The NCAA tournament continued on Friday, but March Madness was largely MIA as many top seeds delivered wins.
Duke freshman sensation Cooper Flagg made his NCAA tournament debut after missing a couple of games with an ankle injury, scoring 14 points with 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks in a win. Florida, Kentucky, Arizona and Maryland all rolled to easy wins. Two-time defending champion UConn also held its own against Oklahoma to advance to a second-round showdown with the Gators.
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Since many favorites came out on top, the day was light on the tournament upsets. Colorado State became the second No. 12 seed to advance to the second round, but the Rams were favored to beat No. 5 Memphis due to poor seeding and injuries to key players.
Here’s how Friday’s schedule played out:
No. 9 Baylor 75, No. 8 Mississippi State 72
No. 2 Alabama 90, No. 15 Robert Morris 81
No. 3 Iowa State 82, No. 14 Lipscomb 55
No. 12 Colorado State 78, No. 5 Memphis 70
No. 1 Duke 93, No. 16 Mount St. Mary’s 49
No. 7 Saint Mary’s 59, No. 10 Vanderbilt 56
No. 6 Ole Miss 71, No. 11 North Carolina 64
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No. 4 Maryland 81, No. 13 Grand Canyon 49
No. 1 Florida 95, No. 16 Norfolk State 69
No. 3 Kentucky 76, No. 14 Troy 57
No. 7 Marquette 75, No. 10 New Mexico 66
No. 4 Arizona 93, No. 13 Akron 65
No. 8 UConn 67 No. 9 Oklahoma 59
No. 6 Illinois 86 No. 11 Xavier 73
No. 2 Michigan State 87, No. 15 Bryant 62
No. 5 Oregon 81, No. 12 Liberty 52
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