Friday is living up to Thursday's Madness.
The Big Dance kept moving along, with Wichita State advancing and North Carolina and Memphis both playing with fire without getting burned. VCU on the other hand, got scorched.
No. 12 Stephen F. Austin 77, No. 5 VCU 75 (OT)
Both VCU and Stephen F. Austin are known for creating havoc, and the game between the two definitely lived up to it, with the end of regulation being the most March ending of the tournament.
After Jordan Burgess missed two free throws with 10 seconds left, Stephen F. Austin had the ball down four. Thomas Walkup drove into the lane and kicked the ball out to Desmond Haymon on the right wing. Haymon released his shot and may or may not have been fouled by JeQuan Lewis. He got the call though, and after this shot went through, he went to line and tied the game.
Decide for yourself it he was fouled or not:
When it went to overtime, the Lumberjacks outscored the Rams, 7-5. Lewis had a chance for redemption with a wide-open three from the left wing as time expired, but it rimmed out. Stephen F. Austin came up with the rebound and its first-ever NCAA Tournament victory.
Jacob Parker led all scorers with 22, and that included four points in overtime for the Lumberjacks. He helped the team overcome 17 turnovers against the havoc-creating Rams defense. Stephen F. Austin's defense is also known for the number of turnovers it creates, but was only able to force 11 Ram turnovers
Stephen F. Austin will play the winner of No. 4 UCLA and No. 13 Tulsa
No. 6 North Carolina 79, No. 11 Providence 77
Providence had North Carolina on the ropes with a seven-point lead on the heels of a 23-6 run, but a late push by the Tar Heels, led by James Michael McAdoo and Brice Johnson, gave UNC the victory.
Marcus Paige led UNC with 19 points while tacking on four assists. His battle with senior Bryce Cotton went the way of Providence, exploding for a season-high 36 points. He also dished out eight assists and grabbed five boards.
The ball was in the hands of North Carolina with time dwindling and the score tied 77-77, and it ended up with McAdoo around the rim. He was fouled and went to the charity stripe with three seconds left, where he made the front end but grabbed his own miss on the second free throw. He then proceeded to repeat the feat after being fouled by Cotton.
UNC will play the winner of No. 3 Iowa State and No. 14 North Carolina Central Sunday.
No. 1 Wichita State 64, No. 16 Cal Poly 37
Wichita continued its season of beating up on weaker teams in its domination of Cal Poly. The win put the Shockers at 35-0, the most ever consecutive wins to start a season. Cleanthony Thomas led the Shockers in scoring with 23 points and snagged eight rebounds.
The Mustangs were held to 21 percent shooting from the field, and not a single player scored in double digits. Maliik Love led the way for the Mustangs with nine.
Wichita State will play the winner of Kentucky/Kansas State on Sunday.
No. 8 Memphis 71, No. 9 George Washington 66
Michael Dixon Jr. came off the bench for Memphis to lead the team in scoring with 19, tying a career-high. That included four key free throws with time winding down to ice the game.
Things were dicey for Memphis in the closing seconds, with a miscommunication leading to Joe Jackson passing the ball out of bounds with the Tigers up three with 1:16 left. Jackson finished with 15 points and 6 assists. Memphis will face the winner of Virginia and Coastal Carolina Sunday
