When Texas A&M; guard Derrick Roland broke his leg in December it forced some drastic lineup changes for the Aggies, including freshman Khris Middleton being moved into the starting lineup. He played OK, then averaged a solid 15 points in three Big 12 tournament games. But Middleton erupted for a career-high 19 points as fifth-seeded Texas A&M; crushed 12th seed Utah State 69-53 on Friday in the...

Trevor Booker's stellar career at Clemson ended on a sour note. You can thank "The Fastest 40 Minutes in Basketball" for that. Kim English and Keith Ramsey each scored 20 points, and Missouri's swarming defense lived up to its reputation during an 86-78 victory over Clemson in the first round of the NCAA tournament Friday.

Even on an off day for leading scorer Ashton Gibbs, Pittsburgh wasn't about to become the latest Big East powerhouse to bow out in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Jermaine Dixon and Gilbert Brown had 17 points each, leading a total of six Panthers players who scored in double figures as third-seeded Pittsburgh shook off a slow start to rout No.

Slow and plodding early, fast and frantic late. No matter the tempo, Wisconsin stayed poised against pesky Wofford. It's exactly what coach Bo Ryan expected from his team, which has plenty of NCAA tournament experience. And in the end, the Badgers did exactly what they do best -- play defense. Jon Leuer followed a huge jump shot with an even more critical steal on the other end, and the...

Confident, relaxed and definitely on their game. Cornell lived up to its billing as the best team to come out of the Ivy League in more than a decade, and now the senior-heavy Big Red have a chance for a nice run in the East Regional of the NCAA tournament. "Everyone was saying we were Cinderella or it's an upset.

Purdue played the us-against-the-world game to open the NCAA tournament. Us won. "You got the president picking against you, so it's a different thing," Boilermakers senior Keaton Grant said of the national chorus-- including Barack Obama -- who expected 13th-seeded Siena to beat the Boilermakers because Robbie Hummel is out.

The way West Virginia was missing one shot after another, the thought actually crossed forward Kevin Jones' mind whether the Mountaineers would ever hit a basket. After missing their first 11 attempts, the second-seeded Mountaineers eventually found their range Friday -- and have Jones to thank for leading the way.

Jordan Crawford finally mustered a smile. After a sour experience in the NCAA tournament two years ago, he's back on March's biggest stage. Now he wants to stay as long as possible. "I'm taking every second in. I'm taking it all in," Crawford said. "I want to be here as long as I can." Crawford scored 17 of his 28 points in the second half and Xavier kept its run of...

Tubby Smith dismissed a report that he is close to taking over at Auburn, calling it "just talk." Citing an unidentified source close to the situation, CBSSports.com reported that Auburn is "close" to hiring Smith. But the Minnesota coach denied that and said he has not been offered a job by any other school.

The weeks of talk on whether coach Norm Roberts would return to St. John's ended Friday: He was fired after six seasons with the Red Storm -- only two of them with a winning record. "To say it was a difficult decision would be to minimize it," St. John's athletic director Chris Monasch said.

When Jimmer Fredette planted a seed with Florida's Chandler Parsons before their NCAA tournament game, he couldn't have known it would sound prophetic. The BYU star told Parsons, the only Gators player to ever hit two true buzzer-beaters to clinch victories, "no game winning shots tonight." Fredette went on to score 37 points and hit two 3-pointers in double overtime to seal the...

Scottie Reynolds learned a lesson starting the game on the bench. Once in the game, he delivered a teachable moment of his own to 15th-seeded Robert Morris: Don't let a Final Four-tested team like Villanova off the hook. Reynolds was benched, his shot wasn't falling and his Wildcats were on the brink of having their NCAA tournament run end in the biggest of upsets.

Ekpe Udoh did everything Baylor needed to stave off upset-minded Sam Houston State and end a 60-year drought in the NCAA tournament. Udoh had 20 points and 13 rebounds, and Baylor dominated the last three minutes of a 68-59 victory Thursday in the first round of the South Regional. Udoh also had five assists, two blocks and two steals for the third-seeded Bears (26-7), who broke open a close game...

As Carleton Scott's 3-pointer sailed toward the hoop and rattled around the rim, Old Dominion's Keyon Carter was already bracing for the possibility of a tie game. Then the shot popped out, giving the Monarchs the NCAA tournament's first upset. "I said, 'Here we go again.' Those guys made a lot of clutch 3s," Carter said.

Murray State coach Billy Kennedy went with his gut and drew up a play his team had never run before, with Isacc Miles the go-to guy at the end. Third option Danero Thomas became the hero instead. Thomas hit a 15-footer as the buzzer sounded and 13th-seeded Murray State stunned No. 4 seed Vanderbilt 66-65 on Thursday in an NCAA tournament opener in the West Regional.

Richmond was on the wrong side of an NCAA tournament upset this time, and Saint Mary's is moving on for the first time in more than 50 years. Omar Samhan had 29 points and 12 rebounds despite spending most of the game in foul trouble, and Saint Mary's pulled away from Richmond to win 80-71 on Thursday in the first round of the South Regional.

On an opening day of upsets and close calls in the NCAA tournament, Kansas State got an early scare. It lasted 10 minutes. Denis Clemente had 17 points and six assists, leading the second-seeded Wildcats to an 82-62 rout of North Texas on Thursday in the West Regional. Kansas State (27-7) gathered itself after a shaky start, riding its defense into the second round for the second time in three...

Fed up by his antics on and off the court, Seton Hall fired basketball coach Bobby Gonzalez on Wednesday after a 19-win season. The dismissal came roughly 12 hours after the coach known as "Gonzo" endured an 87-69 loss in the opening round of the NIT, a game in which Seton Hall forward Herb Pope was ejected for hitting Texas Tech player below the belt and Gonzalez picked up his seventh...

John Calipari has coached in enough NCAA tournaments to know that youth can be more of a liability at this time of year than any other. With the talent he has in freshmen such as John Wall, Eric Bledsoe and DeMarcus Cousins, a lack of tournament experience doesn't have to be an issue. The problem, Calipari said, is that you never know.

Talk about an eerie coincidence. Kansas, the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament, is facing nearly the exact circumstance as one of the most embarrassing losses in the storied program's history. When the top-ranked Jayhawks (32-2) open the NCAA tournament Thursday against Lehigh, it'll look and feel a whole lot like 2005 -- when they lost to Bucknell in the first round.