NCAA Tournament: Colorado, Grambling State win First Four games
By MITCH STACY AP Sports Writer
DAYTON, Ohio — Tristan da Silva scored 20 points and Colorado won its first NCAA Tournament game in three years, wrapping up the First Four with a sloppy 60-53 victory over Boise State on Wednesday night.
A layup by Eddie Lampkin Jr. and a pair of foul shots from J’Vonne Hadley capped an 11-0 run that gave the Buffaloes a 56-49 lead with 24 seconds left in what had been a back-and-forth game. Boise State had to start fouling and Colorado didn’t miss from the line – and that sealed it.
KJ Simpson had 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Buffaloes (25-10), who advanced as a No. 10 seed to face seventh-seeded Florida in Indianapolis on Friday.
Chibuzo Agbo had 17 points for Boise State (23-11), which dropped to 0-10 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
The start was lethargic for both teams, who had combined for just 25 points at the 10-minute mark of the first half. Boise State went up by six late in the half, but Colorado cut it to 26-24 by halftime.
Boise State was 1 for 10 from 3-point range in the first half, while the Buffs were just 1 for 8 from long range.
In the early game …
Grambling State 88, Montana State 81 (OT): Jimel Cofer scored all 19 of his points in the second half and overtime and Grambling State rallied from a 14-point deficit to earn the first NCAA Tournament win in program history.
The Southwestern Athletic Conference champion Tigers (21-14) advance as the No. 16 seed in the Midwest Region to play top-seeded Purdue on Friday night in Indianapolis.
Robert Ford III made his fifth 3-pointer of the game to tie the score at 78 for the Big Sky Conference Tournament champions with 2:02 left in overtime, but Grambling iced the game from the free-throw line with eight straight points.
Montana State (17-18) shot 1 for 6 over the final 1:27.
