theScore runs down the top storylines and developments from Thursday's NCAA Tournament games and what it all could mean moving forward.
Princeton uses defense to stun Arizona
Through Thursday's action at the NCAA Tournament, the plucky underdog that has emerged is ... Princeton?
The Tigers absolutely stifled Arizona late in Thursday's game to mark the third straight tournament a No. 15 seed has knocked off a No. 2 in the opening round. Princeton held KenPom's fourth-ranked offense in the nation scoreless over the final 4:45 in the second half to secure the dramatic come-from-behind win. Usually a 15-over-2 upset is marked by lights-out shooting from the underdog, but that was far from the case in Sacramento. Princeton made just 4-of-25 shots from beyond the arc, but held Arizona to an equally poor 3-of-16 performance - significantly below the Wildcats' season average of 38%. The 55 points scored by the Pac-12 Tournament champions mark its lowest output of the season.
Princeton now advances to face another high-powered offense in No. 7 Missouri on Saturday. If the team defends with the same intensity as it did on Thursday, don't be shocked to see a No. 15 seed make the Sweet 16.
Duke dominates former Cinderella Oral Roberts
No. 5 Duke held No. 12 Oral Roberts without a point for the first eight minutes of the game and cruised to a 74-51 victory over a trendy upset pick in the Golden Eagles. The Blue Devils, who are the nation's tallest team according to KenPom, overwhelmed their mid-major opponent with their length. Duke scored 40 points in the paint, grabbed 42 rebounds, and blocked six shots, while also holding Oral Roberts to just 11 field goals inside the arc. Promising freshman Dereck Lively only scored four points, but his 12 rebounds and all six of his team's blocks were vital in the win.
Despite holding just a five seed, the Blue Devils are evidently one of the hottest teams in the field, notching their 10th straight victory, with six of them coming by double-digits. Their main calling card over that stretch has been defensively, holding all but one of their opponents under 70 points, including forcing Oral Roberts into its second-lowest scoring output of the year. While their defense has been solid, their offense will need to be up to par should they play No. 4 Tennessee in the Round of 32, with the Volunteers ranking second nationally in field goal defense.
Furman rides 3-point shooting to upset Virginia
Furman hasn't been shy about shooting the ball from deep all season, and it paid off big time in its upset victory over 4-seed Virginia. The Paladins made six of their 10 triples in the second half as they overcame a 12-point deficit in the final 11:54. Bob Richey's squad outscored the Cavaliers 30-6 from long distance. Junior guard Marcus Foster led the 3-point barrage with four triples as all five starters made at least one attempt from deep. It was only fitting that Furman's thrilling comeback was capped by a last-second three.
Virginia's recent NCAA tournament resume under coach Tony Bennett continues to be difficult to understand. In three of the last four tournament appearances, the Cavaliers have fallen in the opening round despite being favored in each contest. The other appearance -- Virginia's national championship season of 2019.
Texas can't miss in comfortable win
The opening-round matchup between Texas and Colgate Thursday featured the nation's top 3-point shooting team in action. The pregame stats had shown that was the 15th-seeded Raiders, but it was a different story once the contest tipped off. The No. 2 Longhorns absolutely torched the nets from deep, connecting on a whopping 13-of-23 shots from beyond the arc. That 56.5% clip is a significant improvement from the team's season average of 33.9%. The main figure in that red-hot shooting was sixth man Sir'Jabari Rice. The senior canned a season-best seven triples in the matchup. Perhaps even more surprising is that Rice actually went 0-for-10 from deep in his previous two games. If the Longhorns keep up that pace from 3-point range throughout the tournament, it'll make an already tough team almost impossible to knock out.
Funk's flame-throwing carries Penn State
On a day when efficient shooting was hard to come by, No. 10 Penn State put on an elite offensive display to easily knock off No. 7 Texas A&M 76-59 to end off the 16-game Thursday slate. Led by guard Andrew Funk's unconscious 8-for-10 mark, the Nittany Lions shot a crisp 59% from beyond the arc. Likely All-American guard Jalen Pickett was the leader of the offense, with a well-rounded stat line of 19 points, seven rebounds, and eight assists.
