Saturday’s live updates from the NCAA Championship
The NCAA Championship roster began Saturday when defending national champion Baylor fell to North Carolina 93-86 in overtime, making the Bears the first seed to lose.
Brady Mannick had 26 heels points before he was sent off midway through the second half after being called up to a Flagrant 2 elbow. North Carolina’s RJ Davis led with 30 points while Armando Bacot had 15 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks.
Baylor, who had 27 points from Adam Flagler, cleared his 25-point lead as Baylor tied the 80th with 15 seconds.
Their top 12 competitor and fellow top seed Kansas will try to avoid the same fate as the Jayhawks’ battle with Creighton.
Cinderellas also takes center stage, with No. 11 Michigan playing Tennessee in the South Region, No. 12 Richmond against Providence, No. 15 Saint Peter, who defeated Kentucky in a stunning fashion, and tried again against Murray State, and New Mexico State, 12 seed in the West , with Arkansas.
Top seed Gonzaga ends tonight’s game against the talented Memphis team.
remote control: NCAA Men’s Championship fixtures to watch Saturday
for slots: Friday’s winners and losers
1 vs 1: Memphis players take on 1 NCAA seed Gonzaga: More like a ‘1 for 1’
Fun facts about each championship team: From racing elephants to lizards to release blood
Full-strength UConn begins NCAA Championship with defeat of Mercer
Paige Bueckers started and scored 12 points as UConn kicked off their run to their 12th NCAA Championship title with an 83-38 first-round victory over 15th seed Mercer on Saturday.
Last season’s National Player of the Year played 25 minutes, the most in six games since returning from a left knee injury that kept her out of action for more than two months. She also had five assists and four rebounds.
Kristen Williams scored 13 points to lead Husky (26-5) who opened the tournament with their 28th consecutive victory. Dorka Gohaz added 10 points and 10 rebounds. Husky led 43-23 in the first half, then beat Mercer 20-0 in the third.
Husky improved to 126-21 in the NCAA Championship and 29-2 in their opening game
Vilanova defeated the sixth seed BYU
Maddie Siegrist scored 25 points and 11th-seeded Villanova rebounded to defeat the 6th seed BYU 61-57 Saturday in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Championship.
Kaitlyn O’Rehl added 10 points and Lucy Olsen added nine points to the Wildcats, who finished second in the Big East.
The Wildcats will face the winner of the third seed Michigan and the number 14 American on Monday.
– News agency
UNC sends #1 Baylor seed for packing; to Sweet 16
North Carolina put an offensive clinic early on to lead by 25 points before holding up an inspirational run that forced overtime, escaping defending National Champion Baylor 93-86 Saturday in the second round of the NCAA Championship in Fort Worth, Texas.
The Bears, the number one seed to fall at March Madness, were on the cusp of making the biggest comeback in NCAA tournament history by making a dramatic comeback in the final six minutes of a game. The 8th-ranked Tar Heels, a bubbly team at the start of the month, advanced to the Eastern District’s Sweet 16.
Despite coughing up the big lead and completely incoherent play in the final minutes of regulation, North Carolina found a way to shake off the turmoil in overtime. UNC goalkeeper RJ Davis provided a pivotal three-point play with 1:18 remaining in overtime to play that gave Tar Heels a six-point advantage and proved to be the difference-maker.
– Scott Gleeson
Kansas women are using a big game from Lee to advance
Ayuka Lee scored 20 points and 15 rebounds as the ninth-seeded Kansas State overcame a frustrating No. 8 Washington State defensive slate and won 50-40 in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Championship on Saturday.
Lee, a second-team AP All-America side, took just one shot off the ground in the first half, but rushed in the second to lead the Wildcats (20-11) to their first championship win since 2017. Brylee Glenn added 14 points for Kansas State .
The Wildcats will face the winner of the match between #1 in NC State and #16 Longwood on Monday in Rallye.
– News agency
North Carolina beats No. 1 Baylor
Baylor, the defending champion, is 20 minutes away from being the first seed to be thrown out of the tournament. Tar Kaab led 42-29 at the break in the second round match in the Eastern Province.
RJ Davis moves in the Tar Heels move, scoring 4-6 from a 3-point range and has 17 points. Brady Mannick, nine points for Carolina.
Adam Flagler has six points for Baylor, who fired 40 percent in the inning and only made two passes in his baskets of 12.
– Scooby Axon
Kansas is one step away from history
The record for all victories in college basketball history is close to holding a Kansas.
With their win in the second round of the game against Creighton, the Jayhawks would take their overall win to 2,353, tying Kentucky for the most wins ever. The Wildcats failed to increase their lead when they lost to the 15th seed St. Peter in the first round.
North Carolina is third all-time with 2,319 wins.
No. 12 Seed Richmond, New Mexico is looking to continue running Cinderella
Buffalo, NY – Richmond has won a game in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament for the first time since 2011. To some, that may seem like a long time.
Just try telling New Mexico State: The Aggies won the championship for the first time since — drum roll, please — 1993.
On Saturday, these 12 seeds will play against 4 position seeds in Sweet 16: Richmond vs. Providence, New Mexico State vs. Arkansas.
“Having a chance to go to the Sweet 16 is everything you dreamed of as a kid,” Richmond guard Jacob Gillard said Friday. “That’s why you play basketball.”
New Mexico state guard Sir Gabari Rice understands this feeling of yearning.
He said, “After you win one game, what’s the point of losing the next game?
– Eric Brady
Duke has the talent to win the title for Coach K, but inexperience remains the key card
GREENVILLE, SC – Sometimes, talent alone is more than enough.
There’s no doubt about this: Duke’s roster isn’t short on talent, with as many as five contributors signed up for the first round of the NBA draft. Instead, what the #2 Blue Devils lack is experience, which makes this group perhaps the most unique group in the NCAA Championship for coach Mike Krzyskie that is almost complete.
With this youngster’s roster in place, every high-pressure championship match could bring Duke closer to matching the full potential of Krzyzewski’s ultimate team.
“I think what really sets us apart is that we feel we haven’t reached our full potential yet,” said young striker Wendell Moore. “We haven’t made it into a team as good as we could be yet. I mean, we’ve seen glimpses of it.”
– Paul Meyerberg
