Stunner: Georgia State upsets No. 3 Baylor
Baylor was in complete control, and then it fell apart in the final three minutes. It was quite the surprise for coach Scott Drew.
No. 3 seed Baylor was unable to handle Georgia State’s full-court defensive pressure down the stretch and lost 57-56 on R.J. Hunter’s long 3-pointer in the closing seconds of their NCAA Tournament game on Thursday.
Rico Gathers’ two foul shots with 2:54 left put Baylor up by 12, but the Bears (24-10) didn’t score again. They finished with 21 turnovers.
“The thing I’m disappointed with is all year long we’ve executed down the stretch,” Drew said. “We’ve been a tough team, and I feel bad the way that the last five minutes went.”
Hunter’s 3 with 2.7 seconds remaining capped the comeback for No. 14 seed Georgia State and knocked his proud father, coach Ron Hunter, right off his seat.
With dad working the sideline in a rolling chair less than a week after tearing his left Achilles tendon while celebrating the Sun Belt Conference championship, R.J. shrugged off a slow start to come through when his team needed him the most.
Big 12 Sixth Man of the Year Taurean Prince had 18 points and 15 rebounds for Baylor.
Pesky Georgia State (25-9) forced three crucial turnovers as Hunter scored nine in a row during the closing surge, including a 3-pointer that brought chants of “R.J. 3! R.J. 3! R.J. 3!” from Panthers fans at the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena.
The junior guard’s steal and layup trimmed Baylor’s lead to 56-53, and he drained another NBA-range 3 for the win after the Bears’ Kenny Chery missed the front end of a 1-and-1 that could have put the game away.
“He just made a contested 3. There was nothing we could do about it. We did our job and he just made it,” Chery said.
Notre Dame 69, Northeastern 65: Zach Auguste scored 25 points, Jerian Grant added 17 and Notre Dame dodged a scare trying to erase its futile NCAA Tournament history with a 69-65 win over Northeastern.
Butler 56, Texas 48: Kellen Dunham scored 20 points, including a pivotal 3-pointer with 1:18 to play, to lift sixth-seeded Butler to a 56-48 victory over 11th-seeded Texas in the NCAA Tournament.
The Bulldogs (23-10) advanced to play third-seeded Notre Dame on Saturday.
UAB 60, Iowa State 59: William Lee scored the last four points for 14th-seeded UAB, and the Blazers upset ninth-ranked Iowa State 60-59.
UCLA 60, SMU 59: Bryce Alford made four 3-pointers in the final 3:40, his last on a rare goaltending call with 13 seconds remaining, to push 11th-seeded UCLA to a 60-59 upset of sixth-seeded SMU.
Alford’s points came on nine long-range shots but his last attempt was the most debated as his shot from the left side appeared to glance off the rim as SMU’s Yanick Moreira went up to grab the miss. Officials awarded Alford, the son of coach Steve Alford, the basket, to the disbelief of SMU players and coach Larry Brown.
The Mustangs (27-7) had two shots to win in the final seconds, but Nic Moore missed a 3-pointer and then a 2-point attempt that sent the Bruins (21-13) into a wild celebration.
UCLA, the team many felt didn’t even belong in the field of 68, advanced to Saturday’s round of 32 against No. 14 UAB, an upset winner over No. 3 Iowa State.
Arizona 93, Texas Southern 72: Rondae Hollis-Jefferson had 23 points, 16 in the first half, along with 10 rebounds and the second-seeded Arizona Wildcats overwhelmed No. 15 seed Texas Southern from the start for a 93-72 victory.
Pac-12 freshman of the year Stanley Johnson added 22 points for the balanced Wildcats (32-3), who led by as many as 27 points at Portland’s Moda Center.
Ohio State 75, VCU 72: D’Angelo Russell scored 28 points and rallied Ohio State from an early 12-point deficit as the 10th-seeded Buckeyes beat seventh-seeded VCU 75-72 in overtime.
Russell regrouped from a blow that sent blood streaming down the left side of his face near the end of regulation, showing just why many believe he will be a top pick in this summer’s NBA draft. He made 10 of 20 shots, including 4 of 7 from 3-point range, and added six rebounds, two steals and two blocks to bring the Buckeyes (24-10) back in both halves and overtime.
Villanova 93, Lafayette 52: Without a hint of doubt, Villanova flexed its top-seeded muscle and showed why President Barack Obama picked the Wildcats to reach the NCAA Tournament title game, thumping Lafayette 93-52.
Thirty years after stunning the basketball world with an improbable national championship, the Wildcats (33-2) are going to try it this time around as a prohibitive favorite to reach the Final Four.
