Las Vegas Review-Journal (Sunday)
Loyola of Chicago pulls off another upset, ousts Vols
Custer’s jumper puts Ramblers in Sweet 16
DALLAS — Different day. Different hero.
Loyola of Chicago did it again Saturday and is headed to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1985.
Clayton Custer’s jumper with 3.6 seconds left — he fell to the court as he released his contested shot — was decisive in a 63-62 victory over No. 3 seed Tennessee in the South Region.
“The only thing I can say, glory to God for that one,” Custer said. “The ball bounced on the rim and I got a good bounce.”
As has become tradition, Loyola players rushed to hug Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt in her wheelchair at courtside after the win. Coach Porter Moser shouted in front of his section, told his family he loved them and came back for a second hug with Sister Jean, the team’s 98-year-old chaplain who watches games in her wheelchair.
The Ramblers were the tournament’s long-shot story — until 16thseed Maryland-Baltimore County beat No. 1 Virginia to pull off the biggest upset in NCAA Tournament history.
The Missouri Valley champions (30-5) broke a school record for wins set by the 1963 NCAA championship team. The Ramblers advance to face the Cincinnati-Nevada winner in the region semifinals Thursday in Atlanta.
“Of course,” Schmidt said when asked if she’ll be with the team.
Just two days earlier on the same court, Loyola won on Donte Ingram’s 3-point buzzer-beater to oust sixth-seeded Miami.
Aundre Jackson led Loyola with a game-high 16 points on 5-of-7 shooting Saturday at American Airlines Center near his hometown of Fort Worth, Texas. Custer added 10 as the only other Rambler in double figures.
The undersized Ramblers had a 27-24 edge in rebounds. Tennessee (26-7) was without 6-feet-11-inch starter Kyle Alexander because of a hip injury.
■ Kentucky 95, Buffalo 75: At Boise, Idaho, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 27 points, making 10 of 12 shots — including both his 3-pointers — to lead No. 5 seed Kentucky. The Wildcats (26-10) advanced to the Sweet 16 for a second consecutive season.
They play against the winner of Maryland-Baltimore County versus Kansas State on Thursday in Atlanta. Buffalo (27-9) twice trimmed a double-digit lead to five midway through the second half.
Gilgeous-Alexander answered both times — once with a 3-pointer to extend the lead to eight, then again a few minutes later with a three-point play that started a 12-2 run and put the game away.
East Region
■ Villanova 81, Alabama 58: You might say that Friday’s momentous upset by Maryland-Baltimore County caught the attention of the Villanova players and their coach, Jay Wright. At breakfast in Pittsburgh on Saturday morning, the players were talking about the game, which marked the first time a No. 16 seed knocked off a No. 1 seed. And Wright had a restless sleep, thinking about how No. 1 Virginia had lost to the surprising Retrievers.
“There was a lot of attention with that,” Villanova guard Donte DiVincenzo said. “We’re a 1 seed, so it was more attention for us.”
Villanova showed how a No. 1 seed takes cares of business against Alabama, as Mikal Bridges hit five 3-pointers on his way to 23 points. The Wildcats (32-4) are in the Sweet 16 for the first time since they won the 2016 national championship. Bridges, Jalen Brunson, Phil Booth — and yes, The Big Ragu — look every bit the favorite to make it two in three years.
Villanova plays Friday in Boston against the Marshall-West Virginia winner.
Freshman guard Collin Sexton led Alabama (20-16) with 17 points on 7-for-14 shooting. He was the only Alabama player in double figures.
■ Texas Tech 69, Florida 66: At Dallas, Keenan Evans made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 2½ minutes remaining as the Red Raiders advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2005. Evans finished with 22 points for the No. 3 seed, which faces the winner of the Purdue-Butler matchup Friday in Boston.
Freshman Zhaire Smith had 18 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for Texas Tech (26-10). He converted an alley-oop pass from Evans with 29 seconds left into a punctuating dunk.
Florida (21-13) had made the Sweet 16 — and Elite Eight — each year since 2011; the last time it fell short was a first-round NCAA Tournament loss to BYU in 2010.
West Region
■ Michigan 64, Houston 63: At Wichita, Kan., freshman Jordan Poole sank a long 3-pointer at the buzzer as Michigan came away with a heart-stopping victory. Houston squandered a chance to win when Devin Davis went to the free-throw line with 3.6 seconds remaining. But he missed both free throws, and the Wolverines (30-7) called timeout to set up a final play. Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman found Poole on the wing, and the shot hit nothing but net.
Abdur-Rahkman and Moe Wagner scored 12 points apiece for Michigan, who get a trip to Los Angeles for a semifinal against North Carolina or Texas A&M.
Rob Gray scored 23 points and Davis finished with 17 for the Cougars (27-8).
■ Gonzaga 90, Ohio State 84: At Boise, Idaho, Zach Norvell Jr. had 28 points, Rui Hachimura added 25 for Gonzaga, which is headed to the Sweet 16 for the fourth consecutive season. Norvell, a freshman, made 6 of 11 3-pointers as Gonzaga (32-4) advances to face the winner of the Xavier-Florida State contest.
The Bulldogs jumped out to a big early lead, withstood a second-half Ohio State charge and made the big plays down the stretch
The Buckeyes (25-9) rallied from an abysmal start and an 11-point halftime deficit to take a brief second-half lead before Gonzaga went on an 11-0 run to snatch it back.
Keita Bates-Diop had 28 points and Kam Williams 19 for Ohio State.
Midwest Region
■ Duke 87, Rhode Island 62: At Pittsburgh, Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year Marvin Bagley had 22 points and nine rebounds and fellow freshman Wendell Carter Jr. added 13 points as second-seeded Duke rolled by seventh-seeded Rhode Island, earning the program’s 26th trip to the Sweet 16.
Gary Trent Jr. and Trevon Duval, Duke’s freshman guards, also were important contributors. Trent had 18 points and four assists; Duval had 11 points and seven assists.
Duke (28-7) advances to play either Michigan State or Syracuse in the region semifinals.
The Rams (26-8) got 23 points from E.C. Matthews.
■ Kansas 83, Seton Hall 79:
At Wichita, Kan., Malik Newman scored 28 points and Svi Mykhailiuk added 16 for the top-seeded Jayhawks (29-7), who advanced to the Sweet 16 for a third consecutive season. Kansas got key minutes from power forward Udoka Azubuike, who had practiced once in the last 11 days because of a lingering knee injury.
His 22 minutes helped neutralize Seton Hall’s Angel Delgado inside, allowing both Newman and Mykhailiuk to get open looks. “If ‘Doke wasn’t able to come back from his injury, we don’t win,” coach Bill Self said. “I was hoping for 20 minutes. That was what I was hoping. And he could have played more.”
The Jayhawks face the winner of Auburn versus Clemson in Omaha, Nebraska.
Khadeen Carrington finished with 28 points for Seton Hall (22-11).