NCAA: Massamaba reclaims starting spot in UNLV frontcourt; Butler’s Mack dominating UTEP

NCAA: Massamaba back for UNLV

Facing Northern Iowa 7-footer Jordan Eglseder, 6-foot-10 forward Brice Massamaba reclaims starting spot in UNLV frontcourt. He has 15 starts this season, but 6-8 senior Darris Santee had been in the lineup the last seven games for the Runnin’ Rebels.

Butler’s Gordon Hayward sends UTEP’s Randy Culpepper to the floor in scary fall late in game but he’s OK.

Shelvin Mack was 6 of 8 from 3-point range and Butler held a 58-41 lead over UTEP with 8:14 to play. The Miners, who led 33-27 at halftime, were 2 of 12 from beyond the arc for the game.

Shelvin Mack hit four 3-pointers in the first 6 minutes of the second half — one more than Butler had in the entire first half — and the Bulldogs opened a 47-37 lead over UTEP.

UTEP center Derrick Caracter picked up two fouls in the first 3½ minutes of the second half giving him three for the game. Butler erased a 33-27 halftime lead with a 15-4 run to start the second half.

Shelvin Mack made two 3-pointers and Willie Veasley added another as Butler opened the second half on a 9-1 run to take a 36-34 lead over UTEP.

Derrick Caracter had six points in UTEP’s 9-3 run to close the half and the Miners held a 33-27 lead over fifth-seeded Butler, which entered the tournament on a 20-game winning streak.

No. 10 seed Saint Mary’s defeats Richmond 80-71 to advance to play No. 2 seed Villanova in the second round.

Butler started the game 1 of 6 from the field, then made 8 of its next 14 shots and trailed UTEP 26-24 with 3:36 left in the first half.

Omar Samhan returned after sitting out 6 minutes after picking up his fourth foul. Saint Mary’s led 70-59 with 3:14 to play.

Matt Howard’s layup capped an 8-0 run that gave Butler a 19-17 lead over UTEP with 7:10 left in the first half.

UTEP had a 14-10 lead over Butler midway through the first half. Butler entered the tournament on a national-best 20-game winning streak.

Denis Clemente ended any thoughts of a big comeback by North Texas, scoring eight straight points to put Kansas State ahead 77-55 with 4 minutes left.

North Texas went on a 15-3 run to get within 69-55 of second-seeded Kansas State with 5½ minutes left. The run was enough to get Wildcats guard Jacob Pullen back in the game after he sat out for several minutes following a hard collision on the court.

Saint Mary’s goes on 6-0 run as soon as Omar Samhan leaves with his fourth foul to take a 65-50 lead over Richmond with 6:48 to play.

Omar Samhan, who has been dominating inside against Richmond with 27 points and 11 rebounds, picked up his fourth foul with 9:13 to play and the Gaels leading 59-50.

Kansas State guard Jacob Pullen went down hard after a collision. He limped off the court holding his left elbow and his hip seemed to be bothering him as well as he left for the locker room. The Wildcats had a 62-38 lead over North Texas.

Omar Samhan, despite missing 6 minutes in the first half because of foul trouble, had 24 points and 12 rebounds to give Saint Mary’s a 45-42 lead over Richmond with 15:10 to play. The Gaels held a 19-8 rebound advantage and had outscored the Spiders 13-2 in second-chance points.

No. 3 seed Baylor advances, beating Sam Houston State 68-59 in New Orleans in the Bears’ first NCAA tournament win since 1950.

Baylor scored eight straight points to break the game’s 14th tie and give the Bears a 63-55 lead over Sam Houston State with 1:04 to play.

Kansas State hit its first three shots and first three free throws to open second half and give the Wildcats a 50-31 lead over North Texas.

Omar Samhan was 7 of 10 for Saint Mary’s in the first half and Mickey McConnell was 4 of 7. The rest of their teammates went 3 of 11 as the Gaels managed a 36-36 halftime tie with Richmond.

