MONDAY, MARCH 23, 2015 SPORTS Kentucky stay unbeaten

NEW YORK: Two down, four to go for the Kentucky Wildcats as they try to become the first unbeaten national champion since Indiana in 1976. Villanova became the first top seed out as it lost to North Carolina State, while UCLA came up with a second win in the tournament, not bad for a team that many said didn’t even belong in the field of 68. The Atlantic Coast Conference continued its so-far perfect tournament run with wins by NC State, North Carolina and Notre Dame.

EAST REGION NC STATE 71, VILLANOVA 68 NC State is back in the Sweet 16, attacking one of the top teams in the nation for 40 minutes and stun- ning Villanova 71-68 on Saturday night. The Wolfpack went wild as the final horn sounded and danced around the court in celebration. No, it wasn’t quite Jim Valvano’s mad dash after the Wolfpack won the 1983 national championship. But the Wolfpack (22-13) have designs on their own big March run. They will move on to Syracuse, New York to play the winner of the Louisville-Northern Iowa game. N.C. State guards Cat Barber and Desmond Lee shared a long embrace after buzzer. Barber pounded his chest and said, “all heart!” Lacey led them with 17 points and Barber had 13, each coming with big buckets to hold off a late Villanova charge. The Wildcats saw a 16-game winning streak end and have not reached the second weekend since 2009.

SOUTH REGION UTAH 75, GEORGETOWN 64 Brandon Taylor scored 14 points and Delon Wright added 12 and the fifth-seeded Utah beat No. 4 Georgetown 75-64 on Saturday night. The Utes (26-8) will travel to Houston to play the winner of Sunday’s game in Charlotte, North Carolina, between top-seeded Duke (30-4) and No. 8 San Diego State (27-8). Utah hasn’t advanced to the Sweet 16 since 2005, when the Utes fell as the No. 6 seed to No. 2 Kentucky. The Utes are making their first tournament appearance since 2009.

