The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Wildcats get first win
No. 1 seed Gonzaga beats back challenge from South Dakota State.
Northwestern got its first NCAA Tournament victory, defeating Vanderbilt 68-66 in Salt Lake City.
The Wildcats secured the win after Commodores guard Matthew Fisher-Davis inexplicably grabbed Wildcats guard Bryant McIntosh on purpose, sending McIntosh to the free-throw line for the go-ahead points with 15 seconds left.
Riley LaChance made a layup with 18 seconds remaining in Thursday’s game to put the ninthseeded Commodores up by one after trailing by as many as 15.
But seconds after the in-bounds pass, Fisher-Davis reached out and grabbed McIntosh while he was in the backcourt. That put eighth-seeded Northwestern in the double bonus, and McIntosh swished the free throws with 15 seconds left.
LaChance missed a 3 on the next possession and eighthseeded Northwestern (24-11) got another free throw. Fisher-Davis heaved a desperation shot at the buzzer, but it missed.
Gonzaga 66, South Dakota State 46: Jordan Mathews scored 16 points to help Gonzaga (331) slowly pull away from South Dakota State for a 66-46 victory and avoid the first 1 vs. 16 upset in the history of the NCAA Tournament.
The Jackrabbits (18-17), champions of the Summit League, led for the first 17 minutes of Thursday’s game in the West region at Salt Lake City and stayed in range for most of the game.
West Virginia 86, Bucknell 80: Nathan Adrian had 12 points and 10 rebounds, leading West Virginia to an 86-80 win over Bucknell (26-9) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Buffalo, New York.
Tarik Phillip scored 16 points for the West Region’s fourthseeded Mountaineers, who struggled at times with the outside-shooting Bison. “Well, we weren’t very good today,” WVU coach Bob Huggins said.
St. Mary’s 85, Virginia Commonwealth 77: Jock Landale had 18 points and 13 rebounds as seventh-seeded Saint Mary’s held on for an 85-77 victory over No. 10 Virginia Commonwealth in Salt Lake City. The Gaels (294) led most of the way.
Joe Rahon and Calvin Hermanson finished with 16 points apiece for Saint Mary’s. JeQuan Lewis paced VCU (26-9) with 30 points.
Notre Dame 60, Princeton 58: The Fighting Irish (26-9) avoided the dreaded upset from a 12th seed in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Barely.
Bonzie Colson scored 18 points and the West Region’s fifth-seeded Fighting Irish avoided a meltdown in the final two minutes to hang on for a 60-58 win over the Tigers (23-7) in Buffalo.
After Notre Dame’s Matt Farrell missed the front end of a oneand-one with a 59-58 lead, Princeton had a chance to win on its final possession but Devin Cannady missed an open 3-pointer.
“We gave everybody a show, right?” Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said.
Xavier 76, Maryland 65: Trevon Bluiett scored 21 points and Sean O’Mara had 18 to help No. 11 seed Xavier upset No. 6 Maryland 76-65 in Orlando.
The Musketeers (22-13) move on in the West region, marking the third straight year they have advanced to the second round. Maryland, which has started three freshmen for much of the season, lost in the first round for the first time since 1997.
After a slow start, Bluiett came through with 18 second-half points to help the Musketeers rally from an early 6-point deficit. Bluiett converted seven field goals, including five 3-pointers.
Freshman Kevin Huerter led the Terps (24-9) with 19 points and Melo Trimble added 13.