Wichita State & Florida Gulf Coast Win Big in First Four Games
Wichita State and Florida Gulf Coast won their respective First Four games in the NCAA tournament on Tuesday. Here's a recap of the night's action:
Wichita State 70, Vanderbilt 50
Ron Baker had 14 points and seven rebounds, and Wichita State surged past Vanderbilt, 70-50, in a First Four game of the 2016 NCAA men’s basketball tournament in Dayton, Ohio on Tuesday night.
Tied at 30 at halftime, the game was still a tight 50-48 contest late in the second half when the Shockers (25-8) reeled off a decisive 20-2 run to close out the Commodores (19-14).
Fred VanVleet added 14 points and seven assists for 11th-seeded Wichita State, which advanced to face sixth-seeded Arizona in the South Region in Providence on Thursday.
Wade Baldwin IV led Vanderbilt with nine points.
Florida Gulf Coast 96, Fairleigh Dickinson 65
Marc-Eddy Norelia scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and Florida Gulf Coast routed Fairleigh Dickinson, 96-65, in a First Four game of the 2016 NCAA men’s basketball tournament in Dayton, Ohio on Tuesday night.
The 16th-seeded Eagles (21-13) advanced to face top-seeded North Carolina in the East Regional in Raleigh, NC on Thursday.
Florida Gulf Coast, which made a Cinderella run as a 15-seed in the tournament in 2013, raced out to a 40-19 halftime lead. The Eagles extended the margin in the second half, shooting an amazing 60 percent from the field for the game.
Earl Potts Jr. led the Knights (18-15) with 16 points and eight rebounds.