ERFURT: Overall World Cup winner Martina Sablikova of Czech Republic (right) celebrates UCLA 92, UAB 75 together with the second placed Claudia Pechstein of Germany (left) during the women’s LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (AP) - Tony Parker led five 3,000 meters flower ceremony at the Speedskating World Cup. — AP Bruins in double figures with a career-high 28 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for 11th-seeded UCLA on Saturday to advance to its second straight Sweet 16. Sablikova, Kodaira The Bruins (22-13), the team many thought shouldn’t have even been in the field of 68, have won six of their PITTSBURGH: Villanova’s Dylan Ennis (31) shoots over North Carolina State’s Ralston Turner (front last seven games in earning their first consecutive left) during the first half of an NCAA tournament third-round college game. — AP and Bowe win titles Sweet 16 berths since reaching the Final Four three straight seasons between 2006 and 2008. They will play the regular season but broke out for the NCAA Angeles. No. 14 seed Georgia State (25-10), whose either Gonzaga or Iowa on Friday in the South Regional Tournament. The Pac-12 champions went ahead by 15 injured coach Ron Hunter worked the sideline in a ERFURT: Brittany Bowe of the United Richardson by 216. Bowe later pipped semifinal in Houston. Kevon Looney had 10 points and points with 6:34 remaining and held off 10th-seeded rolling chair, upset No. 3 seed Baylor Thursday. Hunter, States, Nao Kodaira of Japan and Martina Marrit Leenstra of the Netherlands to the 11 rebounds for UCLA. Bryce Alford had 22 points, Ohio State (24-11) in the closing minutes. who tore his Achilles tendon celebrating his team win- Sablikova of the Czech Republic all won 1,000 title by just three points. 15 and 13. Arizona will face the winner of Xavier-Georgia State ning the Sun Belt Conference title, and his son and star speedskating World Cup titles at the last Leenstra had been leading the stand- The 14th-seeded Blazers (20-16) missed out on their in the West Regional semifinals Thursday in Los player, RJ, became the darlings of the tournament. meet of the season yesterday. ings going into the final race, but Bowe led first regional semifinal since 2004 coming off their big Angeles. The Buckeyes gave the Wildcats all they could Sablikova, the world champion, clinched another American 1-2, clocking 1:14.61 to upset of No. 3 seed Iowa State on Thursday. Robert handle, even with standout freshman D’Angelo Russell NORTH CAROLINA 87, ARKANSAS 76 the women’s 3,000-meter title, clocking 4 beat Richardson by 0.52 and Leenstra by Brown led the Blazers with 25 points and William Lee struggling with his shot. Marcus Paige scored 22 points, including 20 in the minutes, 4.06 seconds in the race to edge 1.17. Bowe’s first place earned her 150 added 10. Russell scored nine points and made just 3 of 19 second half, as North Carolina beat Arkansas 87-78 in Dutch skaters Marije Joling and Diane points for a total of 510. Leenstra earned shots after going for 28 points in Ohio State’s overtime the NCAA Tournament on Saturday and advanced to Valkenburg by 1.58 and 3.79 seconds, 106 points and finished with 507. With just MIDWEST REGION win over VCU in its tournament opener. He had seven the Sweet 16 for the first time in three years. Paige respectively. the mass start scheduled for later Sunday, KENTUCKY 64, CINCINNATI 51 rebounds and six assists. Sam Thompson added 18 missed seven of eight shots in the first half, including all Sablikova finished with 580 points, Richardson - who celebrated her 26th Aaron Harrison scored 13 points and Trey Lyles points and Shannon Scott scored 10 for the Buckeyes, three from 3- range, and was pretty much a non- ahead of Germany’s Claudia Pechstein on birthday on Friday - was leading the overall added 11 points and 11 rebounds and top-ranked who led by six points in the first half but never could factor as the Tar Heels let the Razorbacks keep things match Arizona’s size. The Wildcats won the rebounding close. But the junior guard took over in the second half, 360 and Dutch skater Ireen Wust on 350. World Cup standings with 1,105 points, Kentucky outworked eighth-seeded Cincinnati to remain undefeated and reach the Sweet 16 for the sec- battle 43-26. scoring 13 of his team’s 17 points during a 5-minute The 43-year-old Pechstein was fourth in the ahead of Bowe on 1,045. Sablikova had stretch that helped North Carolina build a double-digit race. Wust didn’t compete at Erfurt. 946. Ruslan Murashov of Russia won the ond straight season. Despite the Wildcats’ sixth straight double-digit win, XAVIER 75, GEORGIA STATE 67 lead. The Tar Heels held on from there, thanks partly to Kodaira came third in the second 500 of second men’s 500 of the weekend, clocking they faced their toughest test in a while and didn’t Jalen Reynolds and Myles Davis came off the bench Paige closing things out from the free-throw line and the weekend which was enough to win 34.97 to edge both Laurent Dubreuil of seem totally in control until the final minutes. The phys- for a combined 38 points as sixth-seeded Xavier end with his ball-handling skills. that distance title with Olympic champion Canada and Michel Mulder of the ical, pesky Bearcats made Kentucky work hard for every the biggest feel-good story of the NCAA Tournament UNC advanced to play either No. 1 seed Wisconsin Lee Sang-hwa of South Korea not compet- Netherlands by 0.13. shot and in an intense contest. with a 75-67 victory over Georgia State on Saturday or eighth-seeded Oregon in the West Regional next ing. Heather Richardson of the United Pavel Kulizhnikov of Russia didn’t race But the Wildcats (36-0) succeeded by making life dif- night. The Musketeers (23-13) advanced to the Sweet week in Los Angeles. It will be Carolina’s 26th appear- States won the race ahead of compatriot after claiming the distance and overall ficult on both ends for Cincinnati, holding the Bearcats 16 for the third time in six years under coach Chris ance in the Sweet 16. Michael Qualls led Arkansas with Bowe for the second day in a row, finishing World Cup titles on Saturday. Bart Swings to 32 percent shooting including just 24 percent in the Mack. They’ll face No. 2 seed Arizona - a 73-58 winner 27 points and 10 rebounds. Bobby Portis finished with in 37.97 seconds to edge Bowe by two of Belgium won the men’s 1,500 by clock- second half. Kentucky blocked six shots after halftime over Ohio State - in the West Regional semifinals in Los 18 points and 14 boards. — AP tenths of a second and Kodaira by 0.72. ing 1:46.81, beating Poland’s Konrad and Willie Cauley-Stein had a highlight-reel slam dunk Kodaira finished the 500 World Cup with Niedzwiedzki by 0.30 and China’s Li Bailin that may be the play of the tournament. The Wildcats 926 points, beating Lee by 46 and by 1.49. — AP move on to face the Maryland-West Virginia winner in the Midwest Regional on Thursday in Cleveland.

