NCAA Tournament roundup: Top-seeded Gonzaga pulls away from Georgia State
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Drew Timme scored 22 of his 32 points in the second half, and top overall seed Gonzaga struggled to shake No. 16 seed Georgia State for 30 minutes before pulling away late for a 93-72 victory Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Zags (27-3) were sluggish early and couldn’t make a basket for a long stretch of the first half. Even when Gonzaga’s offense kicked into gear after halftime, the Panthers didn’t fold.
The eventual overwhelming surge from the Bulldogs finally arrived with about 10 minutes to go. Gonzaga went on a 24-1 run, turning a four-point game into the blowout that was expected. The Zags will face the West Region’s No. 9 seed, Memphis, in the second round Saturday.
Timme was the catalyst, topping 30 points for the fifth time in his career while also grabbing 13 rebounds. Chet Holmgren, the Zags’ 7-foot freshman, added 19 points, 17 rebounds and seven blocks.
Corey Allen led Georgia State (18-10) with 16 points, and Jalen Thomas and Kane Williams both added 12.
Memphis 64, Boise State 53 — DeAndre Williams had 14 points, Jalen Duren made a crucial basket down the stretch and No. 9 seed Memphis held off a second-half rally by Boise State.
Duren finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds for the Tigers (22-10), who were 9-8 after 17 games but went on a late-season charge to reach the tournament for the first time since 2014. The Tigers have won 13 of their past 15 games.
Abu Kigab had 20 points to lead the eighth-seeded Broncos (27-8), the Mountain West regular-season and tournament champs, who were making their first appearance in the tournament since 2015.
Midwest Region
Providence 66, South Dakota State 57 — Al Durham had 13 points, eight rebounds and six assists and Jared Bynum made three big free throws with 29.9 seconds left as Providence snapped the longest winning streak in college basketball by beating South Dakota State.
It was a typical grind for the Big East regular-season champions. The Friars’ turnaround season after going 13-13 in 2020-21 now includes 16 victories by single digits.
The Jackrabbits (30-6) came in on a 21-game winning streak.
The Friars (26-5) were up three in the final minute and Bynum let loose a 3-pointer with 3 seconds left on the shot clock. The shot missed, but Douglas Wilson was whistled for a foul. Bynum knocked down all three shots to give Providence a six-point lead. Bynum finished with 12 points and Noah Horchler had 13 for the Providence.
Baylor Scheierman led the Jackrabbits with 18 points and 10 rebounds and Wilson scored 13.
South Region
Tennessee 88, Longwood 56 — Santiago Vescovi scored 18 points, and Tennessee pounded Longwood, showing why it felt it deserved better than a No. 3 seed.
The Volunteers (27-7) shot 60% from the field and had four players score in double figures. The runaway victory came just four days after the school won the SEC Tournament for the first time in 43 years.
Josiah-Jordan James added 17 points, and John Fulkerson scored 15 on 7-for-8 shooting. Kennedy Chandler had 13 and Zakai Ziegler finished with 10.
Longwood (26-7), the Big South champ from Farmville, Va., was led by Justin Hill with 13 points in the school’s first NCAA tourney appearance.
East Region
Baylor 85, Norfolk State 49 — Matthew Mayer scored a career-high 22 points and defending national champion Baylor beat Norfolk State.
Freshman standout Jeremy Sochan added 15 points and seven rebounds for the top-seeded Bears (27-6), who will play eighth-seeded North Carolina on Saturday.
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference player of the year Joe Bryant had 15 points for 16th-seeded Norfolk State (24-7).
The Spartans were one of the biggest underdogs in first-round games this year, at 20 1/2 points, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. Despite some size up front, they couldn’t keep up with the Bears and never came close to an upset.
Flo Thamba scored 14 points, and Adam Flagler had 11 points for the Bears after some early foul trouble.
North Carolina 95, Marquette 63 — Brady Manek scored 28 points, Caleb Love had 21 of his 23 before halftime and North Carolina routed Marquette.
Love made six 3-pointers, all in the first 19 minutes, to tie Carolina’s single-game tournament record as the Tar Heels (25-9) built a 28-point lead.
Manek, who also had 11 rebounds, finished with five 3s as he and Love combined to go 11 of 24 from long range. Armando Bacot grabbed 10 rebounds on his way to the school season record (422).
RJ Davis had a career-high 12 assists for Carolina.
Olivier-Maxence Prosper scored 16 points for the No. 9 seed Golden Eagles (19-13), who lost their third consecutive first-round game.