Penn State's shooting is nothing new - the team is ninth in the country in 3-point percentage and scores over 43% of its points from deep, second-most nationwide. The worry was how that shooting would translate against a physical SEC team, but the Aggies' perimeter defense left a lot to be desired. No. 2 Texas awaits the Nittany Lions, with the Longhorns coming off a game in which they held Colgate, the nation's best 3-point shooting team, to a 3-of-15 mark. It's already been a mega-impressive campaign for Micah Shrewsberry and Co., but knocking off a surging Texas squad would be icing on the cake.
UCLA steamroller in full effect
UCLA wasn't interested in a plucky underdog keeping things close Thursday, and the Bruins ensured that wouldn't happen right from the opening tip. The No. 2 seed in the West raced out to a 14-0 lead over No. 15 UNC Asheville and never looked back en route to a dominant 86-53 blowout. Many questioned how UCLA would look without the injured Adem Bona and Jaylen Clark, but Mick Cronin showed his squad's depth in Sacramento. Kenneth Nwuba and Mac Etienne combined for 20 points, six rebounds, and three blocks in taking on the vast majority of minutes. That's a great sign for the Bruins' chances of making a deep run in the West this time around.
Sasser injury hangs over Houston win
It wasn't the most comfortable victory for Houston, but the top-ranked Cougars held on and survived against No. 16 Northern Kentucky on Thursday. One thing was clear despite the win; it might be a short tournament for the top seed in the Midwest if Marcus Sasser can't play Saturday against Auburn. The Cougars' leading scorer aggravated a groin injury he suffered in last weekend's AAC Tournament and didn't play in the second half. The Houston offense looked very disjointed without Sasser, struggling to just 63 points for the game.
Missouri ends tourney drought
For the first time since 2010, Missouri can celebrate a win in the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers ended a drought of 4,745 days with an impressive victory over Utah State on Thursday. The duo of D'moi Hodge and Kobe Brown combined for 42 points on an electric 8-of-14 shooting from beyond the arc to pace the Tigers' offense. While there's never been a question surrounding Missouri scoring the ball, the defense has been the team's Achilles heel this season, ranking 160th in the nation in KenPom's efficiency ratings. Those struggles were non-existent on Thursday, as the SEC program held the Aggies to just 4-of-24 shooting from beyond the arc. Making that number even more impressive is Utah State's standing as the 10th-best 3-point shooting team in the country at 38.5%.
Tennessee wins, fails to show offensive improvement
Though it was anything but a strong offensive performance, No. 3 Tennessee survived No. 14 Louisiana by a score of 58-55. Entering the NCAA Tournament in a tailspin ever since losing starting point guard Zakai Zeigler, the Volunteers did nothing to dispel concerns about their scoring output of late. Their always-solid defense held the Ragin' Cajuns to just 41% shooting from the field and forced 15 turnovers, but Tennessee coughed up 16 giveaways of its own, failing to pull away from its inferior opponent.
Truthfully, Tennessee's performance Thursday wouldn't have cut it against most higher seeds in the bracket. Leading scorer Santiago Vescovi put up just three points on three shots and failed to give the team a go-to option down the stretch. No matter how good the Vols' defense plays against a red-hot No. 5 Duke team Saturday, failing to top 60 points won't lead to a Sweet 16 berth.
Auburn stumbles, then shows clutch closing ability
Auburn has struggled to hold onto leads at numerous points this season, and for a large stretch of the second half on Thursday, it looked as though that ugly habit was rearing its ugly head again. The Tigers saw a 17-point lead get cut to just four by Iowa with under four minutes to play in the contest. Auburn steadied itself during a timeout, and from that point on closed in nearly perfect fashion to secure the win. Wendell Green Jr. and the rest of the Tigers made Iowa pay for having to foul - making 11-of-12 free throws over that stretch.
San Diego State ends Mountain West woes
It wasn't very pretty, but No. 5 San Diego State finally got the Mountain West on the board with a 63-57 victory over No. 12 Charleston in a defensive battle. The victory snapped the conference's 11-game NCAA Tournament losing streak, and was its first since Nevada in 2018. The Aztecs struggled mightily to score at points throughout the contest, making just four 3-pointers, but held the oft-shooting Cougars to just five long balls of their own. Still, Charleston had a chance to regain the ball down two points with under one minute to play, but a controversial foul call on San Diego State guard Matt Bradley's 3-pointer as the shot clock buzzer sounded foiled that opportunity.
