2025 March Madness highlights: BYU, Houston survive scares; Vols head to Sweet 16

NCAA BK

NCAA TOURNMENT - SECOND ROUND

UCLA Bruins UCLA

58

FINAL

67

7

UCLA ^23-11

UCLA ^23-11

58

2

Tennessee ^29-7

TENN ^29-7

67

Tennessee Volunteers TENN

FINAL

TENN -5.5 UNDER 132.5

SECOND HALF

Chaz Lanier remained hot from the field in the opening minutes of the second half, draining two 3-pointers early on that gave Tennessee a 15-point lead with under 15 minutes remaining. The second 3-pointer gave Lanier the program record for most 3-pointers in a single season. 

From there, the Vols never looked back. They held a double-digit lead for nearly the remainder of Saturday's game, securing a comfortable win.

FIRST HALF

UCLA and Tennessee were in lockstep for much of the first half, with neither team leading by more than four points until the final 30 seconds of the frame. Lanier knocked down an and-1 that put the Volunteers up 32-25 right before halftime. The bucket gave him 12 first-half points, as he drained two 3-pointers earlier in the first half.

NCAA BK

NCAA TOURNMENT - SECOND ROUND

Houston Cougars HOU

81

FINAL

76

1

Houston ^32-4

HOU ^32-4

81

8

Gonzaga ^26-9

GONZ ^26-9

76

Gonzaga Bulldogs GONZ

FINAL

GONZ +5.5 OVER 141.5

SECOND HALF

Gonzaga had some moments in the first 10 minutes of the second half when it looked like it could go on a run to cut Houston's lead, but it wasn't able to do so. L.J. Cryer was a large reason for that, draining a 3-pointer that pushed Houston's lead back up to 10 roughly halfway through the second half. 

Houston's lead continued to hover around 10 for much of the second half, but Gonzaga made a late push. After trailing 76-65 with just under three minutes to go, Gonzaga went on an 11-1 run in a two-plus-minute span. Trailing by three with under 30 seconds left, Gonzaga's Khalif Battle came up with a steal, but was immediately fouled. He made both free throws, making it a one-point game with 21 seconds left. 

After Cryer made two free throws, Battle tried to launch a 3-pointer in the corner to tie the game, but he lost the ball in the final few seconds. That ended Gonzaga's run of Sweet 16 appearances at nine.

FIRST HALF

Houston led by as many as 14 points in the first half of Saturday's game thanks to suffocating defense and Cryer. Gonzaga only shot 41.4% from the field as Houston recorded three steals and two blocks. Cryer, meanwhile, scored 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting in the first half. 

But the Zags cut into Houston's lead right before halftime, making it a 35-27 ballgame going into the break. 

NCAA BK

NCAA TOURNMENT - SECOND ROUND

BYU Cougars BYU

91

FINAL

89

6

BYU ^26-9

BYU ^26-9

91

3

Wisconsin ^27-10

WIS ^27-10

89

Wisconsin Badgers WIS

FINAL

BYU +1.5 OVER 157

SECOND HALF

Both teams started the second half off hot, but the Badgers kept chipping away at the Cougars' lead, eventually getting within four points twice. 

First, they did it on a 3-pointer from Max Klesmit. And they did it again with 13 minutes left thanks to three free throws from John Tonje. BYU, however, had an answer each time. 

The Cougars built their lead back up, sitting around a 10-point lead until the under-four-minute timeout. But some trouble emerged for BYU when Dawson Baker committed a Flagrant 2, giving Wisconsin two free throws to cut the lead to 86-78 with 3:11 left.

BYU went back up 11 on the ensuing possession, but Wisconsin hung in there and took advantage of the Cougars' gaffes. After BYU made a pair of free throws to take a 91-83 lead with 1:25 remaining, Wisconsin went on a 6-0 run in a 25-second span. Tonje made a 3-pointer to cut BYU's lead to five before the Cougars committed a foul on the ensuing inbounds. Tonje converted a quick and-1 to make it 91-89 with a minute left.

