ORLANDO, Fla. — JP Pegues made a 3-pointer with 2.4 seconds remaining, and No. 13 seed Furman completed a rally from a 12-point second-half deficit to hand fourth-seeded Virginia another first-round NCAA Tournament loss, 68-67 on Thursday.
Making their first trip to the NCAA Tournament in 43 years, the Paladins (28-7) advanced to the second round in the South Region, where they will play either fifth-seeded San Diego State or 12th-seeded Charleston on Saturday.
“All year we’ve been saying that this team just knows how to win. … It’s an unbelievable moment,” Furman Coach Bob Richey said.
“This game is — interesting might be the word I’d use,” Virginia Coach Tony Bennett said. “You feel like, we got it, we got it, and then all of a sudden in a moment’s notice, it changes at the end. That’s tough.”
Furman earned its first tournament berth since 1980 by beating Chattanooga for the Southern Conference title, capping a season-long quest to redeem itself after losing the league’s automatic berth to the Mocs in overtime on a 35-foot buzzer-beater last year.
“I couldn’t help but go back when I saw the shot in the air to a year ago. It’s just a reminder, like we said it all year, count on joy, and you don’t know timing of things. … This team has persevered, and they did it today,” Richey said. “It’s a microcosm of what they learned, and they just keep reliving the lesson and keep finding ways.”
In the aftermath of last year’s disappointment, Jalen Slawson and his best friend, Mike Bothwell, both decided to return for their fifth seasons with the Paladins. Slawson took over the game when Bothwell fouled out with just over six minutes remaining, scoring nine consecutive points to turn a 54-48 deficit into Furman’s first lead of the game, 57-54, with 5:02 to go.
Slawson, the Southern Conference player of the year, finished with 19 points, 10 rebounds and four assists.
“I told Mike that we weren’t going to let today be his last time putting a jersey on, and I know if roles were reversed, the same thing would have happened,” Slawson said. “It didn’t have to just be me. But the game was up there for the taking, and these guys told me they believed in me and told me I was being a little bit passive, told me to be a little bit more aggressive.”
Kihei Clark, who starred as a freshman on Virginia’s 2019 national title-winning team, threw a bad pass that Garrett Hien intercepted at midcourt with 7 seconds to go, setting up Pegues’ go-ahead basket, his only 3 of the game.
“As soon as I saw it go into Garrett Hien’s hands, I was like, I want the ball. I feel like those are moments I’ve created my whole life, and I feel like I’m built for,” Pegues said. “I had full belief that it was going in, and it did.”
Reece Beekman’s deep 3-pointer at the buzzer bounced off the rim and Virginia (25-8) was eliminated in the first round as the higher-seeded team for the third time in its past four NCAA tournaments — most notably its loss as a No. 1 seed to 16th-seeded UMBC in 2018. Virginia hasn’t won an NCAA Tournament game since its 2019 triumph over Texas Tech for the title.
MARYLAND 67, WEST VIRGINIA 65: Maryland overcame a sluggish start and a final heave at the buzzer by Kedrian Johnson, topping West Virginia in the first round at Birmingham, Alabama.
Johnson led all scorers with 27 points, but his potential winner bounced off the side of the rim as the horn sounded, allowing the Terrapins (22-12) to advance.
Maryland, led by Julian Reese with 17 points and nine rebounds, meets the winner of top-seeded Alabama and No. 16 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Saturday.
Maryland fell behind by 12 points in the first half before rallying to take a 32-30 lead at the break. Neither team could break away over the final 20 minutes.
A traveling call on Jahmir Young gave West Virginia a chance to tie it with a 3-pointer. But the Mountaineers could not find anyone open beyond the arc, forcing Tre Mitchell to bank it in under the basket.
Young was fouled after the inbounds but made only one of two free throws. West Virginia got the ball in the hands of the guy it wanted, only to have Johnson come up short on the buzzer beater.
MISSOURI 76, UTAH STATE 65: Missouri used a second-half scoring spurt from Kobe Brown to win its first NCAA Tournament game in 13 years, beating Utah State at Sacramenton, California.
Brown hit three 3-pointers in a span of just over three minutes to fuel a 13-2 run that turned a two-point deficit into a 62-53 lead.
The seventh-seeded Tigers (25-9) held on from there, stopping a six-game tournament skid with their first win since beating Clemson in the first round in 2010.
Missouri advanced to play the winner of the Arizona-Princeton game in the second round of the South Region.
The 10th-seeded Aggies (26-9) have dropped their last 10 tournament games since beating Ohio State in the first round in 2001. The loss was also the 11th straight for a Mountain West team in the NCAAs.
SAN DIEGO STATE 63, CHARLESTON 57: Matt Bradley scored 17 points, including two free throws in the final minute, and No. 5 seed San Diego State held on to beat 12th-seeded College of Charleston.