Bradley led the contest with 17 points, but the team's star was its defense, holding a Charleston team that averages over 80 points per game to its lowest scoring total of the season. The Aztecs will square off against another hot-shooting mid-major squad in the Round of 32, with No. 13 Furman awaiting them after its stunning victory over No. 4 Virginia.
Kansas shows great balance in blowout win
The defending champions fully looked the part on Thursday as Kansas put up 96 points in a blowout of No. 16 Howard. All five Jayhawks starters scored in double figures, with Jalen Wilson and Gradey Dick leading the way at 20 and 19 points, respectively. Kansas' swarming defense also forced 18 Bison turnovers in the win -- another reminder that the Jayhawks are among the most balanced teams in the country. Bill Self remained sidelined as he recovers from a heart procedure last week, but his veteran team showed they are a well-disciplined outfit that can easily execute the coach's plans whether he's on the bench or not. The competition will be stronger in either Arkansas or Illinois on Saturday, but there's nothing from Kansas' performance on Thursday that suggests anything less than a Final Four team this time around.
Alabama flexes depth
There's no question that Brandon Miller is one of the best players in college basketball this season and the undisputed leader of No. 1 Alabama. However, the Crimson Tide showed they are far from a one-man team on Thursday, as the rest of the SEC champions rose to the occasion in a comfortable win over Texas A&M-CC. Battling a groin injury, Miller was held scoreless in the contest for the first time all season, finishing 0-for-5 from the floor in 19 minutes of action. Despite that performance from the 6-foot-9 freshman, Alabama still nearly hit the 100-point mark with a 96-point outburst. Five different players hit double figures for Nate Oats' program, led by 17 from Nick Pringle off the bench. Miller's likely to rebound in the second round, and with the depth pieces firing on all cylinders, the Crimson Tide will be a very difficult out going forward.
Northwestern continues unprecedented success
Chris Collins only furthered his status as the greatest coach in Northwestern basketball history after his No. 7 Wildcats knocked off No. 10 Boise State 75-67. Seven years after leading the program to its first NCAA Tournament, Collins now owns both March Madness victories in school history. Led by their defense all season, the Wildcats held Boise State to just 40% shooting from the field, allowing only six 3-pointers. Offensively, their high-scoring backcourt paced them, with Boo Buie, Chase Audige, and Ty Berry combining for 55 points in the contest.
The next step toward Collins' uncharted success at Northwestern would be a Sweet 16 berth. However, with a likely matchup against No. 2 UCLA on deck, that's far from a sure thing. Still, Thursday's result was a good sign for a Wildcats team that headed into the tournament having lost four of its last five games.
Arkansas gets Kansas after convincing victory
No. 9 Illinois made it interesting late, but No. 8 Arkansas moved on to the Round of 32 with a rather convincing 73-63 victory in Des Moines. The Razorbacks led by as much as 17 points, in large part due to their 12 steals and 10 offensive rebounds, giving them 11 more field goal attempts than the Illini. Arkansas' trio of Ricky Council, Davonte Davis, and Anthony Black combined for 46 of the team's points.
Arkansas and coach Eric Musselman have now won at least one NCAA Tournament game in three consecutive seasons after back-to-back Elite Eight berths. However, the Razorbacks' attempt to return to that stage won't get any easier, as they'll take on No. 1 seed Kansas in the Round of 32.
Maryland shows resiliency in comeback win
It wasn't an ideal start to the tourney for Maryland. The Terrapins trailed by 12 points after nine minutes, committed five early turnovers in six possessions, and went scoreless for a near eight-minute stretch, yet they somehow took a two-point lead into halftime. Kevin Willard's team deserves credit for regrouping before the break. Even though it wasn't pretty, surviving and advancing is all that matters at this point of the year.
The loss is certainly one that will haunt Bob Huggins and West Virginia going forward, as the Mountaineers looked the better team throughout the contest. The Big 12 program connected on over 40% of its triples, snagged more rebounds than the Terrapins, and turned the ball over less - yet somehow the team is heading home instead of advancing to the next round.
