NCAA tournament roundup: Otega Oweh saves Kentucky with buzzer-beating bank shot
March 21 – Otega Oweh rescued Kentucky with a buzzer-beating 35-footer off the glass to force overtime, then the seventh-seeded Wildcats owned the extra session to escape with an 89-84 win over No. 10 Santa Clara in Midwest Region first-round action on Friday afternoon in St. Louis.
Santa Clara forward Allen Graves hit what looked to be a game-winning 3-pointer when he connected from the right wing with 2.4 seconds left, but Oweh took the inbounds pass and pulled up just in time to send the game to overtime. He then made all four of his free-throw attempts in the extra session when Kentucky outscored Santa Clara 16-11.
Oweh finished with a career-high 35 points, eight rebounds and seven assists and Mouhamed Dioubate had 17 points and eight rebounds for the Wildcats (22-13), who shot 50.8% to win a rollercoaster game which featured 20 lead changes and 12 ties.
Elijah Mahi led the Broncos (26-9) with 20 points in the program’s first NCAA Tournament game in 30 years. Graves added 17 points and seven rebounds.
No. 2 Iowa State 108, No. 15 Tennessee State 74
The Cyclones dominated the final 38 minutes of action, blowing out the Tigers in St. Louis despite losing All-American forward Justin Jefferson to a knee injury.
Iowa State advanced to play No. 7 Kentucky in the second round on Sunday. Head coach T.J. Otzelberger said X-rays were negative and that Jefferson would be re-evaluated on Saturday before determining his game status against the Wildcats.
Freshman Killyan Toure had 25 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, Nate Heise scored 22 points and Milan Momcilovic added 17 for Iowa State, which forced 16 turnovers. Aaron Nkrumah led Tennessee State (23-10) with 21 points. Antoine Lorick III added 20 points and eight rebounds.
No. 3 Virginia 82, No. 14 Wright State 73
Jacari White scored a season-high 26 points and hit the go-ahead floater off the glass with 4:07 to play as the Cavaliers survived a tough test from the Raiders in Philadelphia.
White made 6 of 8 from 3-point range, Sam Lewis scored 12 points, Malik Thomas added 11 and Thijs De Ridder had 10 for Virginia (30-5), which used a late 11-0 run to create some distance and secure its first NCAA Tournament win since winning the 2019 national championship.
Michael Imariagbe had 19 points and 10 rebounds for Wright State (23-12). Solomon Callaghan added 18 points and combined with Imariagbe to shoot 9 for 15 from behind the arc. The Raiders made 13 3-pointers, the most Virginia has allowed this season.
No. 4 Alabama 90, No. 13 Hofstra 70
Labaron Philon Jr. took over by scoring 21 of his game-high 29 points in the second half as the Crimson Tide shrugged off an early 10-point deficit to handle the Pride during first-round play in Tampa, Fla.
Philon, who sported a bandage on his cut chin in the second half, made 10 of 18 shots and added eight rebounds, seven assists, and three steals. The Crimson Tide (24-9) played without No. 2 scorer Aden Holloway, who was suspended for first-degree felony marijuana possession, but Aiden Sherrill stepped forward with 15 points and 15 rebounds.
