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NCAA

WHALE of a Game for YALE

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SPOKANE – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Yale’s John Poulakidas sank six 3-pointers and scored 28 points and Samson Aletan made a key blocked shot in the final seconds as 13th-seeded Bulldogs notched a 78-76 upset of fourth-seeded Auburn on Friday afternoon in an East Region first-round game.

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August Mahoney scored 14 points and Danny Wolf had 13 for the Bulldogs (23-9), who overcame a 10-point, second-half deficit to improve to 2-7 all-time in NCAA Tournament play. Upstart Yale will face No. 5 seed San Diego State in Sunday’s second round with the winner headed to Boston for the Regional final.

“I don’t know if that’s the best win in Yale basketball history, but I will tell you that’s the best basketball team we’ve beaten in Yale basketball history as far as I’m concerned,” Bulldogs coach James Jones said.

Johni Broome recorded 24 points and 13 rebounds for the Tigers (27-8). Denver Jones added 17 points and Jaylin Williams had 13 for Auburn. K.D. Johnson had a chance to win it at the buzzer with a 3-pointer, but his shot bounced off the rim.

East Region

No. 1 UConn 91, No. 16 Stetson 52

Donovan Clingan scored 12 of his 19 points in the first half for the top-seeded Huskies, who began the defense of their national championship with a wire-to-wire win over the Hatters in an East Region first-round game in New York.

Cam Spencer had 15 points, including 13 in the first half, for UConn (32-3), which will oppose No. 9 Northwestern in a second-round game Sunday. Stephon Castle (14 points), Tristen Newton (13 points, eight assists) and Alex Karaban (12 points) all scored in double figures for the Huskies.

Stephan Swenson scored a game-high 20 points and Jalen Blackmon had 14 points and eight rebounds for Stetson (22-13), which made its first NCAA Tournament appearance after winning the Atlantic Sun Conference.

No. 5 San Diego State 69, No. 12 UAB 65

Jaedon LeDee recorded 32 points and eight rebounds to lead the Aztecs to a victory over the Blazers in East Region first-round play at Spokane, Wash.

Lamont Butler added 15 points and four steals for the San Diego State (25-10), which is looking for another deep run after losing to UConn in last season’s NCAA title game.

Efrem “Butta” Johnson made five 3-pointers and scored 19 points for UAB (23-12). However, Johnson missed a tying 3-point attempt with eight seconds remaining before Reese Waters split two free throws with 3.5 seconds left to seal it for San Diego State.

No. 9 Northwestern 77, No. 8 Florida Atlantic 65 (OT)

Ryan Langborg scored 12 points in overtime for the Wildcats, who squandered a nine-point second-half lead before recovering to beat the Owls in an East Region first-round game in New York.

Brooks Barnhizer forced overtime by hitting a floater with nine seconds left for Northwestern (22-11).

Vladislav Goldin scored 19 points for Florida Atlantic (25-9), which returned every player who had remaining eligibility from last year’s Final Four team. Johnell Davis had 18 points.

West Region

No. 3 Baylor 92, No. 14 Colgate 67

Four players scored in double figures and the Bears canned 16 of 30 3-point attempts to dispatch the 14th-seeded Raiders in an NCAA Tournament West Region first round game in Memphis.

Jalen Bridges scored a game-high 23 points for Baylor (24-10), which advanced to the second round Sunday against Clemson. Ja’Kobe Walter added 19, while Jayden Nunn tallied 15 and RayJ Dennis contributed 10 points plus nine assists.

Keegan Records paced Colgate (25-10), which won 17 of 18 prior to this one, with 14 points. Sam Thomson added 11, and Patriot League Player of the Year Braeden Smith scored 10.

No. 4 Alabama 109, No. 13 Charleston 96

Mark Sears poured in 30 points, and the nation’s top-scoring team was in high gear as the Crimson Tide rolled over the Cougars in Spokane, Wash.

Latrell Wrightsell Jr. made 5 of 6 3-point attempts while adding 17 points for Alabama (22-11), which entered the contest averaging 90.8 points per game and set a school mark for most points in an NCAA Tournament game. Alabama will face No. 12 Grand Canyon in Sunday’s second round.

Ben Burnham scored 19 points for Charleston (27-8), which had its 12-game winning streak halted. Frankie Policelli added 15 points.

No. 12 Grand Canyon 75, No. 5 Saint Mary’s 66

Tyon Grant-Foster recorded 22 points and seven rebounds and the Lopes beat the Gaels at Spokane, Wash., to win an NCAA Tournament game for the first time.

Ray Harrison added 17 points and six assists for Grand Canyon (30-4), which is making its third appearance in March Madness.

Mitchell Saxen had 14 points and 11 rebounds and Aidan Mahaney scored 13 points but shot just 5 of 21 from the field for Saint Mary’s (26-8).

No. 6 Clemson 77, No. 11 New Mexico 56

The Tigers got a game-high 21 points from Chase Hunter and led by as many as 23 points in the second half of a rout of the Lobos at Memphis.

First-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference pick PJ Hall scored 12 of his 14 points in the first half for Clemson (22-11).

Jaelen House scored 12 points for the Lobos (26-10) before fouling out with 6:27 remaining in the game. Nelly Joseph worked hard inside for 14 points and 12 rebounds but New Mexico never found any sort of rhythm, connecting on just 29.7 percent of its field-goal attempts and going 3 of 23 on 3-point shots.

