Marquette advances to the Sweet 16
INDIANAPOLIS — Tyler Kolek had 21 points and 11 assists, and David Joplin made two free throws with 7.4 seconds left to help Marquette finally put away Colorado 81-77 on Sunday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
In their third season under former Texas coach Shaka Smart, the secondseeded Golden Eagles (27-9) reached the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2013 by outlasting the 10thseeded Buffaloes (26-11) and their dynamic offense.
The Buffs trailed 79-77 and had to foul three times before putting Joplin on the line for a 1-and-1. He knocked down both and set up a South Region semifinal meeting with No. 11 seed North Carolina State in Dallas on Friday.
NORTH CAROLINA ST. 79 OAKLAND 73 (OT)
DJ Burns Jr. scored 24 points, including a goahead putback that ignited a 9-0 run in overtime, and the 11th-seeded Wolfpack beat the 14th-seeded Golden Grizzlies in the second round Saturday night at Pittsburgh.
North Carolina State (24-14) advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2015 by finally pulling away from 3-point specialist Jack Gohlke and Oakland (24-12) in the extra period.
Midwest Regional PURDUE 106, UTAH ST. 67
Zach Edey had 23 points and 14 rebounds, and the No. 1 seed Boilermakers (31-7) cruised into the Sweet 16 by pounding the eighth-seeded Aggies (28-7) with an impressive offensive performance in Indianapolis.
Next up for Purdue is fifth-seeded Gonzaga in the Midwest Region semifinals in Detroit.
CREIGHTON 86 OREGON 73 (2OT)
Steven Ashworth and Ryan Kalkbrenner made 3-pointers in the second overtime, and the Bluejays edged past their former coach, Oregon’s Dana Altman, to move into the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament with a win Saturday in Pittsburgh.
The 3s by the 6-foot-1 Ashworth and a rare one by the 7-1 Kalkbrenner helped third-seeded Creighton (25-9) score the first 15 points of the second OT to finally put away 11th-seeded Oregon (24-12).
East Regional
IOWA ST. 67 WASHINGTON ST. 56
Tamin Lipsey scored 15 points, the No. 2 seed Cyclones cranked up the second-half pressure against the Cougars, and Iowa State (29-7) marched into its seventh Sweet 16 with a victory over seventh-seeded Washington State (25-10) on Saturday night in Omaha, Neb.
The Cylones will play third-seeded Illinois in the East Region semifinals Thursday night at TD Garden in Boston.
ILLINOIS 89 DUQUESNE 63
Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 30 points, Marcus Domask added 22, and the No. 3 seed Fighting Illini (28-8) made fast work of the 11th-seeded Dukes (25-12) in a victory Saturday night in Omaha, Neb., to reach the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16 for the first time since 2005.
West Regional
NORTH CAROLINA 85 MICHIGAN ST. 69
RJ Davis had 20 points to help the Tar Heels win Saturday in Charlotte, N.C., pushing North Carolina to the Sweet 16 while keeping it unbeaten in March Madness against Michigan State Hall of Fame coach Tom Izzo.
No. 1 seed UNC (29-7) ran off 17 straight points during a 23-3 run over the last eight minutes of the first half to erase a 12-point deficit, then continued answering every push by the ninth-seeded Spartans (20-15) after halftime.