BYU secured an offensive rebound on the next possession but couldn't score, giving Wisconsin the ball with a chance to tie or win the game with 13 seconds left. Tonje got an isolation, driving to the bucket before trying to shoot a step back. His shot was off the mark, though, giving BYU the victory.

FIRST HALF

BYU was strong on both ends in the first half, shooting 47.2% from the field while making 6 of 14 3-pointers while holding Wisconsin to 38.7% shooting from the field and 5-of-17 shooting from distance. 

Each team showed off its shooting from distance during a four-possession stretch, though, in the first half as both teams traded 3-pointers. 

But BYU was just a bit more crisp than Wisconsin. Trevin Knell drained an impressive 3-pointer right before the buzzer that gave the Cougars a 47-36 lead.

NCAA BK

NCAA TOURNMENT - SECOND ROUND

Auburn Tigers AUB

82

FINAL

70

1

Auburn ^30-5

AUB ^30-5

82

9

Creighton ^25-11

CREI ^25-11

70

Creighton Bluejays CREI

FINAL

AUB -8.5 OVER 148.5

SECOND HALF

Creighton and Auburn continued to exchange blows into the opening minutes of the second half, with the game being tied at 50-50 after Ryan Kalkbrenner made a pair of free throws with 14:13 remaining. But the Tigers went on a run, scoring eight straight points to take a 58-50 lead that was capped off with an emphatic dunk by Dylan Cardwell. 

That helped put Auburn in control for the remainder of the game, leading by as many as 14. But the Tigers still had to work for it as a 7-0 run from the Bluejays cut the lead to 72-65 with 2:30 to go. Kalkbrenner split a pair of free throws to make it a 74-68 game with 1:39 left. Auburn's Denver Jones then made a tough layup while getting fouled, giving the Tigers a 77-68 edge with 1:11 left.

FIRST HALF

Creighton and Auburn were locked into a back-and-forth battle for much of the first 20 minutes. Auburn had a more balanced scoring attack, but Johni Broome only had four points on 2-of-8 shooting. One of those buckets came on an offensive rebound as he grabbed seven boards in the first half.

But Creighton put Auburn on early upset watch. Jackson McAndrew drained a 3-pointer right before the buzzer that gave Creighton a 37-35 lead. McAndrew shot 4-of-5 from deep in the first 20 minutes, with Steven Ashworth adding 11 points and five assists. 

NCAA BK

NCAA TOURNMENT - SECOND ROUND

Drake Bulldogs DRKE

64

FINAL

77

11

Drake ^31-4

DRKE ^31-4

64

3

Texas Tech ^27-8

TTU ^27-8

77

Texas Tech Red Raiders TTU

FINAL

TTU -7.5 OVER 126.5

SECOND HALF

After scoring 19 points in the opening half, JT Toppin continued to play well into the second half. He recorded multiple blocks, helping to slow down Drake's offense.

Texas Tech also got a creative alley-oop to add to its lead roughly halfway through the second half. 

Darrion Williams was Texas Tech's leading scorer on Saturday with 28, but Toppin made big plays that allowed the Red Raiders to pad their lead to over double digits and win comfortably.

FIRST HALF

Coming off the bench, Tavion Banks executed an acrobatic bucket for Drake in the early going. The Bulldogs later led 18-14 at the second TV timeout.

Drake remained in striking distance entering halftime, trailing 37-30. 

NCAA BK

NCAA TOURNMENT - SECOND ROUND

Michigan Wolverines MICH

91

FINAL

79

5

Michigan ^27-9

MICH ^27-9

91

4

Texas A&M ^23-11

TXAM ^23-11

79

Texas A&M Aggies TXAM

FINAL

MICH +2.5 OVER 144.5

SECOND HALF

Right when it looked like the Wolverines were facing an end to their tournament run, they flipped the script. Texas A&M took a 60-50 lead with just over 13 minutes remaining, getting a big and-1 from Pharrel Payne. But Michigan slowly chipped into the lead, going on a run spearheaded by Danny Wolf, L.J. Cason and Roddy Gayle Jr. Gayle made two free throws that gave Michigan a 71-70 lead with just over six minutes remaining. 

