Buffalo, N.Y. – Duke’s done.
Eric Maynor hit a 15-foot jumper with 1.8 seconds left to give Virginia Commonwealth a 79-77 upset victory over the Blue Devils in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday night. Maynor finished with 22 points, six in the final 1:24.
“It felt like it was good,” Maynor said. “And for it to go in, I said to myself, ‘Man, I just hit the game-winner on Duke University.”‘
Duke lost a first-round game for the first time since 1996. The loss in the West Regional ended the sixth-seeded Blue Devils’ string of Sweet 16 appearances at nine. It was the longest active streak and second-longest behind North Carolina’s 13-year run.
“The fact that we’ve gone every year since 1996 is a story in itself,” coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “If you’re in this tournament long enough, you’re going to go down.”
Fittingly, it was VCU (28-6) that knocked off George Mason – the tournament’s surprise team last year – in the Colonial Athletic Association championship game.
The 11th-seeded Rams, in their first season under former Florida assistant Anthony Grant, never led by more than two points. They overcame a 13-point first-half deficit and also trailed by as many as 11 in the second.
Greg Paulus scored a career-high 25 points, and Josh McRoberts added a career-high 22 points and had 12 rebounds for Duke (22-11).
PITTSBURGH 79, WRIGHT STATE 58
The Panthers used their long-range marksmanship instead of their considerable brawn, hitting 10-of-20 3-pointers, and beat Wright State.
Ronald Ramon hit four 3s and finished with 14 points, and Sam Young had 13 to lead the Panthers (28-7).
DaShaun Wood, the Horizon League player of the year who entered the game averaging just under 20 points, finished with 13 points for Wright State (23-10).
MARYLAND 82, DAVIDSON 70
Mike Jones scored 17 points and D.J. Strawberry, son of former major-league slugger Darryl Strawberry, had 12 to help the Terrapins hang on over Davidson in the Midwest Regional.
Reserve forward Bambale Osby added 11 points and played a key role in sparking an 11-4 run that put the Terps ahead 69-63 with 7:27 remaining.
Freshman guard Stephen Curry scored 30 points for Davidson (29-5) before fouling out with 21 seconds left. The Wildcats had a 13-game winning streak snapped and also lost for only the second time in their past 27 outings.
Maryland (25-8) overcame an eight-point second-half deficit and outscored the Wildcats 24-11 over the final 10 minutes.
BUTLER 57, OLD DOMINION 46
Pete Campbell hit three 3-pointers, his only baskets of the game, to spark a 17-0 run in the Bulldogs’ victory over Old Dominion in a first-round matchup between mid-majors.
Butler (28-6), the fifth seed in the Midwest, set a school record for victories in a season.
Old Dominion (24-9) had won 12 of 13 games and even posted an early season victory over eventual Big East champion Georgetown.
At Buffalo, N.Y.
MIDWEST REGIONAL
First round
Maryland 82, Davidson 70
Butler 57, Old Dominion 46
Second round
Maryland (25-8) vs. Butler (28-6), Saturday, 1:20 p.m.
WEST REGIONAL
First round
Va. Commonwealth 79, Duke 77
Pittsburgh 79, Wright State 58
Second round
Pittsburgh (28-7) vs. Virginia Commonwealth (28-6), Saturday, 3:50 p.m.
MARYLAND 82, DAVIDSON 70
DAVIDSON (29-5)
Meno 4-13 1-1 9, Sander 1-8 2-2 4, Richards 4-15 2-3 11, Paulhus Gosselin 1-2 0-0 2, Curry 9-21 7-7 30, Archambault 3-7 0-0 9, Rossiter 0-0 0-0 0, Barr 1-2 0-0 3, Lovedale 1-2 0-1 2. Totals 24-70 12-14 70.
MARYLAND (25-8)
Gist 5-9 2-2 12, Ibekwe 5-8 1-2 11, Strawberry 5-17 1-3 12, Vasquez 4-9 1-2 10, Jones 6-13 2-2 17, Hayes 1-3 0-0 2, Brown 1-1 0-0 3, Bowers 0-2 2-2 2, Neal 0-0 2-2 2, Osby 4-6 3-4 11. Totals 31-68 14-19 82.
Halftime – Maryland 44-43. 3-point goals – Davidson 10-37 (Curry 5-14, Archambault 3-7, Barr 1-2, Richards 1-8, Paulhus Gosselin 0-1, Sander 0-2, Meno 0-3), Maryland 6-17 (Jones 3-7, Brown 1-1, Strawberry 1-4, Vasquez 1-4, Hayes 0-1). Fouled out – Curry, Ibekwe. Rebounds – Davidson 35 (Meno 9), Maryland 54 (Ibekwe 10). Assists – Davidson 17 (Richards 7), Maryland 19 (Strawberry 5). Total fouls – Davidson 17, Maryland 15.
