Maligned Pac12 places 4 teams in the Sweet 16
INDIANAPOLIS — Maligned for much of the season, the Pac12 has placed four teams in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament: Oregon State, Oregon, UCLA and USC.
The conference is 91 in the event, and is guaranteed to have at least one team in the Elite Eight, because Oregon will face USC in a West Region semifinal Sunday night.
On Monday night, Isaiah Mobley hit four 3pointers and scored 17 points, brother Evan added 10 points and 13 rebounds, and sixthseeded USC rolled to an 8551 victory over Kansas, a 3 seed, — more than doubling the worst margin of defeat for the Jayhawks (219) in 49 trips to the NCAA Tournament.
Isaiah White added 13 points and former Santa Clara guard Tahj Eaddy had 12 for the Trojans (247).
Oregon 95, Iowa 80: Chris Duarte scored 23 points and the seventhseeded Ducks (216) showed no signs of rust after a long layoff, beating the secondseeded Hawkeyes (229) to reach the Sweet 16 for the fourth time in the past five NCAA Tournaments.
The Ducks were put in an unprecedented spot, advancing to the West Region’s second round without playing a game. Virginia Commonwealth’s multiple positive coronavirus tests took care of that, leaving Oregon with a nineday break since losing in the Pac12 tournament semifinals.
Luka Garza tied the Iowa NCAA Tournament record with 36 points.
Gonzaga 87, Oklahoma 71:
The topseeded Zags (280) extended their winning streak to 32 games, dating to last season, as they got a careerhigh 30 points and 13 rebounds from Drew Timme in a victory over the Sooners (1611), who got 27 points from Austin Reaves. The
Zags advanced to their sixth straight Sweet 16 and next face Creighton.
Creighton 72, Ohio 58:
Marcus Zegarowski scored 20 points to help the fifthseeded Bluejays (228) beat the 13thseeded Bobcats (178). The last time Creighton made it to the regional semifinals, it was 1974 and the tournament field had 25 teams.
East Region
UCLA 67, Abilene Christian 47:
Johnny Juzang scored 17 points and the 11thseeded Bruins (209) dusted the 14thseeded Wildcats (245) to become the fifth team to go from First Four to Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament. The Bruins meet Alabama next.
Alabama 96, Maryland 77:
Jaden Shackelford scored 21 points and made five of the Crimson Tide’s 16 3pointers as secondseeded Alabama (266) advanced to its first Sweet 16 since 2004. Aaron Wiggins scored 27 points for the Terra
pins (1714).
Florida St. 71, Colorado 53:
Anthony Polite scored a careerhigh 22 points and the fourthseeded Seminoles (186) took control in the second half to beat the Buffaloes (239) and advance to the Sweet 16 for the third straight NCAA Tournament.
The Buffaloes spoke postgame in the locker room about the supermarket shooting in Boulder, where the school is located. Ten people were killed, including a police officer, and a suspect was in custody, authorities said.
Colorado head coach Tad Boyle said, “Win or lose tonight, I felt an emptiness in my stomach. Another senseless act of violence that we’ve experienced as a country many, many times.”
Michigan 86, LSU 78: The Wolverines (224), the top seed in the region, got 21 points each from Chaundee Brown and Eli Brooks in a victory over the Tigers (1910). Michigan next faces Florida State.