Duke responds to APB

Better late than never they say, and he is the word on the ACC survivors from Friday’s action at the NCAA Basketball Tournament…Duke reacted to the APB(Arkansas-Pine Bluff) and we had other winners from the ACC….

North Carolina has already picked up a Round Two NIT victory here on Saturday afternoon and if N.C. State can lock down a win later this afternoon(5pm) then the Wolfpack will meet the Tar Heels in Round Three in Chapel Hill next week…..

North Carolina 76, Mississippi State 74
Starkville, Miss. (National Invitation Tournament)
STARKVILLE, Miss. — Larry Drew II kept North Carolina alive in the postseason.

He hit a shot over center Jarvis Varnado with 2 seconds to play to give the Tar Heels a 76-74 victory over Mississippi State on Saturday in the second round of the NIT.

The 6-foot-2 point guard drove to the basket and was able to get the shot over the 6-9 Varnado, who was second in the nation this season with 4.8 blocks per game.

N.C. State @ UAB
Birmingham, Ala. (National Invitation Tournament)
5:00 PM

On Friday from www.theacc.com:

Top-Seeded Duke Routs Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 73-44
Duke’s confident mascot wore a piece of tape across his forehead that read: “Played In, Blown Out.”

The Blue Devils didn’t disappoint.

Avoiding the upset bug that has taken down several favorites in the NCAA tournament, the top-seeded Atlantic Coast Conference champions opened play in the South Regional with a dominating 73-44 victory Friday night over No. 16 seed Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

Terps Top Houston, 89-77, in NCAAs
Jordan Williams set career highs with 21 points and 17 rebounds, and Maryland beat Houston 89-77 in the first round of the NCAA tournament’s Midwest Regional on Friday night.

Williams carried the fourth-seeded Terrapins (24-8) into Sunday’s second-round game against fifth-seeded Michigan State (25-8), a 70-67 winner over New Mexico State.

Greivis Vasquez, the ACC player of the year, said Maryland’s plan was to go to Williams, his roommate.

Georgia Tech Outlasts Oklahoma State, 64-59
Gani Lawal scored 14 points, Derrick Favors came within a rebound of a double-double and the free throw-challenged Yellow Jackets scored their last 13 points at the line Friday night to hold off seventh-seeded Oklahoma State 64-59 in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

It was a disappointing finish for James Anderson and the Cowboys (22-11), who never quite found their rhythm. Anderson, the nation’s third-leading scorer, was just 3 of 12 for 11 points while Obi Muonelo had 10 points on 4-of-11 shooting. The Cowboys were one of the nation’s best 3-point shooting teams, averaging better than 35 percent. But they were just 6 of 22 from long range, including Anderson’s 0 for 6.