A – 18,646.
BUTLER 57, OLD DOMINION 46
OLD DOMINION (24-9)
Dahi 3-8 3-3 10, Vasylius 3-12 3-3 10, Johnson 5-12 0-0 11, Williamson 1-8 0-0 2, Henderson 1-6 0-0 3, Lidonde 0-3 0-1 0, Lee 5-5 0-0 10, Neely 0-0 0-0 0, Harris 0-0 0-0 0, Adams 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 18-55 6-7 46.
BUTLER (28-6)
Betko 0-1 0-0 0, Crone 4-8 3-6 12, Ligon 1-1 0-0 2, Graves 5-12 5-6 18, Green 5-12 2-4 14, Veasley 0-1 0-0 0, Nellems 1-1 0-0 2, Streicher 0-2 0-0 0, Campbell 3-8 0-0 9. Totals 19-46 10-16 57.
Halftime – Old Dominion 20-19. 3-point goals – Old Dominion 4-20 (Dahi 1-3, Henderson 1-4, Vasylius 1-4, Johnson 1-4, Lidonde 0-1, Williamson 0-4), Butler 9-24 (Campbell 3-7, Graves 3-8, Green 2-4, Crone 1-4, Betko 0-1). Fouled out – Henderson, Williamson. Rebounds – Old Dominion 34 (Lee 11), Butler 35 (Green 10). Assists – Old Dominion 4 (Johnson 2), Butler 11 (Green 3, Streicher 3). Total fouls – Old Dominion 21, Butler 15. A – 18,649.
VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH 79, DUKE 77
VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH (28-6)
Fameni 4-9 0-0 8, Anderson 3-6 4-5 10, Maynor 8-16 6-8 22, Walker 2-7 4-5 10, Pellot-Rosa 4-11 3-4 14, Coward 0-1 0-0 0, Ndongo 0-0 0-0 0, Shuler 5-11 0-0 14, Roland 0-0 0-0 0, Gwynn 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 26-61 18-24 79.
DUKE (22-11)
McRoberts 7-14 8-11 22, Henderson 4-7 0-2 8, Paulus 8-18 6-11 25, Nelson 3-7 2-3 8, Scheyer 2-7 3-4 7, Pocius 1-1 1-1 3, Davidson 0-0 0-0 0, McClure 0-1 0-0 0, Thomas 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 27-58 20-32 77.
Halftime – Duke 40-38. 3-point goals – Va. Commonwealth 9-16 (Shuler 4-5, Pellot-Rosa 3-5, Walker 2-5, Maynor 0-1), Duke 3-11 (Paulus 3-6, Nelson 0-2, Scheyer 0-3). Fouled out – Fameni. Rebounds – Va. Commonwealth 31 (Anderson 7), Duke 42 (McRoberts 12). Assists – Va. Commonwealth 14 (Maynor 8), Duke 11 (McRoberts 4, Paulus 4). Total Fouls – Va. Commonwealth 26, Duke 19.
A – 18,843.
PITTSBURGH 79, WRIGHT STATE 58
WRIGHT STATE (23-10)
Burleson 1-6 1-2 3, Pleiman 2-5 1-1 5, Wood 4-12 3-4 13, Brown 5-11 0-0 10, Duggins 5-16 0-1 12, Wilson 4-11 2-3 11, Stevenson 0-1 0-1 0, Scott 0-2 0-0 0, Smith 1-3 0-0 2, Graham 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 23-69 7-12 58.
PITTSBURGH (28-7)
Kendall 4-6 1-1 10, Cook 4-5 2-2 12, Gray 4-6 3-5 11, Fields 1-5 0-0 2, Graves 3-7 0-0 8, Benjamin 3-5 0-0 6, Ramon 5-8 0-0 14, Biggs 1-2 0-0 2, Hudson 0-1 0-0 0, Young 5-10 2-4 13, Rizk 0-0 1-2 1, Polen 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-55 9-14 79.
Halftime – Pittsburgh 43-30. 3-point goals – Wright St. 5-20 (Wood 2-6, Duggins 2-6, Wilson 1-3, Burleson 0-1, Graham 0-1, Scott 0-1, Brown 0-2), Pittsburgh 10-21 (Ramon 4-6, Cook 2-2, Graves 2-6, Kendall 1-2, Young 1-3, Fields 0-2). Fouled out – None. Rebounds – Wright St. 30 (Burleson 6, Wood 6), Pittsburgh 44 (Gray 9). Assists – Wright St. 12 (Wood 7), Pittsburgh 21 (Fields 9). Total fouls – Wright St. 15, Pittsburgh 12. A – 18,843.
