Darrion Williams scored the tiebreaking basket with 7.3 seconds left in overtime after tying the game with a three-pointer in the closing seconds of regulation to lead Texas Tech to an 85-83 win over Arkansas on Thursday night and a spot in the Elite Eight.
The first overtime game of March Madness came thanks to a furious comeback by the third-seeded Red Raiders (28-8) from 16 points down midway through the second half against coach John Calipari’s 10th-seeded Razorbacks (22-14).
Texas Tech advanced to play top-seeded Florida in the West Region final on Saturday.
Florida 87, Maryland 71
Will Richard scored 15 points, Alijah Martin added 14 points and seven rebounds, and top-seeded Florida played a steady second half to run away from No. 4 seed Maryland and into the NCAA Tournament’s West Region final with a win.
Walter Clayton Jr. contributed 13 points and four assists as Florida’s Big Three seniors and their deep supporting cast took down the Maryland “Crab Five” starters — one of Terrapins coach Kevin Willard’s concerns coming into this matchup.
Freshman sensation Derik Queen scored 27 points to lead Maryland (27-9) in what might have been Willard’s final game guiding the program. He has been linked to the opening at Villanova.
Florida (33-4) advances to play Saturday against the winner of Thursday’s late game at Chase Center between third-seeded Texas Tech.
The Gators, in the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2017 and seeking the program’s first Final Four berth since 2014, committed 13 of their 17 turnovers in the first half but took better care of the ball over the final 20 minutes. Florida already eliminated two-time defending NCAA champions UConn in the second round and are 10-1 in regional semifinals.
Alabama 113, BYU 88
Alabama broke the 35-year-old March Madness record for three-pointers with 25 and Mark Sears scored 30 of his 34 points on 3s, a relentless long-range spree that ushered the second-seeded Crimson Tide past BYU 113-88 on Thursday night in an NCAA Tournament East Region semifinal.
Alabama reached the Elite Eight in consecutive years for the first time in program history.
The Crimson Tide made 25 of 51 three-point attempts to break the record of 21 set by Loyola Marymount in 1990. Sears, a first-team All-America guard, hit the record-breaking 22nd 3 late in the game to make it 97-66. He received a standing ovation from the Alabama fans when he checked out with 10 3s and more than four minutes left to play.
Sears and the Crimson Tide (28-8) showed they are no March fluke under coach Nate Oats. Riding a wave of threes, Alabama set itself up for a date against either Duke for a shot at the Final Four.
Richie Saunders scored 25 points to lead BYU (26-10), who haven’t played in a regional final since 1981.
Duke 100, Arizona 93
Duke stud Cooper Flagg put on a skills clinic and overcame an onslaught from Arizona and Caleb Love, finishing with 30 points, six rebounds, seven assists and three blocks Thursday night in an NCAA Tournament victory that pulled the Blue Devils within one win of the Final Four.
Flagg, long over the balky ankle that sidelined him earlier this month, did enough to prevent Love, a thorn in Duke’s side for five years, from ruining another Blue Devils season.
Love finished with 35 points, one short of his career high, including a streak of 12 straight for his Wildcats (24-13) during a ferocious second-half run that cut a 19-point deficit to as little as five with 1:56 left.
