NCAA Tournament Game Capsules
Pittsburgh, PA (SportsNetwork.com) – The first game in the second round of the NCAA Tournament nearly produced a major upset. Notre Dame, entering as a conference tournament champion for the first time in its history after winning the ACC title, had to survive against the Colonial Athletic champions from Northeastern, escaping with a 69-65 victory on Thursday. The Huskies had a chance to win it down 67-65 after a Notre Dame turnover, but the Fighting Irish played strong defense and Jerian Grant came up with a steal in the final seconds. Zach Auguste was fouled after corralling the loose ball and sank two free throws to seal Notre Dame’s sixth straight victory. Auguste finished with 25 points and Grant chipped in 17 for the Irish (30-5), who captured the ACC crown with wins over Duke and North Carolina in the final two rounds of the tournament in Greensboro. Notre Dame, seeded third in the Midwest Region, also halted a three-game NCAA Tournament losing streak and will play Butler on Saturday.
Final Score: Butler 56, Texas 48
Pittsburgh, PA (SportsNetwork.com) – Kellen Dunham hit a late 3-pointer to help Butler hold off Texas 56-48 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday. Dunham, who finished with 20 points, came off a screen and nailed a 3 from the right wing to put the Bulldogs up 48-43 with 1:18 remaining. Butler then made 8-of-10 free throws in the final minute as Texas missed a trio of 3-point attempts. Kameron Woods had nine points and nine rebounds for the Bulldogs (23-10), the sixth seed from the Midwest Region. They will play No. 3 seed Notre Dame on Saturday. Jonathan Holmes led the 11th-seeded Longhorns (20-14) with 15 points. Isaiah Taylor had 14 points, four assists and three steals.
Final Score: UAB 60, Iowa State 59
Louisville, KY (SportsNetwork.com) – William Lee’s jumper with 24 seconds left gave Alabama-Birmingham the lead for good, as the 14th-seeded Blazers upset third-seeded Iowa State, 60-59, in second-round action of the NCAA Tournament. Lee ended with 14 points and 12 rebounds and Robert Brown scored a game-high 21 points to lead UAB (20-15), which moved on to the third round to face 11th-seeded UCLA, which beat SMU later Thursday on a controversial goaltending call. Monte Morris scored 15 points to lead Iowa State (25-9), which got off to a quick start but failed to hold on to a lead and saw its recent run of good luck come to an end. The Cyclones entered the NCAA Tournament having won five straight games, including three in a row to capture the Big 12 Conference Tournament, where they trailed by double-digits in every game.
Final Score: UCLA 60, SMU 59
Louisville, KY (SportsNetwork.com) – One thing’s for sure: Yanick Moreira’s right hand was in the wrong place. Whether or not the goaltending call that sent UCLA to a dramatic win over SMU in the NCAA Tournament on Thursday was warranted seems to depend on the angle of the replay. Even the NCAA’s coordinator of officials couldn’t say for sure whether or not the heaved 3- point try by UCLA’s Bryce Alford had a chance to go in, though he seemed to lean toward trusting the officials on the court. Goaltending isn’t a reviewable play under NCAA rules. Either way you see it, Alford’s 3-pointer with around 13 seconds remaining was counted and 11th-seeded UCLA escaped with a 60-59 win over sixth-seeded SMU to move into the third round of the South Region against UAB, which upset No. 3 seed Iowa State earlier Thursday.
Final Score: Georgia State 57, Baylor 56
Jacksonville, FL (SportsNetwork.com) – Georgia State coach Ron Hunter fell off his rolling stool as he watched his son make a game-winning 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds left. R.J. Hunter, the two-time Sun Belt Player of the Year, buried a long 3 to cap a 13-0 Georgia State run to end the game, and the 14th-seeded Panthers stunned third-seeded Baylor 57-56 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday. Baylor did not score after going up 56-44 on two Rico Gathers free throws with 2:53 remaining. R.J. Hunter scored nine straight points to get Georgia State within 56-53. After Baylor’s Taurean Prince turned the ball over, Isaiah Dennis made 1-of-2 free throws to make it a two-point contest. Kenny Chery missed the front end of a 1-on-1 and T.J. Shipes came down with a key defensive rebound for the Panthers. Shipes then got the assist on R.J. Hunter’s 3-pointer. Prince’s desperation heave from beyond halfcourt was off the mark at the buzzer. Baylor turned the ball over four times during Georgia State’s 13-0 surge.
