Survive and advance.
March Madness fans have heard this many times, and for the second straight game, the No. 1 seeded Pittsburgh Panthers did just that as they edged No. 8 seeded Oklahoma State 84–76 in the second round of the East Region in Dayton, Ohio.
Senior forward Sam Young led the way for Pitt (30–4, 15–3 Big East) with a game-high 32 points and eight rebounds.
Sophomore forward DeJuan Blair did his part, recording yet another double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds, six of which were offensive.
Senior guard Levance Fields contributed 13 points and nine assists in the winning effort. Although Fields’s numbers may not be as big as Young’s or Blair’s, his consistent play has been key to the Panthers success.
While he’s no Jonny Flynn or Ty Lawson, Fields has been a floor general all season long for the Panthers; he’s really an extension of head coach Jamie Dixon on the floor. He also has one trait that simply cannot be taught—experience.
That experience showed as the game wound down as Fields controlled the pace of the offense while scoring on a lay-up, followed soon after by a deep three in the corner to break the tie and give Pitt a 79–74 lead with 1:27 to play and the eventual win.
Junior guard Obi Muonelo led the way for the Cowboys (23–12, 9–7 Big 12) with 19 points in the losing effort.
The win advances Pitt to the Sweet 16 for the second time in three years and fifth time in the last eight years. The Panthers have not advanced past the Sweet 16 since 1974.
As for the tough games the teams have played thus far, Blair told the AP following the game, “It’s a tough bracket that we’re in. We’re fighting through it.”
They fought, they survived, and they advanced to face Xavier in the East Regional semifinals in Boston on Thursday.
Williams Leads Cardinals Past Siena
It took a rally in the closing minutes of the game and a double-double from senior forward Terrence Williams (24 points and 15 rebounds) for No. 1 seeded Louisville to escape the upset from No. 9 seeded Siena with a 79–72 victory in the second round of the Midwest Region in Dayton, OH.
Siena (27–8, 16–2 MAAC) led Louisville (30–5, 16–2 Big East) by as much as 12 at one point in the second half before
Louisville stormed back, led by none other than Williams.
Williams did it all for the Cardinals, nailing jump shots from beyond the arc, ripping down boards, and being the catalyst of the press defense, which in turn was causing turnovers and setting up fast breaks.
Siena was led by junior guard/forward Edwin Ubiles who tallied 24 points and 8 rebounds.
Louisville will take on No. 12 seeded Arizona on Friday in the semifinals of the Midwest Region.
Mizzou Squeaks by Marquette
After sitting on the bench for most of the second half despite 15 first half points, freshman guard Kim English came in to take two free-throws for junior guard J.T. Tiller, who was injured on his way to the basket. English drained the two free-throws with 5.5 seconds remaining, giving him 17 points for the game as No. 3 seeded Missouri defeated No. 6 seeded Marquette 83–79 in the second round of the West Region in Boise, ID.
Following the free-throws, junior forward Lazar Hayward stepped over the baseline while trying to inbound the ball, turning the ball over back to Mizzou (30–6, 12–4 Big 12) and closing the door on the hopes of a Marquette Golden Eagles (25–10, 12–6 Big East) comeback.
Senior Forward Leon Lyons scored 18 points for Mizzou while senior Jerel McNeal dropped 30 points in the losing effort and his last game as a Golden Eagle.
Senior guard Dominic James returned to play one final time for Marquette after breaking his foot and missing the final six games, five of which his team lost.
James was expected to miss the remainder of the season and it was seen why when he came off the bench to contribute just a single assist and single rebound in the gutsy performance. He averaged 11.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game during the season.
Missouri will move on to play No. 2 seeded Memphis in the semifinals of the West Region on Thursday.
Matt Sugam also writes for The Daily Targum at Rutgers University.