South Region

No. 1 Houston 86, No. 16 Longwood 46

It didn’t take long for the Cougars to announce their presence with authority, and once they did, they were well on their way to a blowout of the Lancers in Memphis.

The result sets up a rematch Sunday in the second round against ninth-seeded Texas A&M, which beat Nebraska 98-83 earlier in the day. Houston held off the Aggies 70-66 on Dec. 16.

L.J. Cryer finished with 17 points, going 3-of-7 from beyond the arc, Jamal Shead finished with 11 points and nine assists and Damian Dunn added 17 points off the bench for Houston (31-4). Johnathan Massie scored 10 points off the bench to pace Longwood (21-14).

No. 2 Marquette 87, No. 15 Western Kentucky 69

Tyler Kolek returned from a three-week absence and fell just four rebounds shy of a triple-double to help the Golden Eagles pull away in the second half for a win over the Hilltoppers.

Kolek, who finished with 18 points, 11 assists and six rebounds, showed no ill effects from an oblique injury sustained on Feb. 28. Kolek hit two long threes on his first two shot attempts and scored 10 points in the opening seven minutes, helping Marquette (26-9) build a 26-17 lead. The Golden Eagles advance to a second-round matchup on Sunday vs. No. 10 seed Colorado.

For the Hilltoppers (22-12), Tyrone Marshall Jr. scored 17 of his team-leading 21 in the first half while teammate Don McHenry was the only other player in double figures with 11 points.

No. 4 Duke 64, No. 13 Vermont 47

Mark Mitchell and Jared McCain scored 15 points apiece to lead four Blue Devils players in double figures as Duke pulled away in the second half to beat the Catamounts.

Duke (25-8) will play James Madison in a second-round game on Sunday. The Blue Devils, who were knocked out by Tennessee in the second round last season, haven’t missed the Sweet 16 in consecutive tournaments since 2007-08.

Jeremy Roach scored 14 points and Tyrese Proctor added 13 for Duke. Kyle Filipowski, who was averaging 17.1 points per contest, was held to three points and just one field goal attempt but pulled down 12 rebounds. Shamir Bogues scored 18 points for Vermont (28-7), which won the America East for the third straight season.

No. 12 James Madison 72, No. 5 Wisconsin 61

Terrence Edwards Jr. scored 14 points for the Dukes, who never trailed as they upset the Badgers in a first-round matchup in New York.

James Madison (32-3) extended the nation’s longest active winning streak to 14 games. T.J. Bickerstaff and Julien Wooden scored 12 points apiece, while Michael Green III added 11 points for the Dukes, who advanced beyond the first round for the first time since 1983.

Max Klesmit scored all 18 of his points while hitting five 3-pointers in the second half for Wisconsin (22-14).

No. 10 Colorado 102, No. 7 Florida 100

KJ Simpson capped a wild second half with a baseline jumper that hit the rim five times before rattling in with one second left, lifting the Buffaloes to a dramatic win over the Gators in Indianapolis.

Simpson finished with a team-leading 23 points while Eddie Lampkin Jr. added 21 for Colorado (26-10).

Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. scored a game-high 33 points and hit the backboard on a desperation miss at the final buzzer. The Gators (24-12) ended their season in heartbreak after erasing a 13-point deficit in the final 4:28.

No. 9 Texas A&M 98, No. 8 Nebraska 83

The Aggies converted 13 3-pointers and enjoyed a comfortable win over the Cornhuskers.

Wade Taylor IV bombed in 7 of 10 attempts from deep and scored 25 points for the Aggies (21-14). Manny Obaseki added 22 points, while Tyrece Radford stuffed the stat sheet with 20 points, 10 rebounds and five assists.

Brice Williams scored 24 points to pace the Cornhuskers (23-11), who were making their first NCAA tourney appearance in 10 years. Keisei Tominaga added 21 points.

Midwest Region

No. 1 Purdue 78, Grambling State 50

All-American Zach Edey scored 30 points, grabbed 21 rebounds and blocked three shots to power the Boilermakers to a rout of the Tigers in Indianapolis.

The Boilermakers (30-4) pulled away at the end of the first half and the beginning of the second half to atone for last year’s shocking first-round loss to No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson in Columbus, Ohio. Purdue will play No. 8 Utah State on Sunday in a second-round contest, again before a heavily partisan crowd inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

Tra’Michael Moton had 21 points and Kintavious Dozier scored 16 to lead Grambling (21-15), which made it difficult for the first 18 minutes, trailing just 31-27 before Purdue scored the final five points of the first half.

No. 8 Utah State 88, No. 9 TCU 72

Isaac Johnson scored 14 of his 19 points in the second half to lead the Aggies past the Horned Frogs, breaking their 10-game NCAA Tournament losing streak.

Ian Martinez added a game-high 21 points, while Darius Brown II chipped in with 10 points and 10 assists for Utah State (28-6).

JaKobe Coles had 19 points while Emanuel Miller added 13 points and 11 rebounds for TCU (21-13), which jumped out to leads of 16-8 and 18-10 but couldn’t hold on.

–Field Level Media

NCAA Hoops Round-Up | Kentucky’s Out

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PITTSBURGH – Jack Gohlke drilled 10 3-pointers en route to 32 points and DQ Cole buried the final triple of the game to clinch No. 14 seed Oakland’s 80-76 upset of No. 3 seed Kentucky in the first round of the NCAA Tournament’s South Region on Thursday.

