The Latest on the first round of the NCAA Tournament (all times Eastern):
12:25 a.m.
Time to catch your breath after the NCAA Tournament’s first real day.
You have about 12 hours.
Ja Morant’s triple-double for Murray State, Wofford’s big late run against Seton Hall and perfect days for the Big Ten and SEC have set up what should be a big Friday featuring Zion Williamson and Duke, revenge-minded Virginia and dangerous Houston.
Iowa and Cincinnati get things going in Columbus, Ohio.
Other interesting matchups include Oregon-Kansas State, Buffalo-Texas Tech and a trendy upset pick in No. 12 seed Liberty taking on Mississippi State.
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12:15 a.m.
Baylor solved Syracuse’s vaunted zone with the long ball.
Makai Mason scored 22 points and Baylor set a school NCAA Tournament record with 16 3-pointers in a 78-69 victory over Syracuse 78-69 in the West Region.
The ninth-seeded Bears (20-13) found gaps in Syracuse’s 2-3 zone, mostly by getting the ball into the high post or driving and kicking out. Baylor nearly matched the school tournament record of 11 3-pointers in the first half (10) and made 16 of 34 overall.
Baylor shot 54 percent and slowed Syracuse’s own 3-point barrage in the second half to earn a shot at top-seeded Gonzaga on Saturday.
Mason and Jared Butler (14 points) each hit four 3-pointers.
No. 8 seed Syracuse (20-14) matched the Bears nearly 3-for-3 in a stellar first half before bogging down in the second.
- John Marshall reporting from Salt Lake City
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12 a.m.
Fletcher Magee has led Wofford to the first NCAA Tournament victory in school history.
The senior guard buried seven 3-pointers and scored 24 points to lead the Terriers to an 84-68 victory Seton Hall in the Midwest Region. Wofford trailed 54-53 with just over 10 minutes remaining but outscored the Pirates 31-14 from there.
In the process, Magee became the most prolific 3-point shooter in Division I history, going past the mark of 504 set by Oakland’s Travis Bader in 2014.
Magee has now connected on 509 shots beyond the arc.
The seventh-seeded Terriers will face No. 2 seed Kentucky in the second round Saturday. The Wildcats advanced with a 79-44 blowout of Abilene Christian, but they are expected to be without their leading scorer and rebounder, PJ Washington. He was wearing a cast on his sprained left foot.
Wofford (30-4) was 0-4 in the NCAA tournament before its win over the Pirates (20-14).
- Paul Newberry reporting from Jacksonville, Florida.
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11:55 p.m.
Charles Matthews had 22 points and 10 rebounds in his best performance since coming back from injury, and No. 2 seed Michigan put Montana away early in a 74-55 win in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Ignas Brazdeikis added 14 points and seven rebounds and Jon Teske had 11 points and nine rebounds for the Wolverines, who led the 15th-seeded Grizzlies by as many as 27 points in the second half.
The Wolverines made it to the round of 32 for the third straight year. They’ll play Florida on Saturday.
Sayeed Pridgett led Montana with 17 points.
- Eric Olson reporting from Des Moines, Iowa.
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11:45 p.m.
Third-seeded Purdue has blown it open against No. 14-seed Old Dominion.
Consecutive 3-pointers my 7-foot-3 Matt Haarms and leading-scorer Carsen Edwards gave the Boilermakers a 20-point lead with 15:42 remaining in the final game of the day from Hartford, Connecticut.
The Boilermakers and Michigan, which is leading Montana late in their West Region matchup, are poised to cap an unbeaten day for the Big Ten.
- Ralph D. Russo reporting from Hartford.
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11:05 p.m.
The 3-point record belongs to Fletcher Magee.
The Wofford standout knocked down his third trey of the game in the opening minute of the second half against Seton Hall, giving him the NCAA Division I career mark with 505 3-pointers.
He broke the record set by Oakland’s Travis Bader in 2014. Duke’s J.J. Redick (457), Tennessee’s Chris Lofton (431) and Davidson’s Stephen Curry (414) also rank in the top 10.
Wofford lead the Pirates 43-33 in the Midwest Regional.
- Paul Newberry reporting from Jacksonville, Florida.
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10:55 p.m.
If you like 3-pointers, Syracuse and Baylor have ’em.
Taking advantages of gaps in each other’s zone defense, the Orange and Bears have combined to hit 19 shots from beyond the arc - of 25 total field goals - in the first half of their West Region matchup.
