No. 12 Arkansas-Little Rock danced its way into the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament’s Midwest Region, outlasting fifth-seeded Purdue 85-83 in double overtime in Denver.
The Trojans, led by Josh Hagins’ game-high 31 points and five steals, battled tooth-and-nail throughout 50 minutes of basketball. They overcame a 65-52 deficit with 3:33 to go in regulation before forcing the first overtime.
Next up for Little Rock is No. 4 Iowa State, which eliminated 13th-seeded Iona 94-81 earlier Thursday.
Georges Niang poured in 28 pointes for the Cyclones, who needed just two points from their bench to advance to the second round.
Virginia coach collapses during win
The top-seeded Cavaliers’ 81-45 win over No. 16 Hampton lacked drama in the box score, but a scary incident just before halftime was another story in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Virginia coach Tony Bennett collapsed in the closing seconds of the first half.
All turned out to be apparently fine after the game. Bennett blamed his fall on dehydration.
All signs appear to point to the coach being ready for Saturday’s matchup against No. 9 Butler, which topped Texas Tech 71-61.
Kellen Dunham’s 23 points led all scorers in the win.
