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Late Night Snacks: Three guards shine brightest on Saturday

North Dakota State v San Diego State

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Stephen Dunn

GAME OF THE DAY: No. 2 Wisconsin 85, No. 7 Oregon 77

The Badgers got 19 points out of Frank Kaminsky to lead five players in double figures and came back from 12 points down at the half to knock off an Oregon team that many people believe would pull off the upset. While the final score makes it look like the Badgers pulled away down the stretch, that was more the result of three late free throws. Joseph Young missed a three that would have tied the game with 15 seconds left.

IMPORTANT OUTCOMES

1. No. 11 Dayton 55, N0. 3 Syracuse 53: The Flyers advanced to their first Sweet 16 in 30 years as Archie Miller and company were able to hang on down the stretch. Tyler Ennis went into takeover mode late, but he missed a pair of jump shots in the first 10 seconds that would have won the game for the Orange. The big question now: Will Ennis be back next season?

2. No. 7 UConn 77, No. 2 Villanova 65: The Huskies advanced to their first Sweet 16 under the guidance of Kevin Ollie, knocking off an old Big East nemesis to advance. Shabazz Napier was fantastic as always, but it was the play of guys off the bench that made the biggest difference.

3. No. 4 Michigan State 80, No. 12 Harvard 73: The Crimson gave the Spartans a scare, erasing a 17-point second half deficit to take the lead with less than five minutes remaining. But the popular pick to win the National Title survived, spurred on by a pair of massive threes from Gary Harris.

STARRED

1. Xavier Thames, San Diego State: The Aztecs sent Cinderella packing thanks to 30 points and eight assists from Thames. At one point in the second half, with No. 4 SDSU up 55-43 on No. 12 North Dakota State, Thames was responsible for 46 Aztec points and 15 of their 19 field goals.

2. Scottie Wilbekin, Florida: Wilbekin finished with 21 points, hitting big shot after big shot down the stretch, each one tougher than the last, as No. 1 Florida advanced past No. 9 Pitt, 61-45.

3. Shabazz Napier, UConn: He finished with 25 points on 9-for-13 shooting despite playing just eight first half minutes and dealing with a tweaked left ankle and a bruised right shin.

STRUGGLED

1. Texas: The No. 7 Longhorns shot just 37.1% from the floor and allowed No. 2 Michigan to hit 14 threes in a game that wasn’t all that close.

2. Russ Smith, Louisville: No. 4 Louisville advanced to the Sweet 16 despite the fact that Smith was just 6-for-19 from the field, 1-for-6 from three and committed 13 turnovers in two games.

3. Syracuse: The Orange managed just 53 points and shot 0-for-10 from three in their loss to Dayton. C.J. Fair was 4-for-14 from the floor, Trevor Cooney was 1-for-6 and Tyler Ennis took over late but finished the night just 7-for-21, missing two game-winning shots.