Baylor has hit one more and leads 38-37 at the break.
Syracuse’s Elijah Hughes has made six 3s for 18 points, and Baylor’s Makai Mason has knocked down four and has 16 points.
- John Marshall reporting from Salt Lake City.
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10:45 p.m.
Second-seeded Michigan is having no problem in its opening game of the NCAA Tournament against 15th-seeded Montana.
The Wolverines, the national runners-up last year, have gotten 11 points and seven rebounds from Charles Matthews while getting out to a 34-21 halftime lead.
Michigan is shooting 54.5 percent from the field.
Montana missed eight of its first nine shots and was just 3-for-16 shooting midway through the first half. The Grizzlies were 9 of 33 at the break.
The start was in stark contrast to their first-round matchup last year. The Grizzlies scored the game’s first 10 points before giving way and losing, 61-47.
- Eric Olson reporting from Des Moines, Iowa.
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10:35 p.m.
Wofford standout Fletcher Magee has tied the Division I record for career 3-pointers with two more in the first half of the Terriers’ game against Seton Hall.
Magee has now made 504 shots from behind the arc, tying the mark set by Oakland’s Travis Bader in 2014. Duke’s J.J. Redick (457), Tennessee’s Chris Lofton (431) and Davidson’s Stephen Curry (414) also rank in the top 10.
One of Magee’s shots resulted in a four-point play that helped the seventh-seeded Terriers to a 40-30 halftime lead on the No. 10 seed Pirates in their first-round game in the Midwest Region.
- Mark Long reporting from Jacksonville, Florida.
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9:50 p.m.
The defending national champions are moving on in the NCAA Tournament.
Phil Booth scored 20 points, fellow senior Eric Paschell added 14 and No. 6 seed Villanova held off Saint Mary’s 61-57 in the first round of the South Region.
Jordan Ford and Malik Fitts each had 13 points for Saint Mary’s, which never trailed by more than eight but also couldn’t draw even down the stretch.
The Gaels’ last chance ended with a steal by Saddiq Bey in the final seconds, and the Wildcats were on to face the Purdue-Old Dominion winner for a Sweet 16 spot.
- Pat Eaton-Robb reporting from Hartford.
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9:20 p.m.
Nevada’s “Comeback Kids” didn’t have it in them in this NCAA Tournament.
The seventh-seeded Wolfpack, who twice used double-digit rallies to reach the Sweet Sixteen a year ago, cut an 18-point Florida deficit to just two points with 2:02 left. But the Gators closed the game with an 11-2 run, beating the Wolfpack 70-61 to advance in the West Region.
Kevarrius Hayes had 16 points and Jalen Hudson scored 15 for Florida.
Andrew Nembhard, whose 3 with a second left in the SEC Tournament against LSU likely sealed Florida’s at-large bid, helped the Gators pull away with a crucial layup with 1:36 left.
Cody and Caleb Martin combined to score 42 points for Nevada (29-5), but they needed 34 shots to do so.
- Luke Meredith reporting from Des Moines, Iowa.
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9:15 p.m.
With injured star PJ Washington watching from the bench, Kentucky had no problem with 15th-seeded Abilene Christian in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
Keldon Johnson scored 25 points, Reid Travis added 18 and the Wildcats from the Southeastern Conference overwhelmed the overmatched Wildcats from the Southland Conference, 79-44.
Big Blue, as expected, dominated every matchup. The Cats led 39-13 at halftime and opened a 30-point lead shortly after the break. Tyler Herro chipped in 14 points for the powerhouse program from the Bluegrass State.
Kentucky advanced to the second round for the ninth time in as many NCAA appearances under John Calipari, and will face the Seton Hall-Wofford winner.
Jaren Lewis led Abilene Christian with 17 points.
The biggest mismatch came in the backcourt, where Kentucky’s size and length posed problems all night. Abilene guards Payten Ricks and Damien Daniels scored a combined 10 points, with the 6-foot-2 Ricks hitting 3 of 11 shots and the 5-foot-7 Daniels missing all five of his.
- Mark Long reporting from Jacksonville, Florida.
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8:35 p.m.
Nevada might go from being ranked No. 7 in November to being a one-and-done as a No. 7 seed in the NCAA Tournament in March.
Tenth-seeded Florida, which needed a win over LSU in the SEC Tournament to pop off the bubble, opened up a 51-34 lead early in the second half over the Wolfpack.
