Radford tops LIU Brooklyn; Virginia loses key forward
Travis Fields Jr. and Ed Polite Jr. each scored 13 points to lift Radford to its first NCAA Tournament win, 71-61 over LIU Brooklyn in the First Four on Tuesday night in Dayton, Ohio.
Carlik Jones added 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Highlanders, who move on to face No. 1 seed Villanova on Thursday in Pittsburgh. Radford, the Big South champion, is making its third tournament appearance and first since 2009.
LIU Brooklyn stayed within striking distance for much of the game and got to within a point with five minutes left, but a 9-1 surge by the Highlanders allowed them to close it out.
The Blackbirds went without a field goal in the final seven minutes and shot 30.4 percent in the second half. Both teams were plagued by turnovers.
Jashaun Agosto scored 16 points and Raiquan Clark added 14 for LIU Brooklyn, which is winless in seven trips to the tournament.
Radford led 30-28 at the end of a sloppy first half after leading by as many as nine. The Blackbirds scored 11 of their points on nine turnovers by Radford but were just 3 for 13 from beyond the 3-point line in the half.
Noteworthy Virginia:
The top-ranked and top-seeded Cavaliers will be without forward De’Andre Hunter, the ACC’s sixth man of the year, for the NCAA Tournament because of a broken left wrist.
The school announced Tuesday that Hunter, a 6-foot-7 swingman who can also play guard, sustained the injury during the ACC Tournament. He will have surgery Monday and miss 10 to 12 weeks.
Hunter, a redshirt freshman, sat out last season, but made an immediate impact once he joined coach Tony Bennett’s lineup. He averaged 9.2 points and 3.5 rebounds in 33 games, reached double figures 16 times and led the Cavaliers in scoring on six occasions.
Hunter also had several big moments for Virginia (31-2) late in the year. He banked in a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at Louisville on March 1 to cap an improbable comeback in a 67-66 victory and then made several critical free throws in the final minutes of the ACC title game as Virginia held off North Carolina 71-63.
The Cavaliers, the top seed in the South Region, open NCAA Tournament play Friday night against UMBC in Charlotte, North Carolina. Tuesday’s Games
Bruins at Hurricanes: Late Stars at Canadiens: Late Senators at Lightning: Late Jets at Predators: Late Rockies at Wild: Late
Oilers at Flames: Late Kings at Coyotes: Late
NHL notes
Penguins: Goaltender Matt Murray is nearing a return from a concussion that’s sidelined him for two weeks. Murray faced shots Tuesday before the rest of the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions took the ice. Murray hasn’t played since sustaining the concussion being hit by a shot to the facemask in practice late last month.
Red Wings : Henrik Zetterberg’s third-period goal Monday night was the 336th of his career, moving him past Ted Lindsay for sole possession of fifth place in franchise history. Zetterberg also had an assist, giving him 950 career points, four shy of tying Sergei Fedorov for fifth in Red Wings history. Gordie Howe is the clubhouse leader with 786 goals, followed by Steve Yzerman at 692.
Sabres: Leading scorer Jack Eichel isn’t sure when he’ll be cleared to play after returning to practice for the first time since spraining his right ankle a month ago. He’s missed 14 games since being hurt Feb. 10.