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NCAA - Midwest
March 22, 2003
NASHVILLE -- Utah overcame its worst shooting performance of the season to win again in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Nick Jacobson hit two of his three free throws with 14.4 seconds left as the ninth-seeded Utes beat Oregon 60-58 on Friday in the Midwest Region.
No.8 seed Oregon (23-10) had a chance to win, but James Davis missed two 3-pointers off the rim in the final seconds.
The Utes won despite missing their first nine shots and hitting 29.5 percent (18-of-61) from the floor. They also were without second-leading scorer Britton Johnsen, sidelined with an enlarged spleen from mononucleosis.
Utah (25-7) has won nine of its 10 first-round games, all under coach Rick Majerus. It lost its only first-round game last season to eventual runner-up Indiana.
"We were playing with every possible combination," Majerus said. "We were drawing things up. We didn't have plays. ... But we did a great job playing through adversity."
It was a disappointing loss for Pac-10 tournament champion Oregon (23-10), a team ranked as high as fifth in the nation in December. Luke Ridnour, the Pac-10 player of the year, had one of his worst games of the season.
INDIANA 67, ALABAMA 62: Bracey Wright scored all 17 of his points after halftime and Tom Coverdale had 23 points, eight assists and the game's final rebound to lead Indiana in Boston.
Maurice Williams had 26 points, and Erwin Dudley had 18 points and nine rebounds for Alabama, the No.1-ranked team in the country on New Year's Day before falling apart in the second half of the season. Alabama also collapsed against the Hoosiers.
The 10th-seeded Crimson Tide (17-12) led by 11 at the half but trailed the No.7 seed by six until Williams hit a long 3-pointer with a minute left to make it 65-62. Wright missed at the other end, but when Williams had a chance to tie it in the final seconds his 3-point attempt went wide.
Coverdale corraled it for his eighth rebound of the game, and the Hoosiers threw the ball long to A.J. Moye for an insurance dunk that accounted for the final score.
PITTSBURGH 87, WAGNER 61: The Panthers ruined the Seahawks' first trip to the NCAAs in Boston.
Wagner stayed close for most of the first half before Pittsburgh finished it with a 7-2 run for a 40-29 lead. The Panthers started the second half with an 18-3 surge that all but finished the Seahawks with nearly 14 minutes still to play.
As usual, the defense of the bigger, quicker Panthers was outstanding as they came up with 14 steals. Pitt held Wagner to 10 baskets and forced 10 turnovers in the first half and was even better after that. In 16 of their 30 games, including the previous five, the Panthers held opponents to 60 points or fewer.
KENTUCKY 95, IUPUI 64: When Kentucky got to the locker room in Nashville, after another dominating performance, a message awaited players on the board: "5 More."
The top-seeded Wildcats (30-3) extended their winning streak to 24, routing tournament newcomer IUPUI. But they won't be satisfied unless the streak lasts another five games for the school's eighth national championship.
The Wildcats haven't lost since Dec.28, and they weren't about to slip against a team with an eye chart of a name. Kentucky shot a staggering 62 percent, hitting 40 of 65 attempts from the field.