Nevada managed to score just seven points in the first eight minutes of the second half, and it doesn’t appear to be up to the challenge of facing arguably its most athletic opponent of the season.
- Luke Meredith reporting from Des Moines, Iowa.
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8:20 p.m.
The NCAA Tournament game between defending champion Villanova and Saint Mary’s tipped to an almost empty arena, but it wasn’t because nobody had bought tickets.
Fans of the Wildcats, many of whom made the 4-hour drive from Philadelphia to Hartford, Connecticut, were lined up along with Gaels fans behind metal detectors as security emptied the arena from the afternoon session.
Late in the first half, the 16,000-seat XL Center was nearing capacity, but some frustrated fans were sill filing in.
- Pat Eaton-Robb reporting from Hartford.
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8 p.m.
Even with leading scorer and rebounder PJ Washington sidelined by an injured left foot, the second-seeded Wildcats have raced to a 39-13 lead at halftime of the Midwest Region game in Jacksonville.
Tyler Herro is pacing Kentucky with 14 points. The Wildcats shots 60 percent in the opening half, while limiting Abilene Christian to just 5-of-26 from the field.
Washington was injured during the Southeastern Conference tournament. Kentucky coach John Calipari announced on his Twitter page early Thursday that the 6-foot-8 sophomore was placed in a hard cast after seeing a foot specialist and wouldn’t be able to play. He’s watching the game from the bench and getting around the arena on a scooter.
The injury is still described as a sprain -not a fracture- but it’s not known when Washington will be able to return. If Kentucky knocks off Abilene Christian, they will next play Saturday against the Wofford-Seton Hall winner.
- Paul Newberry reporting from Jacksonville, Florida.
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8 p.m.
Here’s an answer to that burning question: Who, or what, is Fairleigh Dickinson?
According to the school’s website, it’s a private university in New Jersey named after its early benefactor, Farleigh S. Dickinson, who co-founded a medical technology company in the late 19th century.
The school, with enrollment of 11,500, has four campuses. It offers dozens of degrees, in business, science and the arts. The basketball program lists Hackensack as its home.
Three short nights ago, the 16th-seeded Knights earned their first NCAA Tournament victory. Tonight, they’re up against No. 1 Gonzaga, and trailing 30-11 midway through the first half.
- Eddie Pells reporting from Salt Lake City
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7:50 p.m.
Florida has taken a somewhat surprising 37-28 halftime lead over Nevada in the West Region’s No. 7 seed vs. No. 10 seed game in Des Moines, with Jalen Hudson of the Gators beating the buzzer with a soaring dunk.
Hudson has 13 points and Kevarrius Hayes has 10 for the 10th-seeded Gators, whose athleticism is giving the Wolf Pack fits.
Nevada has just four losses, but that number might soon reach five if it can’t clean things up in the second half. The Wolf Pack already have nine turnovers, and Caleb Martin was 1 of 7 from the field in the opening 20 minutes.
What should also concern Nevada is that Florida is just 3 of 12 on 3s - and it’s still up nine.
- Luke Meredith reporting from Des Moines, Iowa
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7:10 p.m.
Murray State’s Ja Morant is the star of the NCAA Tournament’s first day after leading No. 12 seed Murray State to an 83-64 blowout of No. 5 seed Marquette.
Morant ended up with 17 points, 16 assists and 11 rebounds to lead four players in double figures.
Markus Howard scored 26 points for Marquette but shot 9 of 27 and didn’t get enough help.
Murray State advances to a second-round matchup with Florida State.
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6:50 p.m.
Murray State’s Ja Morant has recorded the ninth triple-double since the NCAA started measuring the statistic in 1987.
Morant has 15 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds with 3:43 remaining in the game. The 12th-seeded Racers lead No. 5 seed Marquette 75-58.
His triple-double is the first in an NCAA Tournament game since Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green had 24 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists for Michigan State against LIU Brooklyn in 2012. Green had a total of two NCAA Tournament triple-doubles.
Other players to get official triple-doubles in NCAA Tournament games are Michigan’s Gary Grant in 1987, LSU’s Shaquille O’Neal in 1992, St. John’s David Cain in 1993, Utah’s Andre Miller in 1998, Marquette’s Dwyane Wade in 2003 and Kansas’ Cole Aldrich in 2009.
The NCAA didn’t start keeping track of triple-doubles until 1987.
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6:45 p.m.