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The Golden Grizzlies (24-11) led for nearly the entire second half and went shot for shot with the heavily favored Wildcats (23-10) down the stretch. Oakland advances to the Round of 32 for the first time since joining Division I while handing Kentucky its second first-round exit in three years.

Gohlke, a graduate transfer from Division II Hillsdale, earned his place in NCAA Tournament lore. All 20 of his field-goal attempts came from 3-point range, and he came one shy of tying the tournament single-game record of 11 triples set by Jeff Fryer of Loyola Marymount in 1990.

Oakland, the Horizon League champion, will face No. 11 NC State in the second round Saturday. Antonio Reeves scored 27 points and went 5-for-9 on 3-point shots in his attempt to carry Kentucky back from the dead. Tre Mitchell had 14 points and 13 rebounds.

South Region

No. 11 North Carolina State 80, No. 6 Texas Tech 67

Ben Middlebrooks scored a career-high 21 points, Mohamed Diarra added a career-best 17 points plus 12 rebounds and the Wolfpack continued their surprising March by taking down the Red Raiders in Pittsburgh.

DJ Horne tallied 16 points, six rebounds and five assists and D.J. Burns Jr. scored 16 for NC State (23-14), which only made it this far by winning five games in five days to capture the ACC tournament title, where it was the 10th seed. Now, the Wolfpack will play No. 14 seed Oakland on Saturday with a Sweet 16 berth from the South Region on the line.

Joe Toussaint led Texas Tech (23-11) with 16 points. Pop Isaacs scored 12, and Darrion Williams finished with 10 points, seven rebounds and six assists.

West Region

No. 1 North Carolina 90, No. 16 Wagner 62

RJ Davis scored 22 points and Armando Bacot had a double-double in the first half as the Tar Heels routed the Seahawks in Charlotte.

Bacot finished with 20 points and 15 rebounds, Jae’Lyn Withers notched 16 points and 10 rebounds off the bench and Cormac Ryan posted 13 points for the top-seeded Tar Heels, who shot 55 percent from the field.

North Carolina (28-7) will meet ninth-seeded Michigan State in the second round Saturday. Melvin Council Jr. and Julian Brown both had 18 points for Wagner (17-16), which defeated Howard 71-68 in Tuesday night’s First Four in Dayton, Ohio. Keyontae Lewis added 13 points.

No. 2 Arizona 85, No. 15 Long Beach State 65

The Wildcats took control with a 17-2 run over the first four minutes of the second half and cruised past Beach in the first-round game in Salt Lake City.

Kylan Boswell led Arizona (26-8) with 20 points and Caleb Love added 18 points and 11 rebounds. Oumar Ballo had 11 points, 13 rebounds and four blocked shots for the Wildcats.

Long Beach State (21-15) couldn’t keep up in the second half as Arizona found its rhythm on offense. Beach got 14 points and 15 rebounds from Aboubacar Traore and 14 points from Amari Stroud off the bench.

No. 7 Dayton 63, No. 10 Nevada 60

DaRon Holmes II scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds as the Flyers stormed back to beat the Wolf Pack in Salt Lake City.

Dayton (25-7) erased a 17-point deficit in the second half to rally for its first tournament win since the 2014-15 campaign. Koby Brea finished with 15 points on five 3-pointers, and Enoch Cheeks chipped in 12 points.

Jarod Lucas scored 17 points to lead Nevada (26-8), which recorded the eighth-most victories in program history but failed to advance out of the first round. Kenan Blackshear and Nick Davidson finished with 15 points apiece.

No. 9 Michigan State 69, No. 8 Mississippi State 51

Tyson Walker scored 19 points and the Spartans never trailed in claiming a victory against the Bulldogs in the first-round matchup.

Michigan State (20-14) meets top-seeded North Carolina in the second round on Saturday. Jaden Akins racked up 15 points, joining Walker with three 3-pointers, and Malik Hall added 10 points.

Josh Hubbard scored 15 points for Mississippi State (21-14), which shot 37 percent from the field and made only 6 of 27 attempts from 3-point range. The Bulldogs ended up with a season-low point total.

Midwest Region

No. 2 Tennessee 83, No. 15 Saint Peter’s 49

Dalton Knecht poured in 23 points and the Volunteers quickly snuffed out any hopes the Peacocks had of making another deep Cinderella run into the postseason with the first-round blowout.

Jonas Aidoo posted 15 points and Zakai Zeigler provided 11 points and 10 assists for the Volunteers, who led by as many as 29 points in the first half. Tennessee (25-8) takes on seventh-seeded Texas (21-12) on Saturday.

Latrell Reid scored 17 points and Marcus Randolph followed with nine for Saint Peter’s (19-14), which reached the Elite Eight as a No. 15 seed two years ago. The Peacocks were winners of eight of their past 10 games prior to Thursday.

No. 3 Creighton 77, No. 14 Akron 60

Ryan Kalkbrenner racked up 23 points and eight rebounds, Baylor Scheierman added 15 points and 13 boards and the hot-shooting Bluejays took care of Akron in Pittsburgh.

The Bluejays (24-9) shot 56.5 percent overall and a season-high 58.8 percent from 3-point range (10 of 17) to advance out of the first round for the fourth straight tournament. They will face No. 11 Oregon in the next round. Trey Alexander scored 19 points and Mason Miller and Steven Ashworth each supplied 10. Enrique Freeman powered Akron (24-11) with 21 points and 14 rebounds.

