NCAA Tournament roundup: Buffalo stuns Arizona
Published 1:30 am Thursday, March 15, 2018
Associated Press
SOUTH REGION
BOISE, Idaho — Wes Clark scored 25 points, Jeremy Harris added 23 and No. 13 seed Buffalo pulled off the biggest upset of the NCAA Tournament’s opening round, rolling over No. 4 seed Arizona 89-68 in the South Region on Thursday night.
The smaller Bulls (27-8) used their quickness to zip around the Wildcats (27-8), scoring at the rim and on kickout 3-pointers.
Defensively, Buffalo neutralized Arizona’s size inside by collapsing on the paint, forcing the Wildcats to shoot from the perimeter. Arizona went 2 for 18 from beyond the 3-point arc, while the Bulls knocked down 15 of 30.
CJ Massinburg had 19 points and Buffalo shredded Arizona’s defense at a 55-percent clip for the program’s first NCAA Tournament win.
The Bulls move on to face Kentucky in Saturday’s round of 32.
Dusan Ristic had 16 points, and Deandre Ayton finished with 14 points and 13 rebounds to lead Arizona.
Loyola Chicago 64, Miami 62
DALLAS — Donte Ingram hit a long 3-pointer just before the buzzer, lifting Loyola-Chicago to a thrilling win over Miami in its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 33 years.
The 11th-seeded Ramblers (29-5) advanced to face third-seeded Tennessee on Saturday.
Tennessee 73, Wright St. 47
DALLAS — Admiral Schofield had 15 points and 12 rebounds as Tennessee advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a win over Wright State.
Tennessee (26-8) will play Loyola-Chicago in the second round on Saturday.
Kentucky 78, Davidson 73
BOISE, Idaho — Kentucky topped Davidson despite failing to make a single 3-pointer, snapping a nation-best streak of 1,047 games with a 3 that began in 1988.
The fifth-seeded Wildcats went 0 for 6 from behind the line and didn’t even try one over the final 8:46.
The Wildcats (25-10) will face Buffalo on Saturday.
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MIDWEST REGION
Rhode Island 83, Oklahoma 78
PITTSBURGH — E.C. Matthews hit the go-ahead 3-pointer in overtime and one more that sealed it to help Rhode Island hold off dynamic scorer Trae Young and beat Oklahoma in the Midwest Region.
The seventh-seeded Rams (26-7) won a game in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season and will play Duke on Saturday.
The 10th-seeded Sooners’ (18-14) late-season fade ended with a thud when Young failed to carry them as he had so many times this season. The phenomenal freshman led the nation with averages of 27.4 points and 8.8 assists. He scored 28 points on 9 of 18 shooting with six turnovers.
Duke 89, Iona 67
PITTSBURGH — Marvin Bagley III dominated in his NCAA Tournament debut, pouring in 22 points to go with seven rebounds as Duke rolled past Iona.
Grayson Allen scored 16 points and added a game-high nine assists for Duke (27-7), which will face Rhose Island on Saturday.
Seton Hall 94, NC State 83
WICHITA, Kan. — Khadeen Carrington scored 26 points, Desi Rodriguez added 20 and eighth-seeded Seton Hall beat North Carolina State in a foul-filled first-round matchup.
Seton Hall (22-11) will play top-seeded Kansas on Saturday in the second round.
Kansas 76, Penn 60
WICHITA, Kan. — Devonte Graham ignited sluggish Kansas midway through the first half, pouring in 29 points and lifting the top-seeded Jayhawks to a tough, grind-it-out victory over No. 16 Pennsylvania.
Lagerald Vick added 14 points for the Jayhawks (28-7), who trailed the Ivy League champs by 10 in the early stages before going on a 19-2 run late in the first half to take control.
Kansas will face Seton Hall on Saturday.
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EAST REGION
Texas Tech 70, Stephen F. Austin 60
DALLAS — Keenan Evans scored 19 of his 23 points after halftime and third-seeded Texas Tech surged late to top Stephen F. Austin in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Big 12 runner-up Red Raiders (25-9) closed the game on a 13-2 run. Evans drove for a layup with 3:58 left, putting Texas Tech ahead to stay.
Evans had only four points in the first half, all on free throws while going 0 for 4 from the field. But he also ignited the highlight play of the night, chasing down an offensive rebound past midcourt and then throwing an alley-oop pass to 6-foot-5 freshman Zhaire Smith, who made a 360-degree spin in the air while completing the dunk.
Texas Tech will play Florida on Saturday.
Villanova 87, Radford 61
PITTSBURGH — Jalen Brunson scored 16 points and No. 1 seed Villanova hit 14 3-pointers in a romp over Radford.
Villanova (31-4) played to near-perfection for the first 30 minutes and everyone played a role. Mikal Bridges had 13 points, Eric Paschall scored 11 and Omari Spellman had 10 points and seven rebounds.
The Wildcats play on Saturday against Alabama.
Alabama 86, Virginia Tech 83
PITTSBURGH — Collin Sexton scored 21 of his team-high 24 points after halftime to lead Alabama to victory over Virginia Tech, the Crimson Tide’s first NCAA Tournament win in a dozen years.
Alabama (20-15) will face top-seeded Villanova on Saturday.
Florida 77, St. Bonaventure 62
DALLAS — Egor Koulechov scored 20 points and Florida eased past St. Bonaventure, ending the Bonnies’ postseason run two days after their first tournament victory in 48 years.
Florida (21-12) will face Texas Tech Saturday in the Round of 32.
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WEST REGION
Ohio St. 81, South Dakota St. 73
BOISE, Idaho — Kam Williams made a tiebreaking four-point play with 1:36 to go, then added a trio of free throws after being fouled on another 3-point attempt, lifting Ohio State to a victory over South Dakota State in the West Region.
Fifth-seeded Ohio State (25-8) built a 13-point lead by reeling off 16 straight points midway through the second half of a game that featured 71 combined 3-point shots.
South Dakota State made a late run at the Buckeyes, scoring 10 straight points to tie it at 70-all.
Williams answered — by being fouled on a pair of 3-pointers.
The Buckeyes will face Gonzaga in the round of 32 on Saturday.
Houston 67, San Diego St. 65
WICHITA, Kan. — Rob Gray drove for a wind-milling layup that just trickled over the rim with 1.1 seconds to go, and Trey Kell’s off-balance 3-pointer at the buzzer was no good, giving No. 6 seed Houston a victory over 11th-seeded San Diego State.
Houston will play third-seeded Michigan on Saturday.
Michigan 61, Montana 47
WICHITA, Kan. — Charles Matthews had 20 points and 11 rebounds, Michigan locked down on defense and the third-seeded Wolverines beat Montana.
Michigan (29-7) will face Houston in the Round of 32 on Saturday.
