Oregon clips Michigan, advances to Elite Eight
Canadians big contributors as Ducks put end to Wolverines’ magical ride
Tyler Dorsey scored 20 points and made the go-ahead layup with 1:08 left, and third-seeded Oregon ended No. 7 Michigan’s dramatic postseason run with a 69-68 victory in a Midwest Regional semifinal Thursday.
Dorsey, the man the Ducks call “Mr. March,” had his sixth straight game scoring 20 or more points.
The Wolverines (27-11) had one more chance to extend their run after Dylan Ennis missed a free throw with 15 seconds left. But Derrick Walton, who carried the Wolverines the last three weeks, was off with his long jumper just before the buzzer. Jordan Bell had a double-double for the Ducks (325) with 16 points and 13 rebounds. Dillon Brooks of Mississauga, Ont., the Pac-12 player of the year, added 12 points and Ennis, of Brampton, Ont., had 10.
Walton led the Wolverines with 20 points, eight assists and five rebounds. Zak Irvin had 14 of his 19 points in the second half and DJ Wilson had 12 points.
Oregon plays Kansas or Purdue Saturday in the regional final.
The Ducks are going to the Elite Eight for the second year in a row, and they made it without big man Chris Boucher of Montreal, who suffered a season-ending knee injury.
WEST REGION Gonzaga 61, West Virginia 58
Jordan Mathews SA N J O S E , C A L I F. hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with under a minute to play and topseeded Gonzaga survived a rough shooting night for both teams to beat No. 4 seed West Virginia 61-58 Thursday night to advance to the West Regional final.
On a night that featured 51 fouls and only 34 made baskets, Mathews delivered the big shot that sent the Bulldogs (35-1) to their third Elite Eight in school history.
It didn’t come easily. West Virginia (29-8) had three shots to tie the game but Tarik Phillip missed a shot from the lane and Jevon Carter missed two 3-pointers after Silas Melson made one foul shot. The Mountaineers rebounded both misses, but couldn’t get another shot off before the buzzer.