No. 4 Kansas 93, No. 13 Samford 89

Hunter Dickinson registered 19 points, 20 rebounds and four blocked shots to help the Jayhawks escape an upset bid by the Bulldogs in Salt Lake City.

KJ Adams Jr. scored 20 points and Nicolas Timberlake added 19 for Kansas (23-10). Johnny Furphy added 16 points and eight rebounds for the Jayhawks, who never trailed but nearly let a 22-point, second-half lead slip away.

Achor Achor recorded 23 points and eight rebounds for Samford (29-6). The Bulldogs’ A.J. Staton-McCray appeared to make a clean block of a Timberlake shot with 14.7 seconds left, but a foul was called and Timberlake hit two free throws to give Kansas a three-point lead.

No. 5 Gonzaga 86, No. 12 McNeese 65

Graham Ike and Anton Watson had double-doubles and the hot-shooting Bulldogs routed the Cowboys in the first round in Salt Lake City.

Ike finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Watson had 13 points, 13 rebounds, nine assists and two steals for the Bulldogs (26-7).

Christian Shumate had 19 points and 11 rebounds and Shahada Wells scored 19 points for McNeese, which entered the tournament on an 11-game winning streak.

No. 11 Oregon 87, No. 6 South Carolina 73

Jermaine Couisnard dropped a career-high 40 points against his former team as the Ducks toppled the Gamecocks in Pittsburgh.

Couisnard spent three seasons with the Gamecocks before transferring to Oregon ahead of the 2022-23 season. He shot 14 of 22 on Thursday, making 5 of 9 from beyond the arc and adding six assists and four rebounds. N’Faly Dante provided 23 points, six rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Oregon (24-11), will face No. 3 seed Creighton on Saturday.

Meechie Johnson poured in 24 points, Ta’Lon Cooper had 15 and B.J. Mack scored 13 for South Carolina (26-8), which suffered a field-goal drought of 8:21 at the end of the first half and could not recover.

No. 7 Texas 56, No. 10 Colorado State 44

Max Abmas and Dylan Disu scored 12 points apiece and the Longhorns overcame offensive struggles to control the Rams in in Charlotte.

Chendall Weaver came off the bench for Texas (21-12) to add 11 points, making 5-of-7 shots when most other players had trouble converting. The game was defined by miserable shooting along with turnovers, with Colorado State committing 19 to 12 for the Longhorns.

Isaiah Stevens and Joel Scott each had 10 points for No. 10 seed Colorado State (25-11), which was playing for the second time in three nights. Despite missing 41 shots from the floor, the Rams collected only 13 offensive rebounds on its 29.3 percent shooting from the field.

East Region

No. 2 Iowa State 82, No. 15 South Dakota State 65

Milan Momcilovic scored 19 points to help the Cyclones thump the Jackrabbits in Omaha, Neb.

Tamin Lipsey added 17 points and seven assists for the Cyclones (28-7), who won their fourth straight game and eighth in their last nine. Keshon Gilbert had 15 points and three steals. Iowa State will face No. 7 Washington State on Saturday.

Zeke Mayo scored 19 points and William Kyle III had 14 for the Jackrabbits (22-13), who had an eight-game winning streak snapped. They are 0-7 all-time in NCAA Tournament play.

No. 3 Illinois 85, No. 14 Morehead State 69

Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 26 points, Dain Dainja had 17 of his 21 points after halftime and Marcus Domask notched a triple-double to lift the Illini past the Eagles.

Illinois (27-8) pulled away thanks a 20-3 run midway through the second half to go ahead 68-51. Dainja scored 10 points during the surge and finished 9-for-9 from the floor. Illinois advanced to face 11th-seeded Duquesne in the second round on Saturday. Domask finished with 12 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

Riley Minix, an NAIA transfer and the Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year, scored a game-high 27 points, giving him 20-plus points in 13 of 14 games to close the season. Jordan Lathon followed with 23 points for the Eagles (26-9) to go with seven rebounds.

No. 11 Duquesne 71, No. 6 BYU 67

Dae Dae Grant scored 19 points and the Dukes picked up their first NCAA Tournament victory since 1969 by knocking off the Cougars in Omaha, Neb.

Jakub Necas added 12 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots and Jimmy Clark III tallied five of his 11 points in the final 88 seconds as Duquesne (25-11) won its ninth consecutive game. The contest was the Dukes’ first in the NCAA Tournament since the Norm Nixon-led team played in the 1977 tourney.

Jaxson Robinson scored 25 points off the bench for BYU (23-11). Spencer Johnson had 11 points and 16 rebounds.

No. 7 Washington State 66, No. 10 Drake 61

Isaac Jones recorded 20 points and 11 rebounds and Isaiah Watts made the go-ahead shot to help the Cougars beat the Bulldogs in Omaha, Neb.

Jaylen Wells added 17 points and nine rebounds as the Cougars (25-9) won an NCAA Tournament game for the first time since 2008. Washington State will face No. 2 seed Iowa State on Saturday.

Atin Wright scored 20 points for the Bulldogs (28-7). Tucker DeVries had 14 points and six assists and Darnell Brodie contributed 13 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots.

–Field Level Media

Oakland YAYS

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PITTSBURGH – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Oakland University was so far off the map before Thursday that casual fans of the NCAA Tournament needed reminding the school is in Michigan — not California.

