Late Games Recap

Day 1 is in the books, and while there were no buzzer-beaters, we did get to see a number of great games in the second session:

• East - #7 Texas 76, #10 Minnesota 62: Apparently Minnesota didn't get the memo. If you want to beat Texas, you have to slow down AJ Abrams. They didn't, and Abrams went off to the tune of 26 points and eight threes. This game was close until a 12-0 run by Texas midway through the second half opened up a 15 point lead that the Gophers were enable to rebound from. That run was all Abrams, as he hit threes on four consecutive possessions. Dexter Pittman added 17 points and 11 boards and Damion James chipped in 18 and 9. Lawrence Westbrook led the Gophers with 19.
• East - #2 Duke 86, #15 Binghamton 62: The Devils were ahead for the entire first half, but allowed Binghamton to remain within striking distance. But Duke blew the game open with a 17-2 run to open the second half. Duke put six players in double figures, led by 15 from Jon Scheyer. It was quite a different beginning from last season, when Duke barely survived the first round against Belmont. The Devils advance to face Texas in the second round on Saturday.
• South - #10 Michigan 62, #7 Clemson 59: Michigan won a game in their first trip to the NCAA Tournament this decade, as they handled Clemson's pressure and flustered the Tigers with their 1-3-1 zone. A closely contested game in the first half, Michigan used a 17-2 run early in the second to blow the game open. It almost wasn't enough, as the Tigers came roaring back at the end. Clemson's press finally started to affect the Wolverines, and the Tigers went on a 14-0 run to cut the lead to 58-57 at one point. They still had a chance in the final seconds as Zak Novak missed a free throw to keep the score at 62-59, but Clemson could not get a good look from three. KC Rivers fired a tough fall-away that came up well short as time expired. Manny Harris led Michigan with 23 points, 6 boards, and 7 assists. Of note in the game, Terrence Oglesby, who was suffering through another dreadful tournament performance (1-8 from three yesterday, 1-11 last year) threw an elbow in the face of a Michigan defender and was tossed from the game.
• South - #2 Oklahoma 82, #15 Morgan State 54: Blake Griffin gets beat up more than anyone I have ever seen. From the concussion he suffered against Texas to the blow to the ... midsection ... he took from Leonard Washington of USC, Griffin has had to deal with cheap shots all season long. Yesterday was no different, as Ameer Ali flipped Griffin over his shoulder after the two became tangled up. Watch:
  
  
  
  For his troubles, Ali was tossed, and Griffin ended up with 28 points and 13 boards, including a series of ferocious dunks. At one point, Morgan State got as close as 12-11, but the Sooners were just too much for the Bears.
• East - #3 Villanova 80, #14 American 67: In the first half, American dominated this basketball game. They got every shot they wanted (and made them) and forced Villanova into a shooting contest, securing all the defensive rebounds. After two quick baskets, American was up 45-31, and it looked like Nova might be heading home early. But then the Wildcats stopped settling for jumpers. They began to pound the ball inside to Dwayne Anderson and Dante Cunningham, they started to attack the glass, and their defense, which was pourous in the first half, locked down the Eagles. Nova would outscore the Eagles 49-22 the rest of the way. More than anything, it seemed like Nova just assumed that American was going to roll over and let them win, but once the Cats started playing, American had no chance. Garrison Carr led AU with 22 points, including putting on a show from three in the first 30 minutes, knocking down six. But Cunningham and Anderson where too big inside, where they finished with a combined 50 points and 15 boards on 18-26 shooting.
• East - #6 UCLA 65, #11 VCU 64: Eric Maynor had no heroics up his sleeve in this one. The senior point guard, who is best known as the guy that knocked Duke out of the tournament in 2007, missed a tough 15 footer with Collison draped all over him at the buzzer. UCLA had taken control of the game with a 13-0 run near the end of the first half, but the Rams were not going to go away quietly. Collison went out with foul trouble late in the second half, and Maynor took over, scoring 7 points and handing out 2 assists in a 14-6 run that cut the lead to 65-64 with under a minute left. All five starters reached double figures for the Bruins, who were led by 17 points from Josh Shipp.
• South - #4 Gonzaga 77, #13 Akron 64: The Zips kept it interesting, as they led well into the second half. Akron used a physical style of play to knock the Zags back, taking a six point lead with about fifteen minutes to play. But Josh Heytvelt led Gonzaga back. He scored 7 of his 22 points in a decisive 29-7 run that opened up a 70-53 lead with four minutes left. Heytvelt also added eight boards. This game also featured the play of the day, as Jeremy Pargo left his mark on Akron's point guard:
  
  
• South - #12 Western Kentucky 76, #5 Illinois 72: Western Kentucky used a 13-0 run early in the first half to build up a 27-13 lead that the Illini could not recover from. Illinois did make a push, as Trent Meacham scored his 24th point on a lay-up that cut the lead to 74-72 with under ten seconds left, but WKU was able to avoid being fouled until 0.9 was left on the clock. Two free throws sealed the deal for the Hilltoppers. This marks the second straight season where the Hilltoppers will advance past the first round of the NCAA Tournament. WKU put five players in double figures, led by Steffphon Pettigrew with 17.