Final Score: Xavier 76, Ole Miss 57
Jacksonville, FL (SportsNetwork.com) – Matt Stainbrook scored 20 points on 8- of-10 shooting, pulled down nine rebounds and dished out five assists as the Xavier Musketeers handled the Ole Miss Rebels 76-57 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Dee Davis made four 3-pointers en route to 17 points for the sixth-seeded Musketeers (22-13), who are making their ninth NCAA Tournament appearance in 10 years. Xavier will play 14th-seeded Georgia State on Saturday. The Panthers stunned third-seeded Baylor earlier Thursday in a West Region matchup. Stefan Moody ended with 14 points for the 11th- seeded Rebels (21-13), who rallied past BYU in Tuesday’s first round. M.J. Rhett and Ladarius White tallied 12 and 11 points, respectively.
Final Score: Arizona 93, Texas Southern 72
Portland, OR (SportsNetwork.com) – Rondae Hollis-Jefferson scored a career- high 23 points and added 10 rebounds to lead the Arizona Wildcats to a 93-72 win over Texas Southern in second round action of the NCAA Tournament. All five Arizona starters finished in double figures, with Pac-12 Freshman of the Year Stanley Johnson scoring 22, Brandon Ashley adding 14, and Kaleb Tarczewski and T.J. McConnell finished with 13 and 12 points, respectively. The second-seeded Wildcats (32-3) will play Saturday against 10th-seeded Ohio State in the next round in the West Region. SWAC Player of the Year Madarious Gibbs paced the 15th-seeded Tigers (22-13) with 15 points, and Chris Thomas contributed 13.
Final Score: Ohio State 75, VCU 72 (OT)
Portland, OR (SportsNetwork.com) – Freshman star D’Angelo Russell scored 28 points to lead the Ohio State Buckeyes to a 75-72 overtime win over the VCU Rams in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday. Amir Williams added 13 points and Jae’Sean Tate contributed 12 for the 10th-seeded Buckeyes (24-10), who will take on the second-seeded Arizona Wildcats on Saturday. Keita Bates-Diop only attempted two shots in 13 minutes off the bench, but they were 3-pointers down the stretch that gave Ohio State a lead. Melvin Johnson paced VCU (26-10) with 17 points, including two big 3s late in regulation to keep the Rams in the game. Doug Brooks chipped in with 14 points but committed a crucial turnover in overtime that led to a go-ahead 3 for the Buckeyes.
Final Score: Villanova 93, Lafayette 52
Pittsburgh, PA (SportsNetwork.com) – Dylan Ennis led a razor-sharp Villanova offense with 16 points and the top-seeded Wildcats rolled to a 93-52 win over Lafayette in the NCAA Tournament East Region second round. The Wildcats looked every bit the part of a national championship contender in their tournament opener, shooting a torrid 63.2 percent from the field and going 11-of-22 from 3-point range while committing just eight turnovers in an overwhelming performance. Daniel Ochefu chipped in 14 points on 5-of-5 shooting and Ryan Arcidiacono had 13 points for Villanova (33-2), which will take a school-record 16-game win streak into Saturday’s Round of 32 matchup with eighth-seeded North Carolina State. The Wolfpack battled back from a 16-point second-half deficit to earn a 66-65 decision over LSU in Thursday’s finale of the Pittsburgh session. Darrun Hilliard and JayVaughn Pinkston added 12 points each while finishing a combined 10-of-13 from the floor. Dan Trist paced 16th-seeded Lafayette (20-13), the champions of the Patriot League Tournament, with 18 points and Seth Hinrichs netted 13 for the Leopards.
