March Madness Breakout Star Wofford's Fletcher Magee Gets D-I 3-Point Record
Mar 22, 2019
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Fletcher Magee of Wofford College not only led his team to its first NCAA tournament victory, but he set the Division I record for most career three-pointers. Watch the video above for more about this breakout star.
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Can Fletcher Magee Be Wofford's Steph Curry in March Madness Run?
Mar 22, 2019
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA - MARCH 21: Fletcher Magee #3 of the Wofford Terriers reacts in the second half against the Seton Hall Pirates during the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena on March 21, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
Fletcher Magee is a relatively unknown star. But after setting the Division I career record for three-pointers with 509 and producing a second-round showdown with Kentucky, Wofford's senior marksman has a chance to follow in a legend's footsteps.
Eleven years removed from Stephen Curry's memorable run with Davidson, Magee could propel a small school to the brink of college basketball excellence.
And then, millions of people would know his name.
Magee set the NCAA record Thursday during the second half of seventh-seeded Wofford's 84-68 win over No. 10 Seton Hall. He knocked down a triple―his third of the contest and No. 505 overall―to pass Oakland's Travis Bader, setting off a raucous cheer in his home state of Florida.
Magee finished with seven threes and scored a team-best 24 points to dispatch Seton Hall.
With a shade over seven minutes remaining, Wofford trailed 60-59. Magee's triple sparked a decisive 25-8 run in which he connected on a trio of three-pointers. That ability to take over a game is simply one of several striking similarities between Curry and Magee.
Both players led their program to a Southern Conference championship. Both players stood atop the nation in three-pointers for a single season―while hitting at least 40 percent of them. Both players will have faced a No. 2 seed in the second round.
Longtime Wofford coach Mike Young has acknowledged the similarities.
"I've been in this league a long time, and I don't think I'm going out on a limb to say Steph Curry's the best player the SoCon's ever seen," he told Chris Dortch of The Athletic in 2017. "I don't like to compare players, but in terms of Fletch's ability to score and do it as efficiently as he's doing it, from all points on the floor, let's just say it reminds me of someone."
That praise is merited. It will also be quickly forgotten if Magee and the Terriers don't advance.
Up next for Wofford is Kentucky, which put together arguably the most impressive showing of March Madness' Day 1. John Calipari's squad cruised to a 79-44 win over 15th-seeded Abilene Christian, which knocked down just five threes.
Unconventional though he is, Magee is fully capable of wrecking UK on the perimeter.
Fletcher Magee, the ultimate no no no no no no yes shooter
Heading into the Big Dance, the Wildcats ranked 223rd in three-point defense. This season, seven opposing players have drilled at least five threes, and Kentucky is 3-4 in those games. Magee has buried five-plus trifectas 20 times as a senior.
Incidentally, Curry connected on five-plus threes during each of Davidson's three March Madness victories in 2008.
Sure, Magee isn't doing this alone. Wofford boasts the country's second-best clip from long distance, largely thanks to Magee and Nathan Hoover, a 45.7 percent shooter from long range who hit four threes Thursday. Curry didn't have a perimeter sidekick of that caliber.
Fletcher Magee is incredible.. The kid runs one way then turns & fires in an instant.. Nathan Hoover is almost the same.. Wofford is fun.. #MarchMadness
But the Calipari-coached team knows its biggest threat.
Wofford will go as Magee does.
Kentucky―which may again be without star forward PJ Washington because of a sprained foot, per Alyssa Lang of the SEC Network―will do everything it can to slow Magee. After all, he's previously taken down a giant; Magee netted 27 points in the upset of North Carolina in Chapel Hill last season.
Yes, the 'Cats will likely be favored, and nobody would be surprised if the powerhouse program topples the SoCon champions. That's what second-seeded teams are supposed to do in March.
However, they can only prepare so much for the greatest three-point weapon college basketball has seen in a decade. He isn't just a volume shooter; he's exceptionally efficient while hoisting more than 10 threes per game. He's the driving force of a potential Cinderella story.
Wofford is fully capable of beating Kentucky. And if that happens, he'll no longer be the cult hero compared to Steph Curry.
Video: Fletcher Magee Drops 24 Points, Hits 7 3s in Wofford's Win vs. Seton Hall
Mar 22, 2019
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA - MARCH 21: Fletcher Magee #3 of the Wofford Terriers reacts in the second half against the Seton Hall Pirates during the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena on March 21, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
The seventh-seeded Wofford Terriers held off the 10th-seeded Seton Hall Pirates 84-68in the first round of the 2019 NCAA men's basketball tournament on Thursday, and it's all thanks to a big performance from senior Fletcher Magee.
Magee led the Terriers to the program's first-ever tournament victory with 24 points on 7-of-14 shooting. All seven makes came from three-point range:
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That big night helped the fourth-year guard make history:
Magee's final trey of the night came with 3:11 to play and extended the Wofford lead to double digits.
Meanwhile, Seton Hall star Myles Powell responded to a quiet first half (four points) with a 23-point outburst in the second:
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That included 17 points in the first nine minutes and eight seconds out of the break.
But Powell couldn't carry his team to the finish line. After the Pirates cut the deficit to a single point with less than five minutes to play, the Terriers went on a 17-0 run over the next four minutes to pull away for good.
Win or lose, both Magee and Powell put on quite the show:
Wofford will now face second-seeded Kentucky on Saturday for a spot in the Sweet 16.
Video: Watch Fletcher Magee Break NCAA All-Time 3-Point Record vs. Seton Hall
Mar 21, 2019
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Fletcher Magee made history in Thursday's 2019 NCAA men's basketball tournament game between the Wofford Terriers and Seton Hall Pirates.
With his third three-pointer, Magee passed former Oakland Golden Grizzlies guard Travis Bader for the most career three-pointers (505).
The odds of Bader keeping his record through Thursday were slim to none. Magee averaged 4.6 made threes on 10.7 attempts heading into the tournament, and he was bound to have a green light in such an important game for the Terriers.
Seton Hall also ranked 139th in three-point defense, allowing opponents to shoot 33.6 percent from beyond the arc.
College basketball fans have known about Magee's long-range prowess for a few years. Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller profiled him in December 2017.
The 6'4" guard finished the 2017-18 season with 148 made threes—at the time, the fifth-most in a single season. He's since surpassed his own mark, with 151 threes and counting entering the Big Dance.
Now, Magee is the gold standard for long-range specialists at the college level.