Danero Thomas hit a 12-foot jumper at the buzzer to give Murray State a 66-65 victory over Vanderbilt, the second straight year the Commodores have been beaten in the first round as a No. 4 seed.

Jermaine Beal made two free throws with 12.7 seconds left in regulation to give Vanderbilt a 65-64 lead over Murray State.

Murray State turnover with 30 seconds left gave Vanderbilt the ball and the Commodores called a timeout with 21.1. seconds left, trailing 64-63.

A.J. Ogilvy’s layup with one minute to play brought fourth-seeded Vanderbilt within 64-63 of Murray State.

Corey Almond, Sam Houston State’s No. 2 scorer with a 15.9 average, had 10 points in the first 9 minutes of the second half after being held scoreless over the first 20 minutes. The Bearkats were tied at 46 with Baylor.

Jacob Pullen scored 11 points — including three layups — in a 9-minute span and Denis Clemente hit consecutive 3-pointers late to give Kansas State a 41-25 halftime lead over North Texas, which was 5 of 24 from the field.___

B.J. Jenkins hit a 3-pointer with 2:28 left to give Murray State a 62-60 lead over Vanderbilt. He has scored 14 points, one more than John Jenkins of the Commodores.

Omar Samhan of Saint Mary’s had 17 points and seven rebounds but picked up his third foul with 6:31 left in the first half but the Gaels trailed Richmond 25-22.

Jacob Pullen started to heat up after slow start, scoring all 11 of his points over the past 9 minutes as Kansas State took a 35-21 lead over North Texas late in the first half.

Murray State missed seven of its first 15 free throws and was still tied 52-52 with fourth-seeded Vanderbilt.

Omar Samhan, who came into the tournament averaging 20.2 points per game, had 16 in the first 7½ minutes and Saint Mary’s trailed Richmond 24-21.

New Orleans native Tweety Carter finally scored on a fast break layup as Baylor opened the second half with a 7-0 run for a 37-31 lead over Sam Houston State. Fellow New Orleans native Ashton Mitchell answered on the next possession with his first points, a 3 that made it 37-34 with 17:12 left in the second half.

Kansas State outscored North Texas 18-4 in the paint in taking a 26-14 lead over the Mean Green, who used three timeouts in the game’s first 13 minutes.

North Texas within 18-13 of Kansas State midway through the first half by beating the Wildcats at their own game: seven offensive rebounds in the first 10 minutes.

Omar Samhan had all of Saint’s Mary’s points — and five rebounds — as the Gaels took a 10-9 lead over Richmond.

Vanderbilt’s A.J. Ogilvy picked up his third foul with 13:33 to go and Murray State holding a 59-54 lead.

“Come on, Vandy, we got 20 minutes left!” one player hollered as the team returned to the court after halftime.

Sam Houston State, which came into the tournament shooting 37.8 percent from 3-point rangae, started 1 of 13 from beyond the arc and was shooting just 28 percent overall from the field. The Bearkats were in a 23-23 tie because Baylor has turned it over nine times in the opening 16½ minutes.

Oklahoma City is about halfway between Manhattan, Kan., and Denton, Texas, but Kansas State brought a much larger contingent of fans than North Texas, filling up about three-fourths of the Ford Center.

At the half:

No. 13 seed Murray State knocked down 4 of 8 first-half 3-pointers on the way to a 36-32 lead over fourth-seeded Vanderbilt at the break. The Commordores are trying to avoid their same fate from two years ago, when they were a first-round upset victim of Siena when also seeded fourth.

Murray State, back in the NCAAs for the first time since 2006 and trying for the school’s first tournament win since 1988, also crashed the offensive glass to create second chances — getting nine offensive boards.

Danero Thomas of Murray State had seven points, three steals and three blocks to lead the Racers to a 36-32 halftime lead over fourth-seeded Vanderbilt.