Vladislav Goldin made a pair of layups on consecutive possessions that extended the lead to 75-70 with just over five minutes to go. 

It appeared that Michigan had the game won amid its big run. The Wolverines had an 82-73 advantage with roughly 2:30 remaining. But the Aggies didn't go away quietly, cutting the lead to 82-79 with 1:29 left. A week after hitting a buzzer-beater in the Big Ten Tournament, Tre Donaldson had another huge bucket. He got a layup to go with just under a minute left, giving Michigan an 84-79 edge.

Texas A&M didn't score from that point on, allowing Michigan to pad its lead at the free-throw line and walk away victorious. 

FIRST HALF

A back-and-forth affair saw Texas A&M's Wade Taylor throw up an alley-oop to Payne, and the big man slam it home in the opening minutes. The game was tied at 17 apiece at the second TV timeout.

Gayle got the ball underneath and would not be denied, putting it down despite multiple defenders in the area. Texas A&M led 39-35 at halftime. Payne had a game-high 14 points for the Aggies, while Goldin had a team-high 12 points, seven rebounds and two blocks for the Wolverines at the break.

NCAA BK

NCAA TOURNMENT - SECOND ROUND

Arkansas Razorbacks ARK

75

FINAL

66

10

Arkansas ^22-13

ARK ^22-13

75

2

St John's ^31-5

SJU ^31-5

66

St. John's Red Storm SJU

FINAL

ARK +6.5 UNDER 146.5

SECOND HALF

Arkansas led by as many as 10 points before the first TV timeout of the second half. Among its early buckets of the second half was Karter Knox forcing an interception and turning it into points on the other end of the floor.

Arkansas stretched its lead to 13 points, but then St. John's clawed its way back, cutting the lead to two points on a Ruben Prey baseline slam. At the final TV timeout of the second half, the Red Storm trailed 68-64.

But then the Razorbacks outscored the Red Storm the rest of the way, 7-2, and held on to win.

FIRST HALF

The Razorbacks led 11-6 at the first TV timeout, with Johnell Davis scoring the first points of the game and five of their first 11.

Arkansas extended its lead to 22-14, but then St. John's went on a 10-2 run to tie the score at 24 apiece, with RJ Luis getting a jam off a steal. Zuby Ejiofor had half of St. John's first 24 points. He eventually had a game-high 16 points at halftime. That said, the Razorbacks led 35-32 at the break.

NCAA BK

NCAA TOURNMENT - SECOND ROUND

McNeese Cowboys MCNS

62

FINAL

76

12

McNeese State ^28-7

MCNS ^28-7

62

4

Purdue ^24-11

PUR ^24-11

76

Purdue Boilermakers PUR

FINAL

PUR -6.5 UNDER 140.5

SECOND HALF

You just have to be a smidgen behind the 3-point line for it to count as such, but Fletcher Loyer opted to hoist up a shot from yards behind the arc and drained it for Purdue's first points of the second half.

McNeese State went on a 9-0 run, but Purdue quickly got its lead back up to 20 points with 9:49 remaining with an and-1 from Trey Kaufman-Renn, who finished with a game-high 22 points and 15 rebounds. The Cowboys got to within 14 points but weren't able to mount a comeback.

FIRST HALF

Purdue led 14-6 at the first TV timeout, with each of its five starters scoring. Later, the Boilermakers forced the Cowboys to call a timeout after taking a 27-11 lead with 9:35 remaining in the half. Purdue's Braden Smith had two 3-pointers at the stoppage. Fifteen of the Boilermakers' first 27 points came off 3-pointers.

It was all Boilermakers in the first half, as they made six 3-pointers, out-rebounded the Cowboys 22-12 and led 38-20 at halftime. Smith had a game-high 10 points at the midway mark.