Florida State forward Phil Cofer received a phone call from his family after the team’s 76-69 victory over Vermont and learned that his father had died.
Florida State athletic department spokesman Chuck Walsh says Mike Cofer, a former Pro Bowl linebacker with the NFL’s Detroit Lions, had been suffering from a long illness.
Mike Cofer had suffered from an uncommon disease that affects organs and tissue.
Walsh says Phil Cofer received the phone call during the open locker-room period and broke down into tears. The senior forward had missed the game with an injured foot.
Mike Cofer played for the Lions from 1983-92. The Lions drafted him in the third round out of Tennessee.
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6:15 p.m.
Murray State has opened up a double-digit lead over Marquette.
The Racers scored the first seven points of the second half on a dunk by KJ Williams and layup to slowly rolled in by Shaq Buchanan. Ja Morant assisted on Buchanan’s bucket and then converted a three-point play to give Murray State a 49-35 lead with 18 minutes left.
The Racers also got a dunk from Morant and are up 55-40 with 15 ½ minutes left
- Ralph Russo reporting from Hartford, Connecticut
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5:55 p.m.
No. 6 seed Maryland is moving on after surviving a tough bout with Belmont in a 79-77 win, keeping the Big Ten conference perfect through three games.
Jalen Smith threw down a thundering two-handed dunk over Dylan Windler, drawing a foul for a three-point play to give the Terrapins a 77-73 lead with 1:41 to play. The Bruins didn’t fade, though. Nick Muszynski’s 3-pointer cut Maryland’s lead to one point with 1:01 remaining.
The Bruins had the ball after a Terrapins miss with the chance to take the lead, but they turned it over. Windler’s final heave at the buzzer fell short.
Minnesota and Michigan State have already won, making the Big Ten 3-0 so far. Michigan and Purdue play later tonight. The Big Ten sent eight teams to the NCAA Tournament, the most in the field this year and the most in conference history.
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5:45 p.m.
Ja Morant has lived up to every bit of the hype in the first half of Murray State’s first-round game against fifth-seeded Marquette.
The 12th-seeded Racers lead 42-35 at the half, which ended with Morant making a step-back 3-pointer. Mostly, the star guard and future NBA lottery pick dominated with his passing. As the Golden Eagles’ defense collapsed on Morant, he kept finding open shooters. Morant, who leads the nation with 10 assists per game, had eight in the first half. Five set up 3-pointers.
Big East player of the year Markus Howard has 16 points for Marquette.
- Ralph Russo reporting from Hartford, Connecticut
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5:25 p.m.
No. 2 seed Michigan State had a scare from Bradley but pulled away late to win 76-65 and advance to meet Minnesota in an All-Big Ten second-round game.
Big Ten Player of the Year Cassius Winston scored 26 points to lead the Spartans, who haven’t made it past the first weekend of the tournament since 2015.
The Missouri Valley Conference’s Braves gave Michigan State all it could handle through the first 30 minutes. Bradley led 35-34 at the half and was still up by one point with 7 minutes to go. Then a 9-0 spurt put the Spartans ahead 63-55 with 2½ minutes to play.
The Spartans made 25 of 26 free throws.
Elijah Childs scored 19 points to lead the Braves, who were just 3 of 12 on 3-pointers in the second half after starting 6 for 9.
- Eric Olson reporting from Des Moines, Iowa
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5:25 p.m.
The Minnesota-Michigan State matchup in the second round will be the earliest two Big Ten teams have ever met in the NCAA Tournament. It’s the eighth all-time in any round.
The only time two Big Ten teams have played before the regional finals was in 1980, when Purdue beat Indiana in the Sweet 16. There hasn’t been an all-Big Ten matchup in any round since Michigan State beat Wisconsin in the Final Four in 2000. That came a few days after Wisconsin’s win over Purdue in the regional finals.
The other NCAA Tournament games involving Big Ten games were Michigan’s win over Ohio State in the 1992 regional finals, Michigan’s win over Illinois in the 1989 Final Four, Purdue’s win over Iowa in the 1980 third-place game and Indiana’s win over Michigan in the 1976 national championship game.
- Dave Campbell reporting from Minneapolis.
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5:11 p.m.
Kansas is giving Northeastern problems with its size inside and quickness off the dribble.
Dedric Lawson has 16 points and the fourth-seeded Jayhawks lead the No. 11 Huskies 37-25 at halftime in the Midwest Region.