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The Golden Grizzlies received the No. 14 seed in the South Region, knocked off third-seeded Kentucky and became the latest small school to enter the March Madness pantheon.

“This changed everything,” coach Greg Kampe said Thursday. “There’s nobody in the country that doesn’t know what Oakland basketball is.”

Either Oakland or No. 11 seed North Carolina State will extend a stunning run to the Sweet 16 when they face off in the second round of the tournament Saturday.

Kampe has led Oakland (24-11) for 40 seasons, far longer than the school has competed at the Division I level. The Golden Grizzlies’ 80-76 upset of Kentucky marked the first time the program won a game in the Round of 64.

Jack Gohlke knocked down 10 of 20 3-point shots, becoming the fifth player in NCAA Tournament history to make double-digit 3s in a game. He scored 32 points, and Trey Townsend added 17 points and 12 rebounds after he posted up and made a turnaround jumper over 7-footer Ugonna Onyenso in the final minutes.

“It’s such a great thing to see our fanbase travel,” said Townsend, who averages 16.9 points, 7.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists. “We wanted Pittsburgh (or) Indianapolis because we knew they would travel if they could drive … Seeing them out there, my parents are here, my dad is right back there. To win with them here was a special thing for sure and we’re definitely not done yet.”

One question for Saturday’s game against the Wolfpack (23-14) is how the Golden Grizzlies will match up against NC State’s DJ Burns Jr., all 6-foot-9, 275 pounds of him.

Burns has been on a heater for NC State, which won five games in five days to storm through the ACC tournament before beating No. 6 Texas Tech 80-67 on Thursday. Burns has shot 24-of-34 for 55 points over his past three games.

“He was a local star for a whole year and now everybody in the national media is starting to understand that,” NC State coach Kevin Keatts said. “I mean, he’s just fun. He scores and he gets beat up all the time. And he’s almost gotta play through contact. But it is so fun to watch him.

“And you know, I consider him a closer for us. We put him in the game, and he closes the game.”

While four Wolfpack players have done the majority of the scoring this year — DJ Horne (16.9 ppg), Burns (12.5), Jayden Taylor (11.6) and Casey Morsell (11.4) — contributions are coming from up and down the bench.

Both Ben Middlebrooks (21 points) and Mohamed Diarra (17) put up career-high totals against Texas Tech, and Michael O’Connell scored in double figures in all five games of the ACC tournament before dishing six assists Thursday.

NC State and Oakland likely can appreciate one another’s paths to the Round of 32. Both teams, of course, are hungry for more.

“The whole thing down the stretch has been, once we knew we had won a ring, the whole banter in the locker room has been, what’s it going to say on that ring, right?” Kampe said. “What’s it going to say on that ring: just Horizon League champ? NCAA? Sweet 16? Final Four? I’ve put that thought in their mind, and they’ve really battled for it, and they understand that their life got changed (Thursday), but it could get changed a hell of a lot more if we keep this thing going.”

– Field Level Media

UConn Earns No. 1 Seed in NCAA

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NEW YORK – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – UConn’s Donovan Clingan put up 22 points and 16 rebounds, Tristen Newton and Jaylin Stewart each drilled three critical 3-pointers and the BIG EAST’s top team and national No. 2 Connecticut Huskies  pulled away from No. 10 Marquette to win the Big East championship game 73-57 on Saturday night.

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The top-seeded Huskies claimed their first Big East tournament title since 2011, before the university left the conference from 2013-2020. After sweeping third-seeded Marquette during the regular season, UConn avenged a semifinal loss to the Golden Eagles in last year’s tournament.

UConn is likely to receive the No. 1 overall bid in this week’s NCAA tournament.

Newton had 13 points, 10 assists and five rebounds for UConn (31-3), which will be in the mix for the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. Stewart — a freshman who came in averaging 2.4 points per game — scored all nine of his points in the second half, when the Huskies overcame another slow start to shoot 63 percent from the floor.

UConn came out cold on offense, similar to its starts in the previous rounds against Xavier and St. John’s. A 19-5 second-half run powered by Newton and Stewart broke the game open.

Kam Jones tallied 13 points and eight rebounds and David Joplin added 12 points and six boards for the Golden Eagles (25-9), the defending conference tournament champions, who reached this year’s tournament final despite star guard Tyler Kolek sitting out all week with an oblique injury.

UConn missed its first eight attempts from the floor, including three layups, before Samson Johnson subbed in and dunked at the 13:27 mark. Marquette hardly took advantage at the other end, starting 2-for-11 from the floor.

Neither side led by more than four throughout the first half. The Huskies missed their first eight 3-point tries before going ahead 19-15 when Newton finally connected with 3:41 remaining.

Joplin deflected a pass for a steal and score, then blocked a shot that led to Jones’ 3-pointer at the other end to give Marquette a 22-21 advantage with 1:39 left.

After the teams traded baskets, Newton collected his dribble and knocked down another 3-pointer with three seconds left for a 26-24 UConn lead at the break.

Clingan’s catch and dunk through a foul prompted a brief UConn run that gave the Huskies a four-point lead. It wasn’t until Stewart connected from outside and Newton added a triple on consecutive possessions that the Huskies made it 47-41 with 9:27 to play.

Stewart knocked down his next two triples, Hassan Diarra added one and UConn’s flurry ultimately grew the lead to 60-44 with 5:54 left.