Sam Houston State started the game 1 of 10 from 3-point range and was still within 20-18 of third-seeded Baylor.

Scottie Reynolds’ two free throws with 9.1 seconds left in overtime gave Villanova a 73-70 lead over Robert Morris. And that was enough for the win.

With 35.5 seconds to play, Robert Morris trails 68-67 to Villanova.

Scottie Reynolds hit his first 3-pointer in eight attempts to give Villanova a 67-61 lead over Robert Morris with about a minute to play in overtime.

LaceDerius Dunn, Baylor’s leading scorer, picked up his second foul 3:07 into the game with Sam Houston State and the Bears trailing 10-3.

BYU outlasts Florida, wins 99-92 in double overtime.

Villanova scores first six points of overtime to take a 64-58 lead over Robert Morris.

Jimmer Fredette’s two free throws in second overtime gives him 36 points for the game and BYU a 99-90 lead with less than a minute to play.

Corey Fisher scores first basket of overtime to give Villanova its first lead over Robert Morris since the Wildcats led 9-8.

Villanova was unable to convert an inbounds lob pass with less than a second play in regulation and the second-seeded Wildcats and No. 15 Robert Morris went to overtime tied at 58.

Mouphtaou Yarou’s layup brings second-seeded Villanova into a 58-58 tie with Robert Morris with less than a minute left in regulation.

Florida freshman Kenny Boynton, who led the Gators back from 13 points down in the second half, fouled out with 27 points when he fouled BYU’s Jimmer Fredette on a drive with 3:57 left in the second overtime.

Scottie Reynolds missed 12 of his first 13 shots from the field but the senior was 12 of 12 from the free throw line, that last two bringing Villanova into a 55-55 tie with Robert Morris with 1:48 to play. It was the game’s first tie since 2-2.

Robert Morris led 55-49 over Villanova with 3:06 to play, trying to become the fifth 15 seed to win a first-round game and the first since Hampton beat Iowa State 58-57 in 2001.

Michael Loyd Jr. kept BYU alive in overtime against Florida going 4 of 4 from the free throw line and getting a basket off a broken play. The Cougars and Gators went to a second overtime tied at 81.

Robert Morris’ Velton Jones became the first Colonial to foul out, but the 15th seed still led Villanova 55-47 with 3:57 to play.

Florida’s Chandler Parsons, who made a couple of buzzer-beaters this season, missed a jumper with 2 seconds left and the Gators and BYU were tied at 75 headed to overtime.

Carleton Scott’s 3-pointer rattled around and out, and 11th-seeded Old Dominion held off sixth-seeded Notre Dame 51-50. Trailing by three, the Fighting Irish rushed the ball up the court, but Scott’s attempt to tie the game wouldn’t fall, and Luke Harangody’s layup at the buzzer wasn’t enough. Old Dominion (27-8) was led by Frank Hassell, who scored 15 points.

Harangody scored only four points for Notre Dame (23-12) and was held scoreless until the final minute. Ben Hansbrough led the Irish with 17.

BYU is trying to snap a seven-game losing streak in the first round dating to a 1993 win over Southern Methodist.

BYU, the nation’s top free-throw shooting team, missed its first two of the game then made 12 in a row. Jimmer Fredette is 4 of 4 and has made 37 in a row. Teammate Tyler Haws hit his only two free throws earlier in the game to break Fredette’s school record of 39 straight.

Freshman Karon Abraham made a four-point play to give Robert Morris a 42-34 lead over second-seeded Villanova with 12 minutes to play.

Jimmer Fredette of BYU hit a 3 when Florida had closed within 63-60 but freshman Kenny Boynton answered with his fourth 3-pointer of the game to keep the Gators within one possession.

Notre Dame led Old Dominion 43-30 with 7 minutes to play despite leading scorer Luke Harangody being held without a point.

BYU went on a 10-0 run over 3½ minutes to take a 59-46 lead over Florida with just under 9 minutes to play.