Kansas went up 31-19 with an 11-0 run and has held one of the nation’s best 3-point shooting team to 5 for 17 from the arc.
The Jayhawks have a 26-4 advantage in the paint.
- John Marshall reporting from Salt Lake City.
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5:05 p.m.
The All-America matchup between Murray State’s Ja Morant and Marquette’s Markus Howard is off to a good start.
The 12th-seeded Racers are tied with the fifth-seeded Golden Eagles at 10 with 15:51 left in the first half.
Morant has a 3-pointer and a couple of assists when the defense has collapsed on him. Howard has six points, a 3-point basket and a traditional 3-point play.
- Ralph Russo reporting from Hartford, Connecticut
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4:55 p.m.
Florida State has moved on to the second round on Saturday, when the fourth-seeded Seminoles hope to have starting forward Phil Cofer back.
The senior sat out of Florida State’s first-round victory against Vermont with a sore ankle. Coach Leonard Hamilton says Cofer’s status is day to day but that he’s not likely to miss any more games after experiencing some swelling after the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament.
Another advancing team, Minnesota, has an injury to a starting forward to keep an eye on. Gophers standout
Jordan Murphy’s back locked up during the win over Louisville, requiring some medical attention behind the bench at times during the second half.
Murphy finished with 18 points. The senior says “there’s no way” he’s missing the next game.
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4:45 p.m.
Stealing a few moments from work to catch March Madness? You’re hardly alone.
A Seton Hall University poll released on Thursday says 22 percent of Americans who will watch the NCAA men’s basketball tournament acknowledge they’ll be watching from work. It’s nearly one in three when just men are counted.
The poll also reflects the changing nature of television, with 38 percent of interested viewers saying they’ll be watching either fully or partly online.
Seton Hall polled 606 adults on both land and cell telephones, and their findings had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percent.
- David Bauder reporting from New York
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4:35 p.m.
Michigan State has used a 10-0 run to take a 44-39 lead against 15th-seeded Bradley in the NCAA Tournament.
Elijah Childs dunked to put the Missouri Valley Conference’s Braves up 39-34 early in the second half, posing for the Bradley fans as he ran downcourt.
Cassius Winston’s 3-pointer broke a 39-39 tie, and Xavier Tillman’s steal and layup gave the Spartans a 44-39 lead.
No. 15 seeds were 8-128 entering the tournament. Michigan State was the last No. 2 seed to fall to a 15, losing to Middle Tennessee in 2016.
- Eric Olson reporting from Des Moines, Iowa
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4:25 p.m.
Florida State withstood a barrage of 3-pointers from 13th-seeded Vermont and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a 76-69 victory in Hartford, Connecticut.
The Catamounts went 16 for 32 from 3-point range but cooled in the second half just enough for the Seminoles to take over with their size.
Mfiondu Kabengele scored 21 points to lead fourth-seeded FSU.
The Seminoles will face the winner of Murray State and Marquette in the West Region on Saturday.
-Ralph Russo reporting from Hartford, Connecticut
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4:23 p.m.
Playing its second game in less than 48 hours, Belmont is turning in another strong performance at the NCAA Tournament.
Dylan Windler scored 15 points and Kevin McClain chipped in with 12 to lead the 11th-seeded Bruins to a 40-34 halftime edge over No. 6 Maryland in the East Regional at Jacksonville, Florida.
Belmont landed an at-large bid to the tournament but was forced to play a First Four game at Dayton on Tuesday night. The Bruins defeated Temple 81-70 for the first NCAA victory in school history, leaving them with a quick turnaround against Big Ten school Maryland.
Showing no signs of fatigue, Windler knocked down four 3-pointers in the opening half. Maryland is being paced by Jalen Smith with nine points.
- Paul Newberry reporting from Jacksonville, Florida.
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4:07 p.m.
No. 15 seed Bradley is leading Michigan State 35-34 at halftime after making 6 of 9 3-pointers the first 20 minutes, including back-to-back 3s by reserve guard Nate Kennell.
Elijah Childs, the 6-foot-7 Bradley forward who gives up at least 20 pounds to Michigan State’s big men, is holding his own with 11 points and four rebounds. Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye has nine points for the Missouri Valley Conference’s Braves.
Cassius Winston has scored 13 points for the Spartans, who are just 2 for 10 on 3s and 11 for 30 overall from the field.
- Eric Olson reporting from Des Moines, Iowa-
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