Kentucky’s Otega Oweh delivered the shot of the year, and Utah State delivered the biggest bracket-busting upset of the NCAA tournament on Friday.
“I was just trying to get the ball out quick and get as close as I can to the goal. I was looking at the clock the whole time,” Oweh told reporters afterward.
“Obviously, they hit a three, so we had to hit a three. So I was really just trying to get a shot off and just not wanting the season to end, just locking in, trying to make the shot.”
Utah State didn’t want its season to end the way it did the previous 19 trips to the Big Dance with a loss. The No. 9-seeded Aggies stunned the No. 8-seeded Villanova Wildcats 86–76 in the West Region and won in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1971.
“We won 28 games. We won the [Mountain West] regular season title, we won the tournament title. So when this team has an edge, and they play, you know, with a little bit of swagger and a little bit of toughness and resilience, we can cause a lot of problems.”
Ninth-seeded Iowa toppled another 50 percent of the brackets to 900 with a 67–61 victory over No. 8 seed Clemson in the South Region. Bennett Stirtz iced the game with free throws and led the Hawkeyes with 16 points.
Iowa State, the No. 2 seed in the Midwest, thumped No. 15 seed Tennessee State 108–74 but lost star Joshua Jefferson in the process due to an ankle sprain. Jefferson’s X-ray came back negative, so the Cyclones could have him back for the second round.
“He’s an unbelievable player [and] unbelievable leader,” Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger told reporters afterward.
“Not having him out there brought a lot of challenges, but proud of our guys, how they stepped up and how they trusted and believed in one another.”
Injuries are also a question mark for No. 7 seed UCLA and No. 2 seed UConn after both advanced in the East Region.
UCLA played without leading scorer Tyler Bilodeau due to a knee sprain, and the Bruins downed No. 10 seed UCF 75–71. UConn missed star point guard Silas Demary Jr. but held off No. 15 seed Furman in the final game of the night, which dropped the perfect bracket total to 224.
Kansas and Virginia also had tough outs as high seeds. The No. 4 seed Jayhawks held on against a tenacious No. 13 seed California Baptist squad, 68–60, in the East Region.
Virginia, the No. 3 seed in the Midwest Region, ended a three-game tournament losing streak by holding off No. 14 seed Wright State in the Midwest Region. The Cavaliers hadn’t won a tournament game since winning the 2019 national championship.
Top seeds Arizona and Florida blew out their opponents, and the Gators set a record for the largest margin of victory ever in a No. 1 seed versus No. 16 matchup. Florida dominated Prairie View A&M 114–55, and Arizona crushed Long Island 92–58.
Second-seeded Purdue also took care of business with a 104–71 rout of Queens (North Carolina). Other high seeds, including Texas Tech, Alabama, Tennessee, St. John’s, and Miami, all won comfortably.
Tennessee notably knocked out Miami (Ohio), which finished with a 32–2 record after a 31–0 start.