NCAA West: Racers Smother Rams Offense In Second Half As Murray State Advances; Marquette, Louisville, Lobos Advance Too

Action from the West Region of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament commenced on Thursday with four games.

At Louisville, Kentucky:

In the opening contest at KFC Yum! Center, Isaiah Canaan scored 15 points while Donte Poole added 13 as the Murray State Racers, seeded #6, overcame a 24-23 halftime deficit and wounded up dominating #11-seeded Colorado State 58-41.  The Racers' recored improved to 31-1 while the Rams finished their season at 20-12.

In the second contest, Jae Crowder scored 25 points and grabbed 16 rebounds as the #3-seeded Marquette Golden Eagles (26-7) defeated the #14-seeded BYU Cougars (26-9) 88-68.  Marquette will take on Murray State on Saturday.

At Portland, Oregon:

In the first of two Rose Garden encounters, Peyton Siva scored 17 points as the fourth-seeded Louisville Cardinals (27-9) defeated the #13-seeded Davidson Wildcats (25-8) 69-62.


In the second contest,  Drew Gordon scored 18 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as the #5-seeded New Mexico Lobos (28-6) outlasted the twelfth-seeded Long Beach State 49ers (25-9) 75-68.  The Lobos will take on Louisville on Saturday.