INDIANAPOLIS — Picked to finish dead last in the Pac-12, Oregon State instead might be the last one standing.
Led by unflappable guard Ethan Thompson, whose 20 points included a pair of clinching foul shots with 35 seconds left, the No. 12 seed Beavers and their brilliant defense shut down eighth-seeded Loyola Chicago in a 65-58 victory on Saturday that sent their long-suffering program into the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament.
It’s Oregon State’s first regional final since 1982 — one that was later vacated by the NCAA — and sets up a showdown with second-seeded Houston on Monday night for a spot in its first Final Four since 1963.
“They just want to keep riding the wave,” said Beavers coach Wayne Tinkle, whose hungry bunch of underdogs have matched Missouri in 2002 as the lowest-seeded teams to advance past the Sweet 16.
“We did use the fact we were picked 12th in the Pac-12 this year,” Tinkle added, “but we haven’t made a big deal about the 12th seed. I don’t want to throw too much at them. They’ll see it. We just have to keep our feet on the ground.”
Not even the fervent prayers of Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt could help Loyola deal with the Beavers (20-12) and the constantly changing defenses that Tinkle rolled out. The Ramblers (26-5), who beat Georgia Tech and top-seeded Illinois, wound up shooting 33% from the field and 5 of 23 from beyond the arc.
Credit: Darron Cummings
Credit: Darron Cummings
Baylor 62, Villanova 51: Adam Flagler was the surprise leading scorer, with 16 points, and the Bears (25-2), who came in as the nation’s leading 3-point shooting team at 41.5%, won despite making only 3 of 19 against the Wildcats’ ever-shifting 2-3, man-to-man combo on D.
Baylor, which started the season 18-0 and won its first-ever Big 12 regular-season title, is one win from the Final Four for the first time since 2012. The Bears will play Arkansas.
Davion Mitchell, a 46% shooter from 3 this season, went 0-for-3 from long range on a 14-point day. The team’s other two high-powered guards didn’t fare better. Jared Butler scored nine points on 1-for-9 shooting from 3, and MaCio Teague had five points without a 3.
“When we are 2 for 12 at half, we figured we've got to get inside,” coach Scott Drew said of the team's 3-point shooting. “We got good looks but not great looks. The guards did a great job of not settling and probing more.”
Because of that, Baylor shot 53% in the second half, even though it made only one 3.
The game changed midway through the second half when Baylor took Drew's words to heart and started pounding inside. The Bears took a six-point lead with a 14-2 run during which not a single point came from outside the arc. Baylor outscored ’Nova 40-32 in the paint for the game.
Defense picked up, too.
Constantly harassing Villanova shooters who'd carved out space in the first half, Baylor held Villanova to 37.5% shooting in the second and 0 for 9 from 3. Baylor had four of its five blocked shots after halftime. During one stretch in the decisive run, Baylor forced five straight turnovers on ’Nova possessions. The Wildcats finished with 16 turnovers, almost double their nation-best season average (8.8).
Coach Jay Wright’s team (18-7) scored 10 points over the final 11 minutes.
“We were good enough to beat them but they just played better down the stretch,” Wright said. “I think their defense got into us and wore us down and it made the difference in the game.”
Credit: Jeff Roberson
Credit: Jeff Roberson
Arkansas 72, Oral Roberts 70: Davonte Davis hit a short jumper with 2.9 seconds left and the Razorbacks advanced to the Elite Eight for the first time in 26 years in the South Region semifinals.
Arkansas (25-6) won despite falling into a 12-point hole against the 15th-seeded Golden Eagles.
It came down to one final shot and Davis made it, sending Arkansas to the Elite Eight for the first time since the Nolan Richardson’s days.
Next up for the Razorbacks is face top-seeded Baylor in what should be a fast-paced South Region final on Monday.
The let-it-fly Golden Eagles (18-11) let history slip through their grasp.
Within reach of becoming the first No. 15 seed to reach the Elite Eight, Oral Roberts stumbled with a series of turnovers and missed shots.
Max Abmas did his best to put the Golden Eagles in the Elite Eight for the first time in 47 years, scoring 25 points. His 3-pointer at the buzzer bounced off the front of the rim.
Houston 62, Syracuse 46: Quentin Grimes scored 14 points while the Cougars’ defense locked down on surging Buddy Boeheim.
Justin Gorham had 13 points and 10 rebounds for second-seeded Houston, which pushed through to its first trip to a regional final in 37 years, earning a matchup with Oregon State for the Midwest Region title and a spot in the Final Four.
The Cougars also got a strong all-around effort from DeJon Jarreau, who finished with nine points, eight rebounds and eight assists while leading the defensive effort that kept Boeheim in check — and ultimately derailed the 11th-seeded Orange’s latest postseason push as a double-digit seed.
Houston (27-3) came in holding opponents to a national-low 37.3% shooting, and then harassed Syracuse (18-10) into just 28% (14 for 50), including a 5-for-23 performance from 3-point range.
The focus was making every look difficult for Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim’s son, who had been on an absolute tear through four games in the Atlantic Coast Conference and NCAA Tournament games to earn the nickname “Buddy Buckets.”
The 6-foot-6 junior had averaged 28.3 points through those games, which included him shooting 60% from the floor and 55.8% from 3-point range.
Things weren’t nearly so easy Saturday.
Jarreau spent much of the night chasing Boeheim, hovering in his shadow on the perimeter, staying right on his hip on drives and swiping at the ball as Boeheim secured catches. Boeheim managed just one first-half basket and finished with 12 points on 3-for-13 shooting, including 1 for 9 from 3-point range.
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