INDIANAPOLIS — Undefeated Gonzaga continued to roll behind a career-high 30 points and 13 rebounds from Drew Timme as the top-seeded Bulldogs beat No. 8 seed Oklahoma 87-71 on Monday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Gonzaga (28-0) won its 32nd straight game dating to last season, passing its first real test of the NCAAs in the Bulldogs’ quest to be the first undefeated champion since Indiana 45 years ago.
The Bulldogs easily dispatched Norfolk State in the first round, but the Sooners were the first power conference opponent for Gonzaga since its victory over Virginia in late December.
It didn’t matter all that much. Oklahoma became the 25th straight team the Bulldogs beat by double digits — although the Sooners fought valiantly to keep it from becoming a blowout. Gonzaga coach Mark Few still had his starters on the floor at the buzzer and screamed at star Jalen Suggs for committing an unnecessary foul with 1:05 left.
Oklahoma guard Alondes Williams (15) attempts a dunk over Gonzaga forward Drew Timme (2) in the first half of a second-round game in the NCAA men’s college basketball tournament at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Monday, March 22, 2021. The dunk was ruled a shot clock violation. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
The Zags advanced to their sixth straight Sweet 16 and will next face either Creighton or Ohio in the West Region.
Austin Reaves scored 27 points for Oklahoma (16-11), and after trailing by 19 with 12 minutes left, the Sooners pulled within 77-68 on his 3-pointer with 2:37 left. It was the first 3 of the second half for Oklahoma and the first time the deficit was within single digits since late in the first half.
But Timme was perfect on four free throws sandwiched around a basket from Alondes Williams, and after an Oklahoma turnover, All-American Corey Kispert pushed the lead to 14 with his fourth 3-pointer.
Timme, sporting a handlebar mustache, was 9 of 12 shooting and 12 of 14 at the free-throw line.
Kispert finished with 16 points, as did Suggs, who took an awkward tumble on a flagrant foul by Oklahoma’s Elijah Harkless in the closing seconds and had to be restrained by teammates. Joel Ayayi added 12 points — 10 coming in the first half when Kispert sat with foul trouble.
Gonzaga closed the first half on an 18-6 run to take control, doing it all with Kispert sitting after picking up his second foul. Ayayi, Timme and Suggs were the instigators offensively, but just as important was continuing to stymie the Sooners after Reaves re-entered the game.
The Sooners trailed 33-30 after Harkless scored, but Suggs answered with a 3 and the Bulldogs scored 13 of the final 17 points to take a 46-34 lead at the break.
Williams finished with 15 points for the Sooners and Jalen Hill added 11, but Oklahoma missed second-leading scorer De’Vion Harmon. He tested positive for COVID-19 upon arrival in Indianapolis and was averaging 12.3 points per game.
Oregon 95, Iowa 80
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Oregon wove its way through a pandemic-altered season filled with injuries, pauses and uncertainty to win a conference title.
When another kink surfaced in the NCAA Tournament, the resilient, adaptable Ducks shook it off and soared.
Off to another Sweet 16.
Chris Duarte scored 23 points and Oregon showed no signs of rust after a long layoff, beating No. 2 seed Iowa 95-80 on Monday to reach the Sweet 16 for the fourth time in the past five NCAA Tournaments.
“The guys fought through it, they stayed together,” Oregon coach Dana Altman said. “I’m proud of the way they responded.”
The seventh-seeded Ducks (21-6) were put in an unprecedented spot, advancing to the West Region’s second round without playing a game. Virginia Commonwealth’s multiple positive COVID-19 tests took care of that, leaving Oregon with a nine-day break since losing in the Pac-12 Tournament title game.
Oregon’s offense hummed like it was fresh off the line once the ball went up, kicking off the NCAA Tournament’s first Monday of second-round games with a masterpiece.
The Ducks flowed on the floor and glowed on the scoresheet, shooting 56 percent and hitting 11 3-pointers. LJ Figueroa hit five 3s while scoring 21 points and Will Richardson added 19 points in an offensive domination.
Oregon moves on to face either Kansas or Southern Cal in the Sweet 16.
“We just said keep our foot on the gas,” Duarte said. “We did and it was a lot of fun.”
Sunday night game
Oregon State 80, Oklahoma State 70
INDIANAPOLIS — Ethan Thompson scored 26 points and No. 12 seed Oregon State neutralized Oklahoma State and star freshman Cade Cunningham, rolling to an 80-70 upset in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday night.
Maurice Calloo, who transferred from Oklahoma State, scored 15 points and Jarod Lucas also had 15 for the Beavers, who advanced to play eighth-seeded Loyola-Chicago in a Midwest Region Sweet 16 matchup that few could have predicted. Loyola overmatched No. 1 seed Illinois earlier Sunday.
Cunningham, a first-team All-American and possible top NBA draft pick, scored 24 points for Oklahoma State (21-9), but the fourth-seeded Cowboys wasted possessions down the stretch by failing to get him the ball.
Avery Anderson scored 16 points and Keylan Boone added 13 for Oklahoma State in a game that was delayed for 20 minutes at the start by a power outage.
Oregon State (19-12) was picked to finish last in the Pac 12 and had to win the conference tournament just to make the NCAA field. The Beavers pulled that off, then rolled past No. 5 seed Tennessee in the first round. They became the third double-digit seed to reach this year’s Sweet 16, joining 15 seed Oral Roberts and Syracuse, an 11.
Women’s Basketball
South Florida 57, Washington State 53
AUSTIN, Texas — Elena Tsineke scored 18 points, including the go-ahead basket with 1:32 remaining, to help South Florida to a 57-53 win over Washington State in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament on Sunday night.
Tsineke’s driving shot, which came soon after a 3-pointer by Washington State’s Charlisse Leger-Walker, gave the eighth-seeded Bulls (19-3) a 54-53 lead.
“The season is about to end,” Tsineke said. “You have to get something out of it.”
The ninth-seeded Cougars (12-12) had several chances to overtake South Florida, but Leger-Walker missed two driving shots and was called for traveling, all during the final 1:07. The Bulls hit free throws down the stretch to seal the win.
“They just made a couple more game winning plays at the end,” Washington State coach Kamie Ethridge said. “We didn’t quite make enough shots tonight to get ourselves a win.”
Leger-Walker, an all-Pac-12 selection and the league’s freshman of the year, matched Tsineke’s 18 points but converted only 4 of 18 field goal attempts, including 2 of 10 3-pointers.
Johanna Teder supported Leger-Walker with 16 points.
