USC pulls off another rally

Duke, S. Carolina also advance

TULSA, Okla. — For the second straight NCAA Tournament game, Southern California overcame a double-digit deficit in the second half to win.

Elijah Stewart hit a late 3-pointer for No. 11 seed USC as the Trojans upset sixth-seeded SMU 66-65 on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

USC trailed SMU by 10 in the second half. The Trojans trailed Providence by 17 in the second half of their First Four game on Wednesday night before winning 75-71.

Apparently, they don’t know how to quit.

“We just had to keep fighting back,” Stewart said. “We’ve been in those positions before. So we’re kind of seasoned to it. And you just can’t stop. You just got to keep going.”

Stewart had 22 points for the Trojans (26-9), including the game-deciding 3 with 37 seconds to play.

“We ran the play previously before, and I was open,” Stewart said. “And then we had the media timeout. We discussed it. We ran the same play again, and I was open, and I just let muscle memory take place.”

Bennie Boatright and Chimezie Metu each added 14 points for USC, which advanced to play thirdseeded Baylor in the second round of the East region Sunday.

SMU’s Shake Milton missed a floater at the buzzer that would have won it for the Mustangs.

Semi Ojeleye had 24 points and 10 rebounds and Sterling Brown had 17 points for SMU (30-5), which had won 16 straight.

No. 2 DUKE 87, No. 15

TROY 65: In Greenville, S.C., Grayson Allen had 21 points off five 3-pointers, and Jayson Tatum had 18 points and 12 rebounds as Duke continued its perfect postseason with a victory over Troy.

The Blue Devils (29-7) became the first team to win four games on the way to the ACC tournament crown last week. They kept up that pace in blowing past the Trojans (22-15).

The Blue Devils improved to 34-7 all-time in openers and put this one out of reach early with their 3-point shooting.

Jordon Varnado had 18 points to lead Troy, which made its first NCAA appearance since 2003.

Up next for Duke is seventh-seeded South Carolina.

No. 7 SOUTH CAROLINA 93, No. 10 MARQUETTE 73:

In Greenville, Sindarius Thornwell had 29 points and 11 rebounds to help South Carolina win its first NCAA Tournament game in 44 years.

The Gamecocks (23-10) last won a game in the NCAAs when it topped Southwestern Louisiana 90-85 in a regional consolation game in 1973.

Marquette (19-13) went up by 10 in the first half before South Carolina used an 11-0 run midway through the second half to take control.