SALT LAKE CITY -- At Vanderbilt, there is only one question: What was he thinking?
Northwestern's first-ever NCAA Tournament victory, 68-66 over Vanderbilt, came after Commodores guard Matthew Fisher-Davis inexplicably grabbed Bryant McIntosh of the Wildcats on purpose, sending McIntosh to the free-throw line for the go-ahead points with 15 seconds left.
"I actually thought we were down one," Fisher-Davis explained after Thursday's heartbreaker in the West region. "Coach ... pointed at him, but he was just telling me that was my matchup. I took it as [I should] foul. It was just a dumb-*** foul."
And though Fisher-Davis scored 14 of his 22 points in the second half to help ninth-seeded Vanderbilt (19-16) rally from 15 points down, his mistake was the main takeaway from this game -- maybe not as bad as Chris Webber calling a timeout that Michigan didn't have or Georgetown's Fred Brown throwing the pass to James Worthy of North Carolina in the final, but certainly not one for the "One Shining Moment" video, either.
The sequence was set up after Riley LaChance made a layup with 18 seconds remaining to put the Commodores up by one.
But seconds after the in-bounds pass, Fisher-Davis reached out and grabbed McIntosh around the waist while the Northwestern guard was dribbling up the backcourt. That put eighth-seeded Northwestern in the double bonus, and McIntosh went to the line and calmly made the free throws with 15 seconds left for a 67-66 lead.
Northwestern forced LaChance to miss a three on the next possession and the Wildcats sank (24-11) another free throw.
Fisher-Davis heaved a desperation shot at the buzzer, but it missed, and he sunk his head and reached down to his shoes in despair before heading to the sideline where his teammates hugged him.
GONZAGA 66,
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 46
South Dakota State of the Summit League gnawed away at Gonzaga for the better part of 35 minutes before the Zags pulled away for a victory.
Jordan Mathews scored 16 points to lead the Bulldogs (33-1).
The Jackrabbits (18-17) hung in without a breakout game from Mike Daum. The nation's second-leading scorer finished 7 for 16 from the floor with 17 points -- more than eight below his average.
Daum did a nice job on Gonzaga's 7-foot-1 center, Przemek Karnowski, holding him to four points over the first 32 minutes. But Karnowski, who finished with 10 points, scored three consecutive buckets for the Bulldogs to help them expand the lead to 20 with 5 minutes left.
SAINT MARY'S 85,
VA. COMMONWEALTH 77
Jock Landale had 18 points and 13 rebounds as seventh-seeded Saint Mary's held on for a victory over No. 10 Virginia Commonwealth in the opening round.
The Gaels led most of the way, but had to fight to hold on after the VCU defensive pressure started to become too much in the second half.
Joe Rahon and Calvin Hermanson finished with 16 points apiece for Saint Mary's. JeQuan Lewis paced VCU with 30 points.
ARIZONA 100,
NORTH DAKOTA 82
Freshman Lauri Markkanen scored 20 points as second-seeded Arizona cruised to a victory over No. 15 North Dakota.
Arizona used a 13-1 run early in the first half to take 24-13 lead and never looked back. The Wildcats (31-4) lead 53-37 at halftime thanks to a dominant 16-point half from Markkanen and a 61.1 shooting percentage in the first 20 minutes.
Allonzo Trier finished with 18 points for Arizona. Quinton Hooker led the Fighting Hawks (22-10) with 25 points.
WEST VIRGINIA 86, BUCKNELL 80
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Nathan Adrian had 12 points and 10 rebounds, leading West Virginia to a victory over Bucknell in the first round.
Tarik Phillip scored 16 points for the West Region's fourth-seeded Mountaineers, who struggled at times with the outside-shooting Bison. West Virginia (27-9) avoided a repeat of last year's first-round meltdown when the third-seeded Mountaineers lost to Stephen F. Austin.
Kimbal Mackenzie made 5 of 7 three-point attempts and led the Patriot League-champion Bison with 23 points. Bucknell (26-9) entered the tournament having won six consecutive and 14 of 16.
NOTRE DAME 60,
PRINCETON 58
Bonzie Colson scored 18 points and Notre Dame survived a first-round scare by pulling out a victory over Princeton.
The Tigers had a chance to pull ahead on their final possession, but Devin Cannady missed an open three-pointer just before the final horn. Notre Dame's Steve Vasturia pulled down the rebound and was fouled.
The Fighting Irish (26-9) nearly squandered an 11-point second-half lead. Guard Matt Farrell scored 16 points, but missed the front end of a one-and-one with Notre Dame up 59-58.
Spencer Weisz led the Tigers (23-7) with 15 points.
XAVIER 76, MARYLAND 65
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Trevon Bluiett scored 21 points and Sean O'Mara had 18 to help No. 11 seed Xavier upset sixth-seeded Maryland.
The Musketeers advanced to the second round for the third consecutive year. Maryland lost in the first round for the first time since 1997.
After a slow start, Bluiett came through with 18 second-half points to help the Musketeers rally from an early 6-point deficit. Bluiett converted seven field goals, including five three-pointers to energize Xavier.
Freshman Kevin Huerter led the Terps with 19 points.
FLORIDA STATE 86,
FLORIDA GULF COAST 80
Dwayne Bacon scored 25 points and Jonathan Isaac added 17 points and 10 rebounds to help third-seeded Florida State hold off No. 14 Florida Gulf Coast.
The Seminoles (26-8), making their first appearance since 2012 in the NCAAs, advanced on in the West Region.
The Eagles (26-8) saw their tournament hopes end in the first round for the second consecutive year. But FGCU made it interesting in the waning moments as the Seminoles let a sizeable lead slip away because of missed free throws and untimely fouls.
Sports on 03/17/2017