Xavier, UNC Advance To Elite Eight

PHOENIX — Three-pointers saved Xavier. Missed free throws doomed West Virginia.

B.J. Raymond made two 3-pointers in the last 1:18 of overtime last night and the Musketeers advanced to the West Region final with a 79–75 victory over coach Bob Huggins's Mountaineers.

Third-seeded Xavier (30–6) will seek its first Final Four appearance when it plays the winner of the UCLA-Western Kentucky game in the regional final on Saturday.

Raymond, who had made only one field goal all night, hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key to put the Musketeers ahead 75–74 with 1:18 to play. He then shook loose on an inbounds play, took a cross-court pass, and made a 3 with the shot clock expiring with 30 seconds to go for a 78–74 lead.

Josh Duncan scored a career-high 26 points despite foul trouble to lead Xavier, which held an early 18-point lead.

Joe Alexander scored 18 and had 10 rebounds for the Mountaineers (26–11).

West Virginia missed four of six free throws in the overtime. Alexander missed one with 14.2 seconds left in regulation that would have given his team a 65–64 lead. Xavier shot 11-for-19 on 3s while West Virginia was 1-for-11 from long range. The Mountaineers had only one worse performance on 3s this season, going 1-for-22 in a loss to Cincinnati.

Duncan was 3-of-4 on 3s, Lavender 3-of-6, and Raymond 2-of-4. Da'Sean Butler added 16 points, 14 in the second half. Alexander and Butler both fouled out in the overtime.

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UNC 68, WASHINGTON ST. 47

North Carolina went from running it up to locking it down. Now the Tar Heels are a step away from the Final Four again.

Tyler Hansbrough scored 16 of his 18 points in the second half last night and the top-seeded Tar Heels, not known for their defense, held Washington State to 32% shooting in a 68–47 win in the East Regional semifinals.

Danny Green had 15 points to help the Tar Heels (35–2) set a school record for victories in a season while continuing their dominant tournament run. The no. 1 overall seed will play the Louisville-Tennessee winner Saturday with a clear home-court advantage, playing in an arena located about two hours from its Chapel Hill campus.

Fourth-seeded Washington State missed shot after shot—sometimes open, more often not—while the Tar Heels kept pushing forward with their slowed-but-effective transition attack. The Cougars (26-9) got little from the perimeter, with Derrick Low, Kyle Weaver and Taylor Rochestie scoring a combined 26 points on 10-for-37 shooting.