Final Score: North Carolina State 66, LSU 65
Pittsburgh, PA (SportsNetwork.com) – BeeJay Anya’s buzzer-beating hook shot capped a remarkable North Carolina State rally that catapulted the Wolfpack to a startling 66-65 win over LSU in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The eighth-seeded Wolfpack trailed by 16 points early in the second half and were down 62-48 with 9:15 remaining, but closed the game on an 18-3 run capped by Anya’s turnaround jumper that fell in with 0.1 seconds on the clock. The improbable victory sent N.C. State (21-13) into a matchup with East Region top seed Villanova in Saturday’s Round of 32. Ninth-seeded LSU (22-11), meanwhile, is going home after failing to make a basket over the final 10:26 and missing five free throws in the last three minutes. Anthony Barber aided the Wolfpack’s comeback by scoring 17 points, with Abdul-Malik Abu adding 13 on 5-of-7 shooting. Tim Quarterman flirted with a triple-double in the loss, finishing with 17 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Martin and Jordan Mickey each posted double-doubles, but Mickey bricked four very costly free throws down the stretch that helped seal the Tigers’ fate. Martin recorded 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Mickey ended with 12 points and 14 boards.
Final Score: Cincinnati 66, Purdue 65 (OT)
Louisville, KY (SportsNetwork.com) – Cincinnati trailed by seven with under a minute left in regulation and somehow survived Purdue 66-65 in an overtime thriller in the Midwest Region on Thursday. A matchup against undefeated Kentucky waits them in the next round, but the eighth-seeded Bearcats (23-10), even without their leading scorer and rebounder, showed they will not be as easy out. Just ask Purdue, which had multiple chances to put the game away but wound up on the losing end when Vince Edwards missed a 3-pointer at the OT buzzer. Troy Caupain forced overtime with buzzer-beating runner to cap a 10-3 run over the final 44 seconds of regulation. Caupain finished with 10 points, Farad Cobb scored 14 and Coreontae DeBerry added 13 for the Bearcats, who were without Octavius Ellis for the final 21-plus minutes after the star forward was ejected for throwing an elbow. Purdue missed six of its last seven shots and two free throws in the extra session but still had a chance down by one after Caupain missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with time winding down. Edwards had a good look from the left wing but found all iron, spoiling his 14-point, eight-rebound, seven-assist performance. A.J. Hammons chipped in 17 points and 10 rebounds for the ninth-seeded Boilermakers (21-13).
Final Score: Kentucky 79, Hampton 56
Louisville, KY (SportsNetwork.com) – Thirty-five down, five to go. The top- seeded and top-ranked Kentucky Wildcats continued their quest for perfection Thursday with a 79-56 drubbing of underdog Hampton in a second- round matchup in the Midwest Region. Kentucky (35-0) will play eighth-seeded Cincinnati on Saturday. The Bearcats needed overtime to knock off Purdue in the night-session opener at KFC Yum! Center, and the late start appeared to affect the Wildcats early on. The heavy favorites were only ahead by four with just over eight minutes to play in the opening half before a 14-0 run provided some energy in what, to that point, was a quiet pro-Kentucky crowd. Karl-Anthony Towns scored eight points during the surge and wound up with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Andrew Harrison chipped in with 14 points, while Tyler Ulis and Trey Lyles added 11 and 10 points, respectively, in the rout. Quinton Chievous carried 16th-seeded Hampton (17-18) with 22 points and 10 boards, but it was not nearly enough. The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference champions knocked off Manhattan in a ‘First Four’ game on Tuesday and actually held a 4-3 lead over the top-ranked team in the country.
