Threes the key as Butler moves on in NCAA tournament
March 15, 2007
(#5 seed) Butler 57, (#12 seed) Old Dominion 46 Box Score * Post-Game Press Conferences
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - When Butler needed a spark, Pete Campbell delivered.
Campbell hit three 3-pointers, his only baskets of the game, to spark a 17-0 run in the Bulldogs' 57-46 victory over Old Dominion in a first-round matchup Thursday between two of the six mid-majors in this year's NCAA tournament.
Butler (28-6), the fifth seed in the Midwest and tournament-tested with six appearances in 11 years, set a school record for victories in a season.
The Bulldogs will meet fourth-seeded Maryland in the second round Saturday. The Terps (25-8) beat 13th-seeded Davidson 82-70 earlier Thursday.
The Bulldogs have become one of the nation's model mid-major programs. They had equaled the team record set four years ago, when they pulled off two big upsets as a 12th seed to make it to the round of 16. And they were determined not to become a victim of a 12th seed.
Old Dominion (24-9) had won 12 of 13 games and even posted an early season victory over eventual Big East champion Georgetown, a second seed in the NCAA tournament.
It was anybody's game until the Bulldogs finally found their range. Trailing 32-29 after Valdas Vasylius hit a 3-pointer with 12:22 remaining, Butler tied it with A.J. Graves' 3 from right wing, and then Campbell found his range.
Graves led Butler with 18 points, Mike Green had 14, and Brandon Crone 12.
The Monarchs featured three senior starters - Vasylius, Drew Williamson, and Arnaud Dahi - who put together the winningest four-year class in school history with 93 victories.
On this day, they struggled, going a combined 7-for-28. Dahi had 10 points, but the 6-foot-7 Vasylius, the team's leading scorer at nearly 16 points per game, missed all four of his shots in the first half and finished with 10 points on 3-for-12 shooting. Williamson, who didn't score until he converted his own steal with a fast-break layup with 16:20 left in the game, finished with two points before fouling out in the final minute.
Brandon Johnson led Old Dominion with 11 points and Gerald Lee also had 10.
A large contingent of fans were seated behind the Butler bench ready to cheer the Bulldogs' every move. There wasn't much to cheer about until Campbell stepped up.
Campbell, who was 62-for-109 in previous 19 games on 3s for an impressive 56.9 percent, missed his first two from long range before connecting twice in a 54-second span to break the 32-all tie. He nailed his first 3 from right wing at 10:28 and, after Brandon Johnson missed a 3 for Old Dominion, followed with a 3 from left wing for a 38-32 lead with 9:34 left.
Campbell made his third 3 from the left side, missed another, then watched Green drain one from the top of the key and follow that with a driving layup to boost the lead to 46-32 with 6:19 left.
Butler, ranked in the top 20 for 15 weeks, held Old Dominion scoreless for 7:24 during its decisive run.
A 12th seed has beaten a No. 5 in each of the last six years. Butler did it in 2003 and this year had landed the highest seed in school history, prompting many experts to pick Old Dominion for an upset.
But Butler has become accustomed at confounding the experts. Four years ago as a 12th seed, the Bulldogs upset Mississippi State and Louisville before falling to Oklahoma in the round of 16, foreshadowing George Mason's stunning run to the Final Four a year ago.
This year, Butler started making a statement in November. The Bulldogs began the season with a 40-point rout at Tulane, then won the NIT Season Tip-Off, posting victories over four teams selected for the NCAA tournament - Notre Dame, Indiana, Tennessee and Gonzaga.
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(#3 seed) Pittsburgh 79, (#14 seed) Wright State 58 Box Score
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) -- No first-round exit this time for Pittsburgh.
The Panthers, ousted in the first round seven times in 18 previous appearances in the NCAA tournament, used their long-range marksmanship instead of their considerable brawn, hitting 10 of 21 3-pointers, and beat Wright State 79-58 on Thursday night.
Ronald Ramon hit four 3s and finished with 14 points, and Sam Young had 13 to lead the Panthers, who never trailed. Pittsburgh (28-7), the third seed in the West Regional, will meet 11th-seeded Virginia Commonwealth (28-6) in the second round on Saturday. VCU upset Duke 79-77 just moments before the Panthers and Raiders took the floor at HSBC Arena.
Pittsburgh built 13-point leads three times in the first half against Wright State (23-10), hitting seven of 12 3-pointers and forging a 43-30 at the break. And when the Panthers began the second half with an 11-3 spurt, the Raiders couldn't recover.
Seven-foot center Aaron Gray, coming off a 1-of-13 performance for three points against Georgetown in the Big East title game, had 11 points, nine rebounds and four blocks. Levon Kendall had 10 points, and Antonio Graves eight for Pitt.
Wright State's DaShaun Wood, the Horizon League player of the year who entered the game averaging just under 20 points per game, finished with 13 points, six assists and four steals. Freshman Vaughn Duggins had 12 points and Scottie Wilson added 11.
Pittsburgh beat both Marquette and Louisville in last week's Big East tournament before suffering a humbling 65-42 loss to Georgetown in the title game. It was Pitt's lowest point total of the season and its most lopsided loss in seven years.
The Panthers recovered nicely against 14th-seeded Wright State, which was fresh from a 60-55 victory over Butler in the Horizon League championship game. The Raiders had won 11 of their previous 12 games, including two over Butler, the fifth seed in the Midwest.
The Raiders' only previous trip to the NCAA tournament in their 20 years in Division I came in 1993, when they were pounded 97-54 by Indiana in the first round after capturing the Mid-Continent Conference tournament title. And they started tentatively against Pitt, seemingly overwhelmed by the moment, missed their first four shots, committed a turnover and fell way behind.
The Panthers stormed to a 13-0 lead as Kendall, Mike Cook and Graves each hit wide-open 3-pointers in the first 94 seconds.
But with their band playing loudly and more than 400 fans cheering them on, the Raiders finally got untracked, and it was a freshman who provided the spark. After missing two straight shots, Todd Brown hit a reverse layup off a missed 3 by Wood, then hit two mid-range jumpers.
And after Keith Benjamin followed his own miss to give Pitt a 21-10 lead at 12:03, Wright State reeled off a 12-1 run to tie it. Wilson started the spurt with a long 3 from left wing, William Graham hit a curling hook off the glass, and Wood finished it with a 3 from right wing to make it 22-all at 8:32.
Pitt finally stopped the slide after Graham stole the ball and set up Duggins for a wide-open layup. That tied the game again, 25-all, and the Panthers again began striking consistently from long range to take control.
Young, who led Pitt with 12 points in the half, swished a 3 from right wing, Ramon followed with another 3 from left wing, and Graves rattled in a 3 from the right corner to put Pitt ahead 35-27.
Young's fast-break layup with 1:51 remaining in the period completed a 15-2 spurt and Ramon followed with a 3 from the top of the key to give Pitt its 13-point halftime edge.
Gray's three-point play gave Pitt its biggest lead, 68-45, with 8 minutes left.
