March Madness: Missouri sent packing

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Kyle O’Quinn’s booming voice echoed through the halls, the jovial center for Norfolk State riding the euphoria of a monumental upset of Missouri as the words spilled out of his mouth faster than he could think.

“We messed up some brackets! We messed up some brackets!” he bellowed, before turning a corner and seeing a pack of reporters.

“We even messed up my bracket,” he said sheepishly.

O’Quinn put together the finest game of his career at the biggest moment in the history of Norfolk State basketball. The senior finished with 26 points and 14 rebounds, helping the No. 15 seed Spartans to an 86-84 victory over the second-seeded Tigers on Friday.

All those brackets that had the Big 12 tournament champs advancing to face Florida in the West Regional — perhaps even all the way to the Final Four — can be torn up. It’s the MEAC champions who are moving on.

Pendarvis Williams and Chris McEachin each added 20 points for the Spartans (26-9), who have already made their first trip to the NCAA tournament a memorable one. They became the fifth No. 15 seed to beat a No. 2 and the first since fellow conference member Hampton in 2001.

“You always go into the game with a sense of confidence,” O’Quinn said, “but I never thought it was an upset-alert until that buzzer went off.

“At the end of the game,” he said, “that’s when I thought it would happen.”

No. 3 Florida State 66, No. 14 St. Bonaventure 63

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Bernard James scored 19 points and Florida State barely avoided a big upset, rallying to beat St. Bonaventure.

The Seminoles (25-9) shook off a slow start and won their sixth straight game, including their run to the Atlantic Coast Conference championship last week.

No. 1 UND 77, No. 16 Vermont 58

GREENSBORO, N.C — Tyler Zeller had 17 points and 15 rebounds to help North Carolina beat Vermont in its NCAA tournament opener despite playing without injured starter John Henson.

No. 8 Creighton 58, No. 9 Alabama 57

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Doug McDermott scored 16 points and Creighton overcame an 11-point deficit in the second half to beat Alabama for its first NCAA tournament victory in 10 years.

Alabama had a chance to win during the frantic final seconds, but Josh Jones blocked Trevor Releford’s 3-point attempt from the top of the key as time expired.

No. 3 Georgetown 74, No. 14 Belmont 59

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Jason Clark scored 21 points, Otto Porter added 16 and Georgetown’s ruthless defense bottled up Belmont’s shooters, sending the Hoyas into the next round of the NCAA tournament after early exits the past two years.

No. 11 N.C. State 79, No. 6 San Diego State 65

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Richard Howell scored 22 points, double his season average, and North Carolina State used its muscle inside and sticky defense to beat San Diego State.

No. 13 Ohio 65, No. 4 Michigan 60

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Walter Offutt grabbed a loose ball, was fouled by Evan Smotrycz and sank both of his free throws with 6.8 seconds left to preserve Ohio’s 65-60 upset of Michigan in the second round of the NCAA tournament’s Midwest Regional.

The 13th-seeded Bobcats (28-7) had the Wolverines on their heels throughout the game, but Michigan’s Trey Burke hit a 3 with 4:12 left to cut it to 63-60. But the Wolverines missed their final five shots, four by Burke.

No. 10 Purdue 72, No. 7 Saint Mary’s 69

OMAHA, Neb. — Lewis Jackson made the go-ahead free throws with 22.8 seconds left after Saint Mary’s had rallied from 11 points down late to take its first lead, and the Boilermakers defeated the Gaels 72-69 in the Midwest Regional.

Purdue’s Terone Johnson and Saint Mary’s Clint Steindl were called for traveling before Jackson made his free throws. Page badly missed what would have been a go-ahead 3 with 10 seconds left, and Robbie Hummel made two free throws for a three-point lead.

No. 9 Saint Louis 61, No. 8 Memphis 54

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Kwamain Mitchell scored 22 points, including three big 3-pointers, and Saint Louis rode its gritty defense to a 61-54 victory over Memphis in a West Regional second-round game many thought may go the Tigers’ way.

Tags: sports, ncaa, basketball