No. 13-Seeded Valparaiso Has Luck of the Drew on Its Side

OKLAHOMA CITY — Bryce Drew was afraid his buzzer-beating shot was going to be short.

“I think divine intervention raised it above the rim,” said Drew, who made a leaning three-point shot as time expired to give No. 13-seeded Valparaiso a shocking 70-69 victory over No. 4 Mississippi on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Midwest Regional.

“It truly was a miracle shot,” said Valparaiso Coach Homer Drew, Bryce’s father.

Valparaiso’s first NCAA tournament victory was set up when Mississippi’s Ansu Sesay missed two free throws with 4.3 seconds left.

With 2.5 seconds remaining, Valparaiso’s Jamie Sykes threw a long pass from the baseline past midcourt to Bill Jenkins, who made a touch pass to Drew, who had missed a three-point shot only seven seconds earlier.

Sykes was the perfect inbounder. He’s an outfield prospect for the Arizona Diamondbacks and has a strong throwing arm.

“I just threw the ball,” Sykes said. “Give credit to Bill for catching it. The Diamondbacks had plans for me on Sunday if we lost. I had a flight to Arizona. Now, they’ll have to wait.”

Said Drew, who had 22 points and made four of 11 three-point shots: “I was just hoping and praying I would get another chance.”

Keith Carter led Mississippi (22-7) with 22 points.

Valparaiso, 22-9 and champions of the Mid-Continent Conference, had been knocked out of the tournament in the first round the last two years.

“We practiced that [in-bounds] play every day and we wondered why,” Bryce Drew said.

Now they know.

Florida State 96, Texas Christian 87--The No. 12-seeded Seminoles proved their critics wrong--they belong in the tournament after all.

Florida State (18-13) had closed the regular season by losing six of seven games and was the lowest-seeded at-large team in the tournament. But the Seminoles showed the form that got them off to a 13-1 start, including victories over Connecticut and Arizona.

Corey Louis and Randell Jackson scored 20 each as Florida State advanced to a second-round game against Valparaiso on Sunday.

Lee Nailon had 32 points and eight rebounds for TCU (27-6), but fouled out with 5:15 remaining and the Horned Frogs trailing, 84-80.

Florida State widened its lead to 89-80 on a tip-in by Louis with 2:47 remaining, then held on by making free throws after TCU got within 91-87 with a minute to play.

The Seminoles, averaging 70 points a game, shot 55% in scoring their most points of the season.

Florida State took control early in the second half as TCU was unable to utilize a full-court press which works best after a basket. The Horned Frogs made only three field goals in the first eight minutes of the second half, allowing the Seminoles lead by as many as seven points.

Florida State repeatedly got the ball inside for easy shots. Jackson was especially tough, scoring 14 of his points in the second half--almost all of them in the paint.

Kansas 110, Prairie View 52--The Jayhawks looked every bit like a top-seeded team, rolling over the No. 16-seeded Panthers.

Paul Pierce scored 19 points in the first half and finished with 25 for Kansas (35-3), while guard Billy Thomas--sidelined four games with a thigh injury--returned to score 12 points and make five of eight shots. Kansas’ Raef LaFrentz had 20 points and 15 rebounds before sitting down for good with just under eight minutes left in the game. Kansas led, 89-44, at the time.

Prairie View (13-17) was the only team in this year’s tournament with a losing record and was making its first NCAA tournament appearance. The game was over in about five minutes.

The Jayhawks had runs of 13-0, 11-0, 9-0 and 11-2 on the way to a 60-24 halftime lead.

Rhode Island 97, Murray State 74--Jim Harrick won the matchup against former assistant Mark Gottfried as the Rams took advantage of 27% shooting by the Racers to take a 44-24 halftime lead.

Gottfried was an assistant under Harrick at UCLA in 1995 when the Bruins won a national title. Harrick is in his first season at Rhode Island (23-8).

“It was a bittersweet win,” said Harrick. “I didn’t want to beat him, but once the ball went up I didn’t know who was on the other end.”

Murray State (29-4) made six of its first nine shots to take a 12-5 lead, then missed 23 of its next 27 as Rhode Island took control. The Rams led by as many as 29 points in the second half.

Rhode Island shot 55% for the game and had a 50-41 rebounding advantage. Forward Antonio Reynolds-Dean had 16 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots, while guard Tyson Wheeler had 14 points, five rebounds and seven assists.

Isaac Spencer led Murray State with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while leading scorer De’Teri Mayes had 16 points.

Rhode Island, an at-large selection from the Atlantic 10, gave the conference its first victory of the opening round after four losses. The Rams play Kansas in the second round Sunday.