Dylan Ennis scored 16 points and helped the Wildcats win their 16th straight game. Up next on Saturday, the winner of N.C. State-LSU.
Xavier 76, Mississippi 57: Matt Stainbrook scored 20 points, Dee Davis added 17 and sixth-seeded Xavier beat No. 11 seed Mississippi 76-57 in the NCAA Tournament’s West Regional.
Stainbrook took advantage of his size in the post, making 8 of 10 shots in the paint and adding nine rebounds and five assists.
North Carolina 67, Harvard 65: Justin Jackson hit a tying jumper in the final minute, and then had a fast-break dunk to help fourth-seeded North Carolina edge Harvard 67-65.
The Tar Heels (25-11) wasted a 16-point second-half lead and briefly trailed before Jackson came to the rescue.
Siyani Chambers’ four-point play put 13th-seeded Harvard ahead 65-63 with 1:15 remaining. It was the only lead of the game for the Ivy League champions.
Jackson finished with 14 points and Marcus Paige had 10.Dunham scored 20 points, including a pivotal 3-pointer with 1:18 to play, to lift sixth-seeded Butler to a 56-48 victory over 11th-seeded Texas in the NCAA Tournament.
The Bulldogs (23-10) advanced to play third-seeded Notre Dame on Saturday.
UAB 60, Iowa State 59: William Lee scored the last four points for 14th-seeded UAB, and the Blazers upset ninth-ranked Iowa State 60-59.
UCLA 60, SMU 59: Bryce Alford made four 3-pointers in the final 3:40, his last on a rare goaltending call with 13 seconds remaining, to push 11th-seeded UCLA to a 60-59 upset of sixth-seeded SMU.
Alford’s points came on nine long-range shots but his last attempt was the most debated as his shot from the left side appeared to glance off the rim as SMU’s Yanick Moreira went up to grab the miss. Officials awarded Alford, the son of coach Steve Alford, the basket, to the disbelief of SMU players and coach Larry Brown.
The Mustangs (27-7) had two shots to win in the final seconds, but Nic Moore missed a 3-pointer and then a 2-point attempt that sent the Bruins (21-13) into a wild celebration.
UCLA, the team many felt didn’t even belong in the field of 68, advanced to Saturday’s round of 32 against No. 14 UAB, an upset winner over No. 3 Iowa State.
Arizona 93, Texas Southern 72: Rondae Hollis-Jefferson had 23 points, 16 in the first half, along with 10 rebounds and the second-seeded Arizona Wildcats overwhelmed No. 15 seed Texas Southern from the start for a 93-72 victory.
Pac-12 freshman of the year Stanley Johnson added 22 points for the balanced Wildcats (32-3), who led by as many as 27 points at Portland’s Moda Center.
Ohio State 75, VCU 72: D’Angelo Russell scored 28 points and rallied Ohio State from an early 12-point deficit as the 10th-seeded Buckeyes beat seventh-seeded VCU 75-72 in overtime.
Russell regrouped from a blow that sent blood streaming down the left side of his face near the end of regulation, showing just why many believe he will be a top pick in this summer’s NBA draft. He made 10 of 20 shots, including 4 of 7 from 3-point range, and added six rebounds, two steals and two blocks to bring the Buckeyes (24-10) back in both halves and overtime.
Villanova 93, Lafayette 52: Without a hint of doubt, Villanova flexed its top-seeded muscle and showed why President Barack Obama picked the Wildcats to reach the NCAA Tournament title game, thumping Lafayette 93-52.
Thirty years after stunning the basketball world with an improbable national championship, the Wildcats (33-2) are going to try it this time around as a prohibitive favorite to reach the Final Four.
Dylan Ennis scored 16 points and helped the Wildcats win their 16th straight game. Up next on Saturday, the winner of N.C. State-LSU.
Xavier 76, Mississippi 57: Matt Stainbrook scored 20 points, Dee Davis added 17 and sixth-seeded Xavier beat No. 11 seed Mississippi 76-57 in the NCAA Tournament’s West Regional.
Stainbrook took advantage of his size in the post, making 8 of 10 shots in the paint and adding nine rebounds and five assists.
North Carolina 67, Harvard 65: Justin Jackson hit a tying jumper in the final minute, and then had a fast-break dunk to help fourth-seeded North Carolina edge Harvard 67-65.
The Tar Heels (25-11) wasted a 16-point second-half lead and briefly trailed before Jackson came to the rescue.
Siyani Chambers’ four-point play put 13th-seeded Harvard ahead 65-63 with 1:15 remaining. It was the only lead of the game for the Ivy League champions.
Jackson finished with 14 points and Marcus Paige had 10.