Hogs pushed to limit against Seton Hall
UNC, Kentucky romp; No. 10 Shockers move on
GREENVILLE, S.C. — Arkansas did just enough in the final minute to push its way through the NCAA Tournament’s first round — aided by a couple of eyecatching calls and noncalls by the officiating crew, too.
Jaylen Barford hit the go-ahead layup with 57.8 seconds left to help Arkansas hold off Seton Hall 77-71 on Friday in the first round of the South Region.
Barford had 12 of his 20 points after halftime for the eighth-seeded Razorbacks (26-9), who erased an eight-point second-half hole and scored the final seven points of the game to earn the program’s third straight opening-game NCAA win.
“Coach (Mike Anderson) told us to keep chipping away,” said Dusty Hannahs, who scored 14. “He knows we don’t lose our head. We’ve been down a lot this year.”
Barford’s layup off Khadeen Carrington’s turnover at the other end put Arkansas ahead for good. Then came a critical sequence, which started with Carrington’s travel while being harassed by a double team with 24.6 seconds left.
Hannahs threw the ball to Daryl Macon near the Seton Hall bench. As defenders converged, Macon stutter-stepped past them in an apparent travel that went uncalled.
Instead, Macon threw the ball to Barford, who was knocked to the floor on a foul by Desi Rodriguez as Rodriguez tried to stop the clock with 18.3 seconds left. Officials reviewed the play — which showed Rodriguez’s hands touching Barford’s left shoulder and back, while his left foot clipped Barford’s in an accidental trip — and changed it to a flagrant foul.
Barford hit both free throws, then Macon added one to make it a 75-71 game.
Carrington missed a 3 at the other end in what amounted to the last gasp for the ninth-seeded Pirates (21-12).
Arkansas advances to face North Carolina in the second round Sunday. No. 1 NORTH CAROLINA 103, No. 16 TEXAS SOUTHERN 64: Also in Greenville, Justin Jackson scored 21 points to help North Carolina roll past Texas Southern.
The ACC player of the year had 19 points by halftime in helping the Tar Heels (28-7) quickly eliminate the chance of an upset.
Jackson, a 6-foot-8 junior, finished 8-for-13 from the field and 5-for-8 from 3-point range with seven rebounds.
Kevin Scott scored 19 points to lead the Tigers (23-12). No. 2 KENTUCKY 79, No. 15
NORTHERN KENTUCKY 70: In Indianapolis, Bam Adebayo had 15 points and 18 rebounds as Kentucky showed the new kids on their block how it’s done with a victory over Northern Kentucky (24-11).
The second-seeded Wildcats (30-5) won their 12th straight and got their first-game jitters out of the way. They also wound up with a surprisingly close finish after pulling ahead by 18 points in the second half.
The Wildcats advance to face
10th-seeded Wichita State on Sunday. No. 10 WICHITA STATE 64,
No. 7 DAYTON 58: In Indianapolis, Wichita State’s high-flying offense didn’t get off the ground until the closing minutes, when the Shockers played like the more tournament-experienced team and pulled away to a victory over Dayton.
The Shockers (31-4) won their 16th in a row — the second-longest streak in school history — by clamping down on defense and swatting away shots down the stretch. Wichita State blocked eight shots and held the Flyers (24-8) to a season-low 31 percent from the field. No. 6 CINCINNATI 75, No. 11 KANSAS STATE 61: In Sacramento, Troy Caupain scored 23 points and Kyle Washington added 16 and defensive-minded Cincinnati shot it way past Kansas State (21-14).
Cincinnati (30-5) was knocked out the first round a year ago and No. 6 seeds were 0-3 before the Bearcats took the floor, with Maryland, Creighton and SMU all losing to No. 11 seeds.
Cincinnati faces third-seeded UCLA on Sunday in Round 2.