Final Score: North Carolina 67, Harvard 65
Jacksonville, FL (SportsNetwork.com) – Right when North Carolina appeared to be on cruise control, pesky Harvard was at it again in the NCAA Tournament. Siyani Chambers’ four-point play had just given the Crimson their first lead with just over a minute remaining, but his next shot from beyond the arc helped put the Tar Heels ahead for good. Justin Jackson’s go-ahead fastbreak dunk with 23 seconds remaining lifted North Carolina to a 67-65 victory over Harvard in a second-round game in the West Region Thursday night. The Tar Heels (25-11) squandered a 16-point second-half lead. Chambers nailed his straightaway 3-pointer while being fouled on the arm by Marcus Paige with 1:15 on the clock. He sunk the subsequent free throw for a 65-63 Harvard edge. Jackson knocked down a jumper at the other end and Chambers was off the mark on a deep 3, leading to a Tar Heels run-out. J.P. Tokoto secured the rebound and outletted to Paige, who hit Jackson with a right wing bounce pass for the easy two-handed dunk and a 67-65 UNC cushion. Chambers then missed another 3, this time from the right wing, and Kennedy Meeks was fouled going for the rebound. He missed the front end of a 1-and-1, but Wesley Saunders’ potential go-ahead 3-pointer in the waning seconds ricocheted off the glass and clanked off the front of the rim.
Final Score: Arkansas 56, Wofford 53
Jacksonville, FL (SportsNetwork.com) – Neither Arkansas or Wofford led by more than a possession in the second half. It was a fitting way to end a wild day in Jacksonville. Michael Qualls had 20 points, Bobby Portis added 15 points and 13 rebounds and the Razorbacks edged the Terriers 56-53 in second- round action in the West Region on Thursday night. Karl Cochran and Eric Garcia missed potentially game-tying 3-pointers for Wofford in the final 10 seconds. Three of the four games decided at Veterans Memorial Arena were decided by a combined six points. No. 14 seed Georgia State shocked third- seeded Baylor 57-56 to start the day and fourth-seeded North Carolina fended off No. 13 seed Harvard in the opener of the evening session. The fifth- seeded Razorbacks (27-8) will play the Tar Heels in the third round Saturday. There were 18 lead changes and 10 ties in the contest. Neither team led by more than five points. Qualls went 8-of-9 from the field, which included a trio of highlight-reel dunks. Alandise Harris tallied eight points and eight boards for Arkansas, which came in winning 10 of its last 13 games, with two of those losses coming against top-ranked Kentucky. It was the Razorbacks’ first NCAA Tournament game since 2008. The Southern Conference Player of the Year Cochran missed his last eight shots from the field and was 4-of-19 overall — 2-of-12 from beyond the arc. He had 12 points and seven rebounds. Spencer Collins supplied 16 points and nine boards for the 12th-seeded Terriers (28-7), who had won eight straight and 15 of their last 16 contests.
Final Score: Utah 57, Stephen F. Austin 50
Portland, OR (SportsNetwork.com) – Freshman forward Jakob Poeltl recorded 18 points with eight rebounds and five blocks to help fifth-seeded Utah defeat Stephen F. Austin, 57-50, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday. The 7-footer from Austria was dominant in all aspects down the stretch for the Utes (25-8), finishing the game 7-of-7 from the floor. Jordan Loveridge supplied 12 points and Delon Wright added 11 for Utah, which will play Georgetown on Saturday. Ty Charles led the 12th-seeded Lumberjacks (29-5) with 14 points, while Southland Player of the Year Thomas Walkup went for 12 points, nine rebounds and five assists in defeat. Stephen F. Austin was denied a repeat of last season when it upset fifth-seeded Virginia Commonwealth.
Final Score: Georgetown 84, Eastern Washington 74
Portland, OR (SportsNetwork.com) – D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera scored 25 points with eight rebounds to help Georgetown shake off its struggles in March with an 84-74 win over Eastern Washington in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The fourth-seeded Hoyas (22-10) entered the Big Dance with four losses — all to teams seeded 10th or worse — in the tournament since 2009. Eastern Washington coach Jim Hayford guaranteed a victory during a radio interview earlier in the week, but things didn’t work out as planned. They led comfortably throughout the night on Thursday, however, dispatching the 13th-seeded Eagles (26-9) thanks to shooting 11-of-23 from beyond the arc. Georgetown will now face Utah on Saturday for the right to advance to the Sweet 16. Tyler Harvey recorded 27 points and Venky Jois contributed 19 points and eight rebounds in defeat.
Categorized in: NCAA Basketball