(13)Murray State 66 (4)Vanderbilt 65
Danero Thomas hit a 15 footer as time expired and the Murray State Racers pulled the biggest upset of the tournament thus far, knocking off the Vanderbilt Commodores. This is the second time in the last three tournaments that Vandy made the tourney as a #4 seed and was sent packing by a #13 seed. In 2008, Siena pulled the upset of the ‘Dores.
Jermaine Beal hit a pair of free throws with 12 seconds left to put Vandy in position to win the game. They had actually rebounded a errant Murray three pointer but the ball bounced off a Vandy players leg and gave the Racers new life.
It’s a tough start for the SEC as they fall to 0-2 early in the tourney. Murray State will play the winner of Butler/UTEP on Saturday.
(3) Baylor 68 (14)Sam Houston State 59
The Bears broke won their first NCAA Tourney game since 1950 with a win over the Bearkats. The game was nip/tuck most of the way and was tied for the 14th time at 55 all. Baylor then went on a 8-0 streak to seal the deal. Baylor will meet upstart Old Dominion on Saturday.
Baylor’s Epke Udoh had one of the stat lines that every college player dreams about having in March Madness: 20 points, 13 boards, 5 assists. 2 blocks and 2 steals. Baylor’s defense was also the star of the game, holding the three point happy Bearkats to just six treys and 33% shooting. Lest we forget, the Berkats drained 18 treys against UK this year.
(2) Kansas State 82 (15) North Texas 62
The Kansas State Wildcats finally put some sanity on a wild opening day of upsets and unexpected near misses by doing what a number two seed should do … drilling their opponent by 20.
This game was relatively close for the first ten minutes or so, but then Kansas Sate took charge using defensive pressure to force turnovers and get three straight easy back to back layups to go up 30-16 in the first half. The Wildcats rode that momentum to a 41-25 half time lead and never looked back after that.
Kansas State will face #7 seed BYU on Saturday, who defeated Florida in doublt overtime.
(5) Butler 77 (12) UTEP 59
Shelvin Mack hit a career-high seven 3-pointers and scored 18 of his 25 points after halftime Thursday, leading fifth-seeded Butler to a 77-59 victory over UTEP in the first round of the NCAA tournament’s West Regional.
Gordon Hayward scored 13 points and Matt Howard added 11 as the Bulldogs (29-4) won their 21st straight game to extend the sport’s longest active winning streak — but only after a dynamic rally from a six-point halftime deficit.
The Miners (26-7) were a popular NCAA upset pick after the Conference USA power received a surprisingly low seed in the tournament. Instead, the Bulldogs made a 22-4 run after halftime led by Mack, who hit five 3-pointers in the first 11 minutes.
Butler advanced to face 13th-seeded Murray State, which surprised Vanderbilt 66-65 on a buzzer-beater by Danero Thomas.
(10) Saint Marys 80 (7) Richmond 71
Richmond was on the wrong side of an NCAA tournament upset this time, and Saint Mary’s is moving on for the first time in more than 50 years.
Omar Samhan had 29 points and 12 rebounds despite spending most of the game in foul trouble, and Saint Mary’s pulled away from Richmond to win 80-71 on Thursday in the first round of the South Regional.
It was the first NCAA win for Saint Mary’s in six tries since 1959. The 10th-seeded Gaels (27-5) will play Saturday against Villanova, a No. 2 seed that escaped from the first round with a 73-70 overtime victory over Robert Morris.
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