OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 30 points, Marcus Domask added 22 and No. 3 seed Illinois made fast work 11th-seeded Duquesne in an 89-63 victory to reach the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16 for the first time since 2005. Illinois hadn’t made it through the first weekend of the tournament in eight previous appearances. The Illini will play No. 2 seed Iowa State in an East Region semifinal in Boston on Thursday. Duquesne had its first tournament appearance since 1977 end with its worst loss of the season, which sent coach Keith Dambrot into retirement. Jimmy Clark III scored 14 for Duquesne.
Elsewhere in the NCAA:
Dusty May will take over at Michigan, leaving Florida Atlantic after 6 seasons and a Final Four run
BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) — Dusty May is going to Michigan, returning to his Big Ten roots and leaving Florida Atlantic after six seasons highlighted by a Final Four run that thrust him into the national spotlight a year ago. Michigan President Santa Ono, in a social media post, announced the hiring. May and the Wolverines were in the process of finalizing details of what was expected to be a five-year contract, according to a person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because Michigan had yet to announce the terms of the deal. ESPN first reported the agreement. May will replace Juwan Howard, who was fired after five seasons with the Wolverines.
LSU coach Kim Mulkey lashes out at Washington Post, threatens legal action
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — LSU coach Kim Mulkey is sharply criticizing and threatening legal action against The Washington Post. Mulkey says the newspaper has spent two years pursuing a “hit piece” about her and gave her a deadline to answer questions this past week while the defending national champion Tigers were preparing for the women’s NCAA Tournament. Award-winning Post reporter Kent Babb confirmed he’s working on a profile of Mulkey but declined further comment. The Post also declined to comment. Mulkey says she’s hired a defamation law firm and will sue if the Post publishes a false story about her.
Creighton outlasts Oregon 86-73 in double OT thriller to earn spot in Sweet 16 of March Madness
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Steven Ashworth and Ryan Kalkbrenner made 3-pointers in the second overtime and Creighton edged past its former coach — Oregon’s Dana Altman — to move into the Sweet 16 with an 86-73 win in the Midwest Region. The 3s by the 6-foot-1 Ashworth and a rare one by the 7-foot-1 Kalkbrenner helped the third-seeded Bluejays Score the first 15 points of the second OT to finally put away the 11th-seeded Ducks. Ashworth scored 21 points, Trey Alexander added 20 and Kalkbrenner 19 for Creighton, which will make its third Sweet 16 appearance in four years when it faces Tennessee next week in Detroit. Oregon’s Jermaine Couisnard, who had 40 points in the first round against South Carolina, had 32 and Dante added 28 and 20 rebounds.
Powered by big man DJ Burns Jr., N.C. State muscles past Oakland in overtime to reach Sweet 16
PITTSBURGH (AP) — DJ Burns Jr. scored 24 points, including a go-ahead putback that ignited a 9-0 run in overtime, and 11th-seeded North Carolina State beat 14th-seeded Oakland 79-73 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Powered by their versatile 6-foot-9, 275-pound forward, the Wolfpack advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2015 by finally pulling away from 3-point specialist Jack Gohlke and the Golden Grizzlies in the extra period. N.C. State will face either second-seeded Marquette and 10th-seeded Colorado in Dallas on Friday in the South Region semifinals. Trey Townsend had 30 points and 13 rebounds for Oakland, and Gohlke made six 3-pointers and scored 22 points.
North Carolina beats Tom Izzo, Michigan State in March Madness again to reach Sweet 16
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — RJ Davis scored 20 points to help North Carolina beat Michigan State 85-69 in the NCAA Tournament, pushing the Tar Heels to the Sweet 16 while keeping them unbeaten in March Madness against Spartans Hall of Fame coach Tom Izzo. Harrison Ingram made five 3-pointers and scored 17 points for the West Region’s top seed. The Tar Heels improved to 5-0 in the tournament against Izzo, including victories in the 2005 Final Four and 2009 title game. And they move on to the regional semifinals in Los Angeles, where they will face either Grand Canyon or Alabama. Tyson Walker scored 24 points for ninth-seeded Michigan State.
In March Madness, Gonzaga plays near-perfect 2nd half to dispatch Kansas 89-68
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Gonzaga played a nearly perfect second half, busting open a back-and-forth game with a 15-0 run to pull away from Kansas for an 89-68 win and extend its nation-best streak of trips to the Sweet 16 to nine. Anton Watson shot 8 for 11 for 21 points on an afternoon when basically everyone in a navy jersey was a star, especially after halftime. The fifth-seeded Zags made their first five 3-pointers of the second half, not missing from long range until less than two minutes remained, and the game had long been in extended garbage time.
