time since 2016 that Yale has busted through to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.