One last push by the Golden Eagles got them within 11 points down the stretch.

–Adam Zielonka, Field Level Media

Big East Final: It’s UConn vs Marquette

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NEW YORK – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – A little over a year ago, Marquette was the last team to defeat UConn before the latter stormed its way to a fifth national title.

The Huskies didn’t lose again that season and dominated their way to the top of the Big East in 2023-24.

On Saturday, 10th-ranked Marquette is the opponent standing in the way of the second-ranked Huskies, who will seek their first Big East title since returning to the league in 2020.

The Huskies (30-3) took their first loss since the Marquette semifinal game when they fell by four points at Kansas on Dec. 1. They also are seeking their first conference tournament title since Kemba Walker’s magical run led them to five wins in five days in 2011.

The top-seeded Huskies are on a six-game winning streak and advanced to Saturday’s final thanks to a prolific offense. After scoring 87 in a 27-point win over ninth-seeded Xavier in Thursday’s quarterfinals, UConn was challenged at times in a 95-90 win over fifth-seeded St. John’s on Friday.

The Huskies are ready to face third-seeded Marquette (25-8), which claimed a 70-68 win over UConn in last season’s conference semifinals.

Tristen Newton scored 20 of his 25 points in UConn’s 52-point opening half Friday and added nine assists. Cam Spencer contributed 20 points and nine assists for the Huskies, who shot 57.4 percent from the floor, sank 11 3-pointerss and collected 23 assists.

“These are the environments that you want to play in,” Spencer said. “It’s a high-level basketball game, working towards something that we’ve worked for all year, and it’s — the Big East championship is something that we want to go get. Probably one of the highest, I guess, more intense games of this year, and rightfully so.”

Marquette is playing without Tyler Kolek due to an oblique injury. The guard could be out again for its second appearance in the title game, although he has begun practicing and is expected to play in the NCAA Tournament.

“We’ve played through a lot of adversity,” Marquette coach Shaka Smart said. “Obviously (Saturday) is going to a heck of a challenge for us.”

The Golden Eagles lost two of their final three regular-season games and opened the tournament with wins over Villanova and Providence. After allowing an average of 69.7 points a game during the regular season, the Golden Eagles allowed 65 and 68 in their tournament games and received clutch showings from Kam Jones and Oso Ighodaro.

Jones scored 23 points in Friday’s 79-68 win over the Friars and helped the Golden Eagles lead for virtually the entire way and fend off a late comeback attempt. Ighodaro added 20 vs. Providence after scoring his lone basket in overtime against Villanova on Thursday.

UConn dominated the first meeting against Marquette this season when the Huskies rolled to an 81-53 victory on Feb. 17 in Hartford, Conn. The Huskies held off a comeback attempt in their 74-67 win on March 6 in Milwaukee.

“Obviously UConn has some good players, has a good team,” Marquette’s Stevie Mitchell said. “So we’re obviously going to watch film, learn from previous games against them, and learn from this game and continue to move forward, but I think being the best version of ourselves is what we’re really focusing on the most.”

–Larry Fleisher, Field Level Media

Big East: Marquette Clears Way to Final

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NEW YORK – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Kam Jones scored 23 points as No. 10 Marquette led virtually the entire way and defeated Providence 79-68 Friday night in the semifinals of the Big East tournament.

The third-seeded Golden Eagles (25-8) advanced to their second title game and will attempt to win back-to-back titles when they face UConn, the top seed. UConn, which took a two-point loss to Marquette in last season’s semifinals, advanced earlier Friday with a 95-90 win over St. John’s.

A night after his buzzer-beater was waved off in regulation against Villanova, Jones shot 9-of-17 from the field and made several big plays down the stretch to fend off Providence’s comebacks.

Oso Ighodaro added 20 points after making just one basket against Villanova late in overtime. David Joplin contributed 12 and Stevie Mitchell chipped in 10 as Marquette shot 45.6 percent and withstood the absence of Tyler Kolek due to an oblique injury.

Providence (21-13), the seventh seed, entered with a NET rating of 57 and fell to 6-9 in Quad 1 games. The Friars were unable to consistently find their offense after upending Georgetown and Creighton to start the tournament.

Devin Carter kept the Friars in it by scoring 20 of his 27 points after halftime to lead all scorers. Jayden Pierre added 16 and Josh Oduro contributed nine and 10 rebounds before fouling out. Ticket Gaines had 10 rebounds but was held to two points on 0-of-9 shooting as Providence shot 36.4 percent.

Marquette surged ahead with a 17-2 burst and took its first double-digit lead when Ighodaro’s easy jumper made it 28-18 with just under seven minutes left. The lead grew to 35-18 on his dunk with 4:11 left.

The Friars withstood the run and got the deficit down to 40-31 on Corey Floyd Jr.’s three-point play with 13 seconds left, but Joplin was fouled on a 3-point try with one second left and made two free throws.

Carter’s 3 following an offensive rebound by Gaines moved Providence within 46-39 a little more than two minutes into the second half. The Friars missed six straight shots and Ben Gold’s 3 capped an 8-0 Marquette run with 13:29 remaining.

Providence gradually rallied, and consecutive hoops by Carter cut the lead to 68-65 with 4:35 left.

Jones hit a turnaround jumper with 3:13 left and scored again with 96 seconds to go for a 74-68 lead.

