NCAA Tournament roundup: Oral Roberts stuns Ohio State

OHIO (Reuters) – Max Abmas and Kevin Obanor combined for 59 points as 15th-seeded Oral Roberts stunned No. 2 seed Ohio State 75-72 in overtime in the first round of the NCAA Tournament’s South Region in West Lafayette, Ind., on Friday.

Obanor had seven of his 30 points in overtime for the Golden Eagles (17-10) and Abmas, the nation’s leading scorer at 24.2 points per game, had 29 in the shocker. Oral Roberts advanced to face No. 7 seed Florida on Sunday.

E.J. Liddell scored 23 for Ohio State and Duane Washington Jr. had 19. The Buckeyes were 9 of 18 from the foul line in the game.

Oral Roberts was the first No. 15 seed to win since 2016 (Middle Tennessee over Michigan State). It was the program’s first NCAA Tournament win since 1974.

South Region

Florida 75, Virginia Tech 70 (OT)

Colin Castleton had 19 points and 14 rebounds to help the seventh-seeded Gators rally in regulation and later hang on for an overtime victory over 10th-seeded Hokies in Indianapolis.

Nahiem Alleyne scored a career-high 28 points to lead Virginia Tech (15-7) and sent the game to overtime with a game-tying three-pointer with 1.4 seconds left in regulation. Alleyne scored Virginia Tech’s last 12 points in regulation.

But Tre Mann’s clutch triple with 22.9 seconds left in the extra period helped the Gators (15-9) pull away for good. Scottie Lewis, who finished with 15 points and four assists off Florida’s bench, followed with a pair of free throws. Mann’s streak of four consecutive games with 20 or more points was halted. He finished with 14 and four assists.

Arkansas 85, Colgate 58

Justin Smith had a career-high 29 points to go with 13 rebounds as the third-seeded Razorbacks overcame a 14-point first-half deficit to hold off the 14th-seeded Raiders in Indianapolis.

Jalen Tate added 15 points, JD Notae scored 14, and Moses Moody and Davonte Davis had 12 each as the Razorbacks (23-6) advanced to face No. 6 Texas Tech on Sunday.

Nelly Cummings scored 14, Jordan Burns added 13, and Jack Ferguson and Jeff Woodward had 11 each to lead the Raiders (14-2), who saw their 13-game winning streak end.

Texas Tech 65, Utah State 53

The sixth-seeded Red Raiders forced 22 turnovers and smothered the 11th-seed Aggies in the second half to advance in Bloomington, Ind., and will face three-seed Arkansas on Sunday in Indianapolis

Mac McClung overcame a slow start to lead the Red Raiders (18-10) with 16 points, while Kyler Edwards added 12 to go with six rebounds and four assists. Shannon also notched 10 points, all in the second half after missing all four field goals he launched in the first half.

Justin Bean paced the Aggies (20-9) with 13 points but only three in the second half. Marco Anthony and Neemias Queta added 11 each and Queta was a force in the paint with 13 rebounds and seven blocked shots.

Baylor 79, Hartford 55

MaCio Teague pumped in 22 points as the top-seeded Bears began their quest for a national title with a 79-55 trouncing of the 16th-seeded Hawks in Indianapolis.

Jared Butler added 13 points and Davion Mitchell provided 12 points and six rebounds for the Bears. Baylor (23-2) received 27 points from its reserves, led by Adam Flagler’s 12 points. He made three of the team’s 11 3-pointers.

Austin Williams racked up 19 points and Traci Carter had 11 points for Hartford (15-9), which made its NCAA Tournament debut after winning the America East tournament. The Hawks committed 24 turnovers.

Midwest Region

Oregon State 70, Tennessee 56

Roman Silva scored a career-high 16 points, making all eight of his field-goal attempts, as the No. 12-seeded Beavers upset the fifth-seed Volunteers in Indianapolis, winning a tournament game for the first time since 1982.

Jarod Lucas added 14 points for Oregon State (18-12), making four 3-point field goals, Ethan Thompson scored 13 and Zach Reichle had 10. The Beavers will face fourth-seed Oklahoma State on Sunday in Indianapolis.

Keon Johnson led Tennessee (18-9) with 14 points. Jaden Springer scored 12 and Santiago Vescovi added 11. The Volunteers played without forward John Fulkerson, who sustained a concussion and facial injuries against Florida in the Southeastern Conference quarterfinals.

Loyola Chicago 71, Georgia Tech 60

Lucas Williamson scored a game-high 21 points to lead the Ramblers past the Yellow Jackets in Indianapolis.

Braden Norris added 16 points and eight assists for Loyola (25-4), which advanced to a second-round matchup Sunday with top-seeded Illinois. Keith Clemons tallied 12 points and Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year Cameron Krutwig kicked in 10.

Jordan Usher scored 15 points to pace the Yellow Jackets (16-10), while Michael Devoe added 14 and Jose Alvarado hit for 13 points. Georgia Tech canned 57.4 percent of its field goal attempts, but couldn’t make up for the absence of Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year Moses Wright, who sat out due to COVID-19 protocol.

Illinois 78, Drexel 49

Kofi Cockburn scored a game-high 18 points in just 20 minutes as top-seeded Illinois pulled away from 16th-seeded Drexel in Indianapolis.

National player of the year candidate Ayo Dosunmu added 17 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and three steals for the Fighting Illini (24-6), which will play eighth-seeded Loyola on Sunday in the second round of the Midwest Region.

Trent Frazier tallied 11 points and Adam Miller chipped in 10.