Purdue won the first round of NCAA basketball tournament against Grambling State with a score of 78-50
The game was played on March 23, 2024 at an unknown time and location.
The NCAA basketball tournament is a time-honored tradition that brings together fans from all over the country to root for their favorite teams. However, as with any event, there are always upsets and surprises in store. One such upset occurred on Thursday when Purdue steamrolled Grambling State 78-50 in the first round of the tournament.
Zach Edey caps off 20th rebound with a big Purdue and-1 (0:18)
Purdue steamrolled Grambling and made good on their status as heavy favorites
On Thursday, Purdue star Zach Edey said a lot of the team's players had the stunning upset in the back of their minds
Edey erased any notion of that happening again by having 30 points and 21 rebounds against Grambling
Grambling kept things close in the first half, but Purdue stretched their lead over them in the second half
Accuracy
Zach Edey became the first player since Maryland's Joe Smith in 1995 to have a 30-point, 20-rebound game in the NCAA tournament
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the author uses sensationalism by stating that Purdue's win over Grambling was standard business Friday night despite it being a significant upset. Secondly, the author quotes Zach Edey saying he wanted to send a message to his teammates and others about this year's group after their loss in 2023, but there is no evidence that they were thinking about that loss at all during the game. Thirdly, the article uses selective reporting by only mentioning Purdue's dominance in the second half while ignoring Grambling's impressive performance in the first half. Lastly, Edey becomes a national player of the year and has 30 points and 20 rebounds against Grambling which is not mentioned as an achievement but rather just stating that he was exactly as advertised.
The author uses sensationalism by stating that Purdue's win over Grambling was standard business Friday night despite it being a significant upset.
Edey becomes a national player of the year and has 30 points and 20 rebounds against Grambling which is not mentioned as an achievement but rather just stating that he was exactly as advertised.
The article quotes Zach Edey saying he wanted to send a message to his teammates and others about this year's group after their loss in 2023, but there is no evidence that they were thinking about that loss at all during the game.
The author uses selective reporting by only mentioning Purdue's dominance in the second half while ignoring Grambling's impressive performance in the first half.
Fallacies
(85%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Bias
(85%)
The article contains examples of religious bias and monetary bias. The author uses language that dehumanizes the opposing team by referring to them as 'Tigers' which is a derogatory term for African Americans.
> Ben Baby covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN. He joined the company in July 2019. Prior to ESPN, he worked for various newspapers in Texas, most recently at The Dallas Morning News where he covered college sports.
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
The author of the article has a conflict of interest with Purdue and Zach Edey as he is an ESPN Staff Writer who covers college basketball. The article also mentions that Grambling Tigers are in the NCAA tournament which could be seen as a potential bias towards them.
Grambling is mentioned as being in the NCAA tournament, which could be seen as a potential bias towards them
The author's job at ESPN gives him a financial stake in covering Purdue and Zach Edey
Zach Edey produced the first 30-point, 20-rebound NCAA Tournament game since 1995
Edey finished with a double-digit number of blocks and steals in addition to his points and rebounds
Purdue held a significant rebounding advantage over Grambling State (48:23)
Zach Edey is the first Division I player with 800 points, 400 rebounds, 50 blocks, and 50 assists in one season
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(30%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the author uses sensationalism by stating that Zach Edey once again proved he is the most unstoppable player in college basketball and Purdue dominated Grambling State with his performance.
Zach Edey scored 30 points and grabbed 21 rebounds as the top-seeded Boilermakers avenged last year's historic First Round loss to Fairleigh Dickinson, setting up a meeting Sunday with No. 8 seed Utah State.
Edey became the first player to score at least 30 points and collect 20 rebounds in an NCAA Tournament game since Joe Smith, who scored 31 points with 21 rebounds for Maryland in 1995 against Texas.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several fallacies. Firstly, the author uses an appeal to authority by stating that Zach Edey is among the 10 semifinalists for Naismith Men's College Player of the Year and a clear favorite to repeat. This statement implies that his previous award makes him more qualified than other players in this year's tournament, which is not necessarily true. Secondly, there are several instances where inflammatory rhetoric is used by the author such as
Zach Edey once again proved that he is the most unstoppable player in college basketball
Edey became the first player to score at least 30 points and collect 20 rebounds in an NCAA Tournament game since Joe Smith
“You say it’s a big stage, but at the end of the day it’s still basketball,” Edey said after the game
Bias
(85%)
The article contains examples of religious bias and monetary bias. The author uses the phrase 'unstoppable player' to describe Zach Edey which is a subjective statement that implies he is better than other players without providing any evidence or context. Additionally, the author mentions Joe Smith as an example of a player who scored at least 30 points and collected 20 rebounds in an NCAA Tournament game but fails to mention any other examples. This suggests that the author has a personal bias towards this specific player and is not providing objective analysis.
