Villanova's Donte DiVincenzo
MBB Minute -- Villanova, Butler, Xavier Take The Floor In Saturday NCAA Play
The three BIG EAST teams still alive in the NCAA Tournament all play on Saturday after notching first-round wins on Thursday. Coincidentally, all three squads posted 76 points in their victories.
Villanova, the No. 1 seed in the East Region, plays No. 8 seeded Wisconsin in Buffalo, N.Y., at approximately 2:40 p.m. ET on CBS. The Wildcats turned it on in the second half of their 76-56 win over Mount St. Mary’s. Freshman Donte DiVincenzo came off the bench to record his first career double-double with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Villanova shot 63.3 percent from the floor in the second half.
Butler, the No. 4 seed in the South Region, meets 12
th-seeded Middle Tennessee State at 7:10 p.m. on TBS in Milwaukee, Wis. The Bulldogs never trailed in their 76-64 win over No. 13 seed Winthrop. Avery Woodson led the Bulldog scoring with 18 points, all on 3-pointers. Butler enjoyed a 42-27 edge in rebounding.
Xavier, the No. 11 seed in the West Region, battles No. 3 seed Florida State in Orlando, Fla., at 6:10 p.m. on TNT. The Musketeers defeated No. 6 seed Maryland 76-65, using a 14-0 run midway through the second half to help secure the victory. Trevon Bluiett scored a team-high 21 points and Sean O’Mara added 18 points and seven rebounds.
Creighton, Seton Hall and Marquette were eliminated in first-round games on Friday. Creighton, the No. 6 seed in the Midwest Region, lost 84-72 to No. 11 seed Rhode Island. Marcus Foster and Ronnie Harrell Jr. each scored 15 points for the Bluejays.
No. 9 seed Seton Hall dropped a 77-71 decision to No. 8 seed Arkansas in a South Region game. Angel Delgado registered his nation-leading 27
th double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Khadeen Carrington scored a team-high 22 points.
Marquette, the No. 10 seed in the East Region, led No. 7 seed South Carolina 40-39 at halftime, but could not keep it going in the second half and lost 93-73. Jajuan Johnson led the Golden Eagles with 16 points. Andrew Rowsey and Markus Howard each added 13 points.