(9) Arkansas 86, (8) Indiana 72: The Razorbacks put the Hoosiers out of their misery, ending Indiana's season (and, most likely, Dan Dakich's run as coach) with a 86-72 win. Forwards Sonny Weems (31 points) and Darian Townes (17 points, 12 boards) led the way for Arkansas.
Indiana senior D.J. White may have enhanced his NBA draft stock with a strong game, scoring 22 points and grabbing nine rebounds despite early foul trouble -- but freshman sensation Eric Gordon's struggles, which seem to coincide with the ouster of Kelvin Sampson continued. He shot just 3-of-15 from the floor and scored eight points.
Indiana will likely have a very different look next season. White will be gone. Gordon -- considered by most to be a top-five draft pick -- will probably leave as well. And the fact that the university couldn't wait until after the season to formally begin its coaching search certainly doesn't bode well for Dakich's chances to retain the job.
(5) Notre Dame 68, (11) George Mason 50: No Cinderella run for George Mason this year. Led by Big East player of the year Luke Harangody's 18 points and 14 boards, the Irish were in control most of the way.
(4) Washington State 71, (13) Winthrop 40: This one looked like a competitive game, with the score tied at 29 going into the half.
Appearances can be deceiving.
Washington State opened the second half on a 23-4 run and cruised to a 31-point win, adding another impressive victory to the coaching resume of Cougars coach Tony Bennett, who many think will be the next head man at Indiana.
(6) Oklahoma 72, (11) Saint Joseph's 64: Oklahoma built up a big lead thanks to the unlikely contribution of David Godbold. Godbold averages under seven points per game, but chipped in a team-leading 25 tonight, including the Sooners' first 11 points of the second half, and did an excellent job defending Hawks leading scorer Pat Calathes. St. Joe's mounted a furious charge to make things close, but couldn't find a way to defend Blake Griffin on the low block down the stretch.
(3) Louisville 79, (14) Boise State 61: In something of a rarity in Friday's action, the higher seed won and did so convincingly, as Rick Pitino's Cardinals outclassed the Boise State Broncos in terms of size, strength, athleticism and depth. The Cardinals built up a 42-26 first-half lead and cruised down the stretch, punctuating the win with several highlight-reel dunks at the end.
(7) Butler 81, (10) South Alabama 61: A lot of observers felt the Butler Bulldogs were mistreated by the NCAA selection committee. Ranked 11th in the final polls, you'd assume they'd be in line for a four seed. Instead, they were made a seven. Adding insult to injury, they were sent to play what amounted to an away game, facing South Alabama -- in Birmingham.
Those obstacles? Forgotten. Butler blasted the Jaguars, canning 15 of 28 three-pointers (.536) en route to a 20-point win. Pete Campbell hit eight of those treys on his way to a team-high 26 points.
(2) Tennessee 72, (15) American University 57: There's at least a chance that the Volunteers were a touch overconfident going into this game -- with 5:45 left, they were ahead by just two points. But in the end, their superior athleticism left the Patriot League champs overmatched; Bruce Pearl's charges closed out the game with a 19-8 run that provided the final margin of victory.