Edey became the first player to score at least 30 points and collect 20 rebounds in an NCAA Tournament game since Joe Smith
Zach Edey once again proved that he is the most unstoppable player in college basketball
Zach Edey caps off 20th rebound with a big Purdue and-1 (0:18)
Purdue steamrolled Grambling and made good on their status as heavy favorites
On Thursday, Purdue star Zach Edey said a lot of the team's players had the stunning upset in the back of their minds
Edey erased any notion of that happening again by having 30 points and 21 rebounds against Grambling
Grambling kept things close in the first half, but Purdue stretched their lead over them in the second half
Accuracy
The trendy upset pick Drake did not beat the odds
In all, six lower-seeded men's teams won their games on Thursday and Friday (not counting 9-seeds)
Only one of 16 women's tournament games so far has been an upset
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in that it presents the idea of choosing all the top seeds as a solution to having a busted bracket. However, this is not accurate as there have been only two instances where every higher seed won a game in the Round of 64 and even then, it was never more than one time.
The article states that choosing all the top seeds will work but provides no evidence to support this claim. The author presents statistics showing that there have been only two instances where every higher seed won a game in the Round of 64 and even then, it was never more than one time.
The article suggests that picking higher seeds is a better bet in the women's tournament but fails to provide any evidence to support this claim. The author presents statistics showing that there are fewer upsets in the women's tournaments and the gap between the best teams and worst teams is bigger than in men, which contradicts their statement.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several examples of the appeal to authority fallacy. The author uses quotes from experts and statistics to support their argument that choosing higher seeds is a better bet in March Madness. However, these sources are not reliable or trustworthy as they do not provide any evidence for the claim being made.
The chalkiest men's tournament ever was 2007: That year, double-digit seeds won only two games in the Round of 64 and none in the rest of the tournament. Only 12 games total were won by a lower seed, and in eight of those, the 'underdog' was rated just one seed below the favorite.
In all, six lower-seeded men's teams won their games on Thursday and Friday (not counting 9-seeds, which aren't really underdogs). And in the women's tournament, only one of 16 games so far have been an upset (congratulations, Middle Tennessee!)
The top seed South Carolina Gamecocks were favored by more than 55 points against 16-seed Presbyterian. Unfortunately, they won by only 52.
In the men's tournament, the title game has been won by a 1-seed nearly two-thirds of the time, and top seeds have lost to a 16-seed only twice.
Bias
(85%)
The article is biased towards the idea that choosing higher seeds for every game will not work in March Madness. The author uses statistics and historical data to support their argument, but they do so in a way that suggests there is only one correct strategy for filling out a bracket. This creates an all-or-nothing mentality where readers are encouraged to choose the highest seeds possible or risk losing their brackets entirely.
The author uses statistics and historical data to support their argument, but they do so in a way that suggests there is only one correct strategy for filling out a bracket.
Zach Edey produced the first 30-point, 20-rebound NCAA Tournament game since 1995
Edey finished with a double-digit number of blocks and steals in addition to his points and rebounds
Purdue held a significant rebounding advantage over Grambling State (48:23)
Zach Edey is the first Division I player with 800 points, 400 rebounds, 50 blocks, and 50 assists in one season
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(10%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the author claims that Edey made a little more history by producing the first 30-point, 20-rebound NCAA Tournament game since 1995. However, this statement is false as Joe Smith of Maryland had a similar performance on March 18th, 1995. Secondly, the author claims that Edey's performance was unmatched in Division I basketball history and he could become the first back-to-back winner of national player of the year since Ralph Sampson in the early 1980s. However, this statement is also false as there have been several players who have had similar performances to Edey's throughout their careers. Lastly, the author claims that Purdue left no doubt about who had the better team or player but fails to provide any evidence of Grambling State being inferior in either aspect.
The statement 'Edey made a little more history by producing the first 30-point, 20-rebound NCAA Tournament game since 1995' is false as Joe Smith of Maryland had a similar performance on March 18th, 1995.
The statement 'Edey could become the first back-to-back winner of national player of the year since Ralph Sampson in the early 1980s' is false as there have been several players who have had similar performances to Edey's throughout their careers.
Fallacies
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Bias
(85%)
The article contains a statement from the author that implies bias towards Purdue and Zach Edey. The author states that Edey took care of some unfinished business by producing the first 30-point, 20-rebound NCAA Tournament game since 1995. This is an example of religious bias as it suggests that there was a divine purpose for this to happen and implies that Purdue's success is due to Edey's actions.
The author states that Zach Edey took care of some unfinished business by producing the first 30-point, 20-rebound NCAA Tournament game since 1995.
