PHILADELPHIA — Darren Collison refused to yield in the final seconds, pressuring VCU’s Eric Maynor into a missed 17-footer at the buzzer to give UCLA a 65-64 victory over the Rams on Thursday night.
Trailing 63-60 with 1:19 left, Virginia Commonwealth (24-10) pulled within a point on two free throws by Bradford Burgess. Alfred Aboya answered with two free throws for the Bruins (26-8). Then Maynor hit two for the Rams.
Larry Sanders blocked Collison’s shot at the opposite end, giving VCU the ball and a chance to win with 11.6 second left. Maynor, whose last- second, 15-foot jumper in the final seconds knocked out Duke in the first round two seasons ago, got the ball and was closely guarded by Collison. Maynor couldn’t get a clean look and his shot grazed the front of the rim and time ran out.
Texas 76, Minnesota 62
GREENSBORO, N.C. — A.J. Abrams made eight 3-pointers and scored 26 points, and Damion James added 18 points and nine rebounds for the Longhorns (23-11), who hit 11-of-20 3s to win their tournament opener for the fifth time in six seasons.
The Gophers (22-11) jumped to a 10-point lead in the opening 3 1/2 minutes, but the Longhorns hung around until Abrams found his range and turned the game into an impressive shooting display. He finished 9-for-19 from the field and 8-for-15 from behind the arc, which was one shy of his career-high for 3s made.
Villanova 80, American 67
PHILADELPHIA — Dwayne Anderson and Dante Cunningham each scored 25 points, and the Wildcats (27-7) used a 19-2 run to rally from a 14-point deficit against the Eagles (24-8).
Duke 86, Binghamton 62
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Jon Scheyer scored 15 points to lead six players in double figures, and the Blue Devils (29-6) made the Bearcats’ first appearance in the tournament a quick one.
The Associated Press
