Reese and Maryland blow out Grand Canyon 81-49

SEATTLE >> Julian Reese had 18 points and nine rebounds, and fourth-seeded Maryland pounded No. 13 seed Grand Canyon in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Ja’Kobi Gillespie added 16 points for the Terrapins (26-8), who will play No. 12 Colorado State on Sunday in the second round of the West Region. The Rams beat fifth-seeded Memphis 78-70.

Derik Queen, the Big Ten freshman of the year who was averaging 16.3 points and nine rebounds a game, finished with 12 points and 15 boards, becoming the first Maryland freshman with a double-double in the tournament since Jalen Smith in 2019.

ALABAMA 90, ROBERT MORRIS 81>> All-America guard Mark Sears scored 19 of his 22 points in the second half and second-seeded Alabama pulled away late to escape 15th-seeded Robert Morris.

The Colonials gave the Crimson Tide (27-8) all they could handle and even took their first lead at 65-64 on a layup by Josh Omojafo to bring the Rocket Arena crowd to its feet.

Alabama responded behind Sears, who had seven points during an 11-2 surge that gave the Crimson Tide some breathing room against the Horizon League champions. Robert Morris (26-9) came in as a 22-1/2 point underdog, according to BetMGM Sportsbook, yet spent most of the afternoon threatening to author the first true bracket-buster of the tournament after a relatively quiet opening day on Thursday.

IOWA ST. 82, LIPSCOMB 55>> Milan Momcilovic scored 17 of his 20 points in the first half, and third-seeded Iowa State routed Lipscomb.

Curtis Jones had 17 points as Iowa State bounced back nicely after dropping four of seven going into the tourney. Joshua Jefferson finished with 10 points and eight assists.

Next up for the Cyclones (25-9) in the South Region is Mississippi.

MISSISSIPPI 71, NORTH CAROLINA 64>> Sean Pedulla made a critical 3-pointer with 52.8 seconds left, and Mississippi topped North Carolina after the Rebels squandered most of a 22-point lead in the second half.

The Rebels are making their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2019. They hadn’t won an NCAA tourney game since beating BYU 94-90 in the First Four in 2015, and they hadn’t advanced beyond the round of 64 since 2013.

Pedulla finished with 20 points. Dre Davis had 15 for Ole Miss, and Jaemyn Brakefield added 12 points.

RJ Davis scored 15 and Ven-Allen Lubin had 14 for North Carolina, which advanced to the round of 64 with a 95-68 victory over San Diego State in the First Four on Tuesday.

Florida 95,Norfolk State 69 >> Earlier this week, Florida guard Walter Clayton Jr. was named a first-team All-American.

On Friday night, he reminded everyone why.

Clayton made four 3-pointers and scored 23 points as the Gators ran out to a huge lead and defeated Norfolk State 95-69, ensuring all four No. 1 seeds made it out of the first round unscathed.

Alijah Martin added 17 points for the Southeastern Conference champions, who built a 32-point lead in the first half en route to their seventh straight win.

Duke 93, Mount St. Mary’s 49>> Tyrese Proctor had 19 points and freshman star Cooper Flagg returned from an ankle injury as No. 1 seed Duke beat Mount St. Mary’s 93-49.

Flagg had 14 points and seven boards for the Blue Devils (32-3), the East bracket headliner opening a push for a sixth national title roughly a half-hour’s drive from its Durham campus. Duke jumped to a 13-2 lead in a dominant first half marked by clean execution on the way to a big lead.

The Blue Devils cooled after the break, but finished at 50% shooting with 14 3-pointers to cruise toward a second-round date with Baylor. Proctor went 6 for 8 from deep.

Arizona 93, Akron 65>> Jaden Bradley, Trey Townsend and Caleb Love hit 3-pointers within the first two minutes, and No. 4 seed Arizona easily dismissed 13th-seeded Akron 93-65.

Bradley finished with 19 points, Townsend had 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting, Carter Bryant scored 12 and Love and KJ Lewis each had 10 for the Wildcats (23-12), who reached the second round of March Madness for the third time in coach Tommy Lloyd’s four seasons.

Kentucky 76, Troy 57>> Otega Oweh scored 20 points, Andrew Carr had 13 and third-seeded Kentucky beat Troy 76-57.

Oweh added eight assists and six rebounds, and Amari Williams grabbed 13 boards for Kentucky.

Kentucky also was a No. 3 seed last year when it lost 80-76 to 14th-seeded Oakland in the first round. But it has turned over its roster since that Oakland game, and it had no major issues against Troy this time around.

— The Associated Press