The Aztecs (28-6) won their first game in the Big Dance since 2015 – ending a four-game losing streak – and snapped an 11-game skid for the Mountain West Conference. The Cougars (31-4) lost for the first time in six weeks and have not won an NCAA tournament game since 1997.
San Diego State advanced to face 13th-seeded Furman in the South Region at the Amway Center on Saturday. The Paladins used a late steal and 3-pointer to stun No. 4 seed Virginia four years to the day since the Cavaliers became the first and only No. 1 seed to lose in the opening round.
ALABAMA 96, TEXAS A&M CC 75: Alabama buried Texas A&M-Corpus Christi under an early 3-point onslaught, launching the NCAA Tournament’s top seed to a 96-75 first-round romp on Thursday even with star freshman Brandon Miller going scoreless.
The Crimson Tide (30-5) set aside their off-court distractions and buried 10 first-half 3s in a predictably easy win over the 16th-seeded Islanders (24-11) at Legacy Arena, less than an hour from campus. Miller, the All-American who has been beset by questions about his presence at the scene of a fatal shooting, sat out the final 14 minutes and missed all five field goal attempts. His previous low was eight points against Houston on Dec. 10.
Miller hasn’t been accused of any crime in the shooting, which led to capital murder charges against then-teammate Darius Miles and another man.
Alabama didn’t need the 6-foot-9 freshman to have a big game to advance to play eighth-seeded Maryland on Saturday in the South Region. The Tide coasted after leading 54-34 by the half.
EAST REGIONAL
DUKE 74, ORAL ROBERTS 51: Jeremy Roach matched a career-high 23 points, and No. 5 seed Duke beat Oral Roberts in Orlando, Florida in the school’s first NCAA Tournament game since Jon Scheyer took over as Blue Devils coach.
Dariq Whitehead added 13 points for the Blue Devils (27-8), winners of the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament. Roach has now scored 23 points in back-to-back games after setting his career high the ACC championship game
Scheyer helped Hall of Fame Coach Mike Krzyzewski win two of five national titles as a former Duke player and assistant. He’s now trying to orchestrate some March Madness magic of his own.
WEST REGIONAL
KANSAS 96, HOWARD 68: Jalen Wilson had 20 points and seven rebounds for No. 1 seed and defending national champion Kansas, which allowed absent and recovering coach Bill Self to rest during an easy victory over Howard in a first-round game at Des Moines, Iowa.
Self is still recovering from a recent heart procedure.
Gradey Dick had 19 points and 11 rebounds in the freshman’s first NCAA Tournament game. K.J. Adams Jr. scored 13 points and Dajuan Harris Jr. added 11 points for the Jayhawks (28-7), who will play the winner of the Arkansas against Illinois game in the second round on Saturday.
Kansas, which has won 16 consecutive first-round games, is trying to become the first repeat NCAA winner in 16 years.
Shy Odom had 15 points and eight rebounds for the Bison (22-13), who were making the program’s first tournament appearance since 1992.
NORTHWESTERN 75, BOISE STATE 67: Boo Buie scored 22 points to lead Northwestern to a win in the school’s second appearance ever in the NCAA Tournament, 75-67 over Boise State at Sacramento, California.
The seventh-seeded Wildcats (22-11) never trailed in a game that was close most of the way and advanced to play either UCLA or UNC Asheville in the second round of the West Region.
The 10th-seeded Broncos (24-10) are still searching for their first tournament win, losing their opener for the ninth time in as many tries. Max Rice scored 17 points to lead Boise State and Naje Smith added 14.
ARKANSAS 73, ILLINOIS 63: Ricky Council IV scored 18 points and Arkansas survived some anxious moments in the second half against an Illinois team that wouldn’t go away, holding on to beat the Illini in the first round at Des Moines, Iowa.
Devo Davis had 16 points for the eighth-seeded Razorbacks, who used relentless defense and rebounding to build big leads but couldn’t get comfortable until the final minute. Arkansas (21-13) faces top-seeded Kansas on Saturday in the second round of the West Region.
Terrence Shannon Jr., held scoreless the first 16 minutes, finished with 20 points to lead the Illini (20-13). It was the first time in five tournament appearances since 2011 that Illinois didn’t make it out of the first round.
MIDWEST
AUBURN 83, IOWA 75: Johni Broome had 19 points, 12 rebounds and five blocked shots, and No. 9 seed Auburn beat Iowa 83-75 on Thursday in the first round in Birmingham, Alabama.
The Tigers (21-12) made 11 of 12 free throws over the final four minutes to lock up a second-round matchup with No. 1 seed Houston or Northern Kentucky.
Broome even made his ninth 3-pointer of the season to push the margin into double digits for the first time with 16 minutes left.
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