Scottie Reynolds of Villanova went 0 of 5 from the field and had four points in the first half against Robert Morris after not starting the game over “a minor teaching point.” He hit his first shot of the second half, the time of the game he has been known to take over for the Wildcats.

Florida had seven turnovers in first 8 minutes of second half, matching its total from the first half. The Gators trailed BYU 51-46.

Jimmer Fredette, BYU’s leading scorer and the only player to break the 40 mark twice this season, had eight points in the first half against Florida, then matched that number in the first 6 minutes of the second half as the Cougars took a 47-42 lead.

Old Dominion opened the second half with a 9-2 run to go ahead 31-30, holding Notre Dame to 1-of-6 shooting over the first 6 minutes.

There was some Big East synergy early in the tournament with both its teams playing in the first wave of games finishing with a halftime score of 28-22. The only problem for the conference with a record-tying eight teams in the field was that Notre Dame was leading Old Dominion by the score, but Villanova was behind Robert Morris.

Villanova struggled to a 2-of-13 effort from 3-point range in the first half against Robert Morris with Taylor King, the one Wildcat who had struggled the most from behind the arc, making both 3s in the half. Robert Morris could have some foul trouble facing it as five players had two fouls at halftime.

Robert Morris held Villanova to seven field goals in the first half, the second straight solid 20-minute defensive effort by the Colonials. They held Quinnipiac to six field goals in the second half of the Northeast Conference championship game.

Villanova, which entered the tournament third in the nation in scoring at 85.2 points per game, trailed Robert Morris 24-16 with 4 minutes left in the first half after managing just one field over an 8½-minute stretch while getting outrebounded 17-5.

Second-seeded Villanova’s early 17-11 deficit to 15th-seeded Robert Morris shouldn’t be a total surprise. Last year, the Wildcats, playing as a No. 3 seed, started their run to the Final Four by rallying from a 14-point deficit to beat American University 80-67.

Michael Loyd, Jr., who came in averaging 4.4 points per game, went 4 of 4 from the field and had all the points in BYU’s 10-0 run that gave the Cougars a 31-28 lead over Florida.

Freshman Karon Abraham hit his first three 3-point attempts as Robert Morris opened a 13-9 lead over Villanova.

Notre Dame had the first extended run of the tournament, scoring 10 straight points to take a 15-6 lead over Old Dominion.

BYU came into the tournament leading the country in free throw shooting at 78.6 percent. Brandon Davies missed the first two the Cougars took against Florida.

Corey Fisher, the other Villanova starter benched for the beginning of the game against Robert Morris, came in at the first media timeout with the Wildcats’ leading 9-5.

Ben Hansbrough hit a 3-pointer to give Notre Dame a 10-6 lead over Old Dominion, the first points scored in an NCAA tournament game by a member of his family since his brother Tyler Hansbrough led North Carolina to the national championship last season.

Scottie Reynolds, Villanova’s leading scorer, was in the game with just over 16 minutes left in the first half after not starting as a “minor teaching point.”

Notre Dame’s Luke Harangody, who missed five games with a bruised knee, entered the game at the first media timeout. It’s nice to bring a guy who averages 24.1 points per game off the bench.

BYU freshman guard Tyler Haws, team’s third-leading scorer, returns to starting lineup after missing last game with eye injury. He scored first basket of the tournament.

NCAA March Madness has begun with BYU and Florida starting things off in Oklahoma City.

Villanova guards Scottie Reynolds and Corey Fisher weren’t in the starting lineup against Robert Morris. Coach Jay Wright said it was a “minor teaching point” and they would both play.

Morgan State forward Anthony Anderson, who was diagnosed with leukemia after the Bears’ first practice this season, may be healthy enough to travel to Buffalo for the team’s first round game against West Virginia on Friday. Anderson, who has missed the entire season, is currently in a weakened state after having chemo treatment this week at John’s Hopkins.