–Larry Fleisher, Field Level Media

UConn Fends Off St. John’s in Semi

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NEW YORK – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Connecticut’s Tristen Newton scored 25 points, and added nine assists and six rebounds as BIG EAST No. 1 and nationally ranked No. 2 UConn constantly answered comeback attempts by St. John’s in the second half and advanced to the championship game of the Big East tournament with a 95-90 victory Friday night.

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The top-seeded Huskies (30-3) won their sixth straight and advanced to their first title game since returning to the Big East after losing three straight semifinal games by a combined eight points.

UConn will face the winner of No. 3 seed Marquette and No. 7 seed Providence Saturday and is seeking its first title since Kemba Walker led them to five wins in five days in 2011.

In the semifinals for the first time since 2000, fifth-seeded St. John’s (20-13) is seemingly safe for its first NCAA Tournament bid since 2019. The Red Storm entered the contest with a NET rating of 32 and since the NCAA started using the metric in 2019, the highest-rated team to miss out was NC State in 2019 at 33.

Newton scored 20 points in a blistering first half when the Huskies shot 63 percent. He finished 6-for-11 from the floor and also sank 10 free throws.

Cam Spencer added 20 points as the Huskies shot 57.4 percent overall and led for the final 32:56. Alex Karaban scored 14 as he, Newton and Spencer combined to hit 10 of the defending champions’ 11 3-pointers.

Daniss Jenkins scored 27 points for the Red Storm, who shot 45.1 percent. Jordan Dingle added 19 but Chris Ledlum and Joel Soriano were a combined 5-of-16 from the floor and scored six apiece.

After spotting St. John’s a 7-0 lead in the opening minutes, UConn gradually surged ahead. An uncontested 3 from the top of the key by Newton gave the Huskies the lead for good at 20-18 with 12:56 left. They took their first double-digit lead when Newton’s layup made it 34-24 five minutes later.

Seven points by Dingle in the final three-plus minutes helped St. John’s slice a 44-34 deficit to three points. The Red Storm trailed 52-47 by halftime after Jenkins’ reverse layup was ruled to be after the horn.

St. John’s moved within 56-54 on a jumper by Jenkins with 17:19 left. UConn had another answer, scoring the next eight and going on a 13-2 run to extend the lead 69-56 on a putback by Samson Johnson with 13:48 remaining.

UConn held an 89-78 lead on a basket by Donovan Clingan with 3:27 left. St. John’s inched back, getting within 91-85 on a layup by Glenn Taylor Jr. with 35 seconds left, but UConn sank four free throws the rest of the way.

– Field Level Media

Old Foes Re-Unite at BIG EAST Semis

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NEW YORK – (Staff and Wire Service Report) While UConn is dominating most opponents during its five-game winning streak, no other Big East team may be hotter than St. John’s.

In the semifinals of the conference tournament for the first time since 2000, fifth-seeded St. John’s will put its six-game winning streak on the line and will attempt to improve its standing for an NCAA Tournament berth on tonight when it faces the top-seeded Huskies.

UConn, in turn, is seeking its first trip to the Big East tournament championship game since Kemba Walker’s magical run in 2011.

The second-ranked Huskies (29-3) probably are a lock to be a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but they have been foiled in the conference semifinals in the three seasons since returning to the Big East. UConn’s three semifinal losses were by a combined eight points, including last year’s 70-68 setback to Marquette.

Since absorbing an 85-66 setback at Creighton on Feb. 20, the Huskies are winning their games by an average of 20.4 points. The closest margins were a 74-67 victory at Marquette on March 6 and a 14-point win at Providence three days later.

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UConn heads into Friday’s game after dominating the second half of its 87-60 win over ninth-seeded Xavier in the tournament quarterfinals on Thursday. The Huskies gave up the first 10 points and held a one-point lead at halftime before outscoring Xavier 53-27 in the final 20 minutes.

“A little bit of it was like raise your intensity level,” UConn coach Danny Hurley said. “This is a playoff game. When you’re trying to end the other team’s — either like their Big East career or their Big East season or you’re trying to end a team’s season, period, you’ve got to be absolutely on point.

Donovan Clingan scored 11 of his 13 points after halftime. Tristen Newton also scored 13 points as six players reached double figures for UConn, which shot 58.3 percent from the field.

St. John’s (20-12) is unbeaten since squandering a 12-point halftime lead against Seton Hall on Feb. 18. After the loss, Red Storm coach Rick Pitino singled out his players by name and bemoaned the school’s facilities while saying: “This is the most unenjoyable experience of my lifetime.”

Pitino apologized to his players a few days later.

St. John’s is averaging 88.8 points during its best run of the season.

“We told the guys, you gotta play your best basketball going into March,” Pitino said after a 91-72 win over Seton Hall on Thursday. “And we knew we had seven now, I think, six or seven, elimination games. And these guys rose to the occasion.”

St. John’s only win over a ranked team this season was 80-66 vs. Creighton on Feb. 25. The Red Storm hope to produce another strong showing after six players scored in double figures on Thursday.

RJ Luis Jr. scored 18 points, Jordan Dingle added 14 and Joel Soriano collected 14 points and 12 rebounds for St. John’s. The Red Storm shot 51.6 percent from the field, marking the fourth time they have shot at least 50 percent in the winning streak.

“It’s unbelievable feeling, man,” Soriano said. “We play on Friday night.”

The last time St. John’s played a conference tournament semifinal game was 2000. The Red Storm slipped past now-ACC school Miami 58-57 and then recorded an 80-70 victory over UConn for the title.

–Larry Fleisher, Field Level Media

Providence Needs a “W” or Two

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NEW YORK  – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Providence is two wins from assuring itself of an NCAA Tournament bid.

But in case they don’t win the Big East Conference tournament and the automatic NCAA entry that comes with it, the seventh-seeded Friars (21-12) are making a strong case for the selection committee. And they’ll get another chance at enhancing an already solid resume Friday night when they play third-seeded Marquette (24-8) — the nation’s 10th-ranked team — in the conference semifinals.

The winner will meet either top-seeded and No. 2-ranked UConn or streaking St. John’s, the fifth seed, in Saturday’s championship game.

Providence won the tournament title in 1994 and 2014, and Marquette is the defending champion.

Two years ago, Providence was the top seed and took a 27-point loss to Creighton in the semis. This time, the Friars are in the semifinals after earning a 78-73 victory over Creighton in Thursday’s quarterfinals that marked their sixth Quad 1 victory.

“This time of the season some teams are playing for their lives,” Providence coach Kim English said after the win over Creighton. “(We had) ups and downs all season, adversity, less-than-ideal mindset and moments, bad shots, bad plays, bad turnovers, bad responses, (but) we got 40 minutes to be our most locked-in selves. That was one of our best efforts of the season.”

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Devin Carter has fueled Providence’s two tournament wins after claiming Big East Player of the Year honors. He followed a 19-point showing in Wednesday’s win over Georgetown by collecting 22 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals while playing the entire 40 minutes against Creighton.

“I think it was a must-win game,” said Carter, who played at least 40 minutes for the fifth time this season and averages 35.4 minutes per game. “We want to keep our tournament dreams alive, and we also want to get a Big East championship.”

Providence is in the semifinals after ending the regular season with three losses in four games, including a 91-69 setback at then-No. 5 Marquette on Feb. 28.

On Thursday, Marquette advanced to the semifinals via an overtime win for the second straight season. Last year the Golden Eagles moved on by beating St. John’s in the quarterfinals and later defeated Xavier to win the conference title, and this time they outlasted Villanova 71-65.

Marquette nearly won it in regulation, but officials ruled Kam Jones’ basket did not beat the buzzer. Jones scored 18 points and David Joplin added six of his 14 in overtime to help the Golden Eagles withstand the absence of All-Big East guard Tyler Kolek due to an oblique injury.

Kolek is expected to remain out Friday, though he has been practicing. On Friday, the Golden Eagles hope to get clutch performances again from Jones and Joplin while getting help from Oso Ighodaro, whose lone basket occurred late in overtime.

“Obviously we’d love to win the Big East tournament,” Marquette coach Shaka Smart said. “We’d love to win tomorrow night. I think what our guys are showing these last couple of games and even the two games we lost without Tyler is that we can compete with anyone, even while he’s recovering.”

– Field Level Media

Marquette Survives, Advances

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NEW YORK  – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Marquette’s Kam Jones scored 18 points, David Joplin provided six of his 14 points in overtime and nationally ranked No. 10 Marquette survived a challenge from Villanova to prevail 71-65 in the Big East tournament quarterfinals on Thursday night.

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The third-seeded Golden Eagles (24-8) advanced to face seventh-seeded Providence in the semis despite being without Tyler Kolek, last season’s Big East Player of the Year, due to an oblique injury.

Stevie Mitchell put up 15 points, Chase Ross scored 11 and Joplin added a team-high eight rebounds for Marquette, which had to play five extra minutes to pull out the win after a would-be game-winning shot was waved off.

Eric Dixon had 19 points and 11 rebounds for sixth-seeded Villanova (18-15), which put up a fight one night after barely escaping last-place DePaul. Mark Armstrong tallied 15 points, TJ Bamba had 12 points and Justin Moore finished with four points, 11 rebounds and six assists.

With the score tied at 58 and 2.8 seconds left in regulation, Marquette had an inbounds under its basket and spent just half a second to get it past halfcourt before using a timeout. Ross then inbounded to Oso Ighodaro at the foul line, and Ighodaro bounced it behind him to Jones driving down the left side.

Jones’ floater hit high off the glass and rolled in. But Marquette’s celebration was premature — officials ruled upon review that the ball had not completely left Jones’ hand when the clock hit zeroes.

Joplin had an early jumper and a 3-pointer for Marquette’s first five points of overtime, but Villanova tied the score each time with free throws. Ross’ open 3-pointer finally put Marquette ahead for good.

Ighodaro’s only field goal of the night, off a set play under the basket with 18 seconds remaining, sealed the victory.

Dixon’s short jumper put the Wildcats on top 29-28 at halftime. Marquette opened the second half on an 11-2 run, with Mitchell getting to the rim for three layups.

Jones’ 3-pointer made it 45-36 Marquette with 12:33 left, which is where Villanova started its charge. Dixon knocked down a straightaway 3-pointer, and before long Bamba connected on two triples to cut the deficit to one.

Moore — Villanova’s second-leading scorer — had missed his first six shots of the night but made his seventh to put the Wildcats on top 51-50 with 7:07 to go.

Jones went coast-to-coast to start an 8-2 run for Marquette to lead 58-53 at the 3:15 mark. But Armstrong scored in the paint, and Bamba was fouled on a 3-point shot and he made all three free throws to tie the score with 1:50 left.

–Adam Zielonka, Field Level Media