NOTRE DAME 67, BUTLER 64 Fenninger retains Brian Grant scored 16 points, including the clinch- ing layup with 18 seconds left in overtime, and the third-seeded Notre Dame edged the Butler 67-64. World Cup Notre Dame (31-5) moved on to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2003 and will play Kansas or Wichita MERIBEL: Austria’s Anna Fenninger tired as I’m happy. I can imagine how disap- State in the Midwest Regional semifinals on Thursday snatched the overall women’s World Cup pointed Tina must be but in a few days in Cleveland. Steve Vasturia led Notre Dame with 20 title for the second year in succession in a she’ll realise what a great battle that points. Demetrius Jackson added 13 points, and Zach nail-biting finale to the sea- was.”For me, it was the craziest experience I Auguste had seven points and 13 rebounds for the son yesterday. ever had.” The men’s World Cup showdown Irish, which beat the Bulldogs for the first time in 26 For the first time in the history of the was also a tight one but the outcome was years. Roosevelt Jones played through an injured left World Cup, the overall title was decided on the same as last year with Austria’s Marcel knee while scoring 23 points for Butler (23-11), but the very last run of the last race of the sea- Hirscher bagging his fourth big globe in another this NCAA run ended abruptly in the extra son. Fenninger had been fastest in the first succession. session. leg of the closing giant slalom and handled Maze, who led the way for most of the the pressure, winning with a 0.38 seconds season, ended the winter with the consola- WEST REGION lead over team-mate Eva-Maria Brem. tion of the downhill and super-combined ARIZONA 73, OHIO ST. 58 Slovenia’s , the 2013 overall world championship golds while Fenninger Gabe York made five 3-pointers and finished with 19 points and T.J. McConnell also scored 19 points as sec- champion who had led Fenninger by 18 took the giant slalom and Super-G in ond-seeded Arizona advanced to the Sweet 16 for the points in the standings before the race, fin- Beaver Creek a month ago. third straight year. The Wildcats (33-3) overcame a slug- KNOXVILLE: Chattanooga’s Moses Johnson (23), Jasmine Joyner (center) and Pittsburgh (cen- ished third and 0.46 seconds short of her , the other star of 2014- gish start until their outside shooting busted the ter) Cora McManus (51) battle for a rebound in the first half of an NCAA women’s college bas- second World Cup title. 2015 who bagged the downhill and Super- Buckeyes’ zone defense, which they rarely used during ketball tournament game. — AP Maze ultimately lost out by 22 points.”I G crystal globes, finished off with a promis- had to find some extra strength to win this ing fifth place in yesterday’s giant slalom. race and everything that went along with It was also a season of farewells as Swiss it. It’s over at last and the pressure eases off. downhill Olympic champion Dominique Hirscher sweeps World Cup I don’t really know what to think just yet,” Gisin announced her retirement along with Fenninger said. Spain’s Carolina Ruiz-Castillo and “I had so much pressure. I’m glad things Frenchwomen Marion Rolland and Marie season with slalom globe worked out well again but I’m as much Jay-Marchand-Arvier. — Reuters MERIBEL: Marcel Hirscher completed a clean sweep at the Alpine skiing World Cup Finals yesterday when he added the slalom crystal globe to his fourth suc- cessive overall title. The Austrian, crowned overall World Cup champi- on after Saturday’s giant slalom, dominated the final race of the season to topple Germany’s Felix Neureuther from the top spot in the discipline. Hirscher clinched his eighth victory of the winter in a combined time of one minute and 33.53 seconds, 0.83 ahead of former slalom Olympic champion Giuliano Razzoli of Italy while Russia’s Alexander Khoroshilov was third, 1.09 adrift. He beat Neureuther by 23 points to end the season with three crystal globes-overall, giant slalom and slalom-and a sweep of the technical disciplines. “I did- n’t have the choice. I needed to finish first or second to beat Felix. So the tactics were pretty simple,” said Hirscher. “Felix and I are very good friends and that’s why I can’t rejoice completely. It’s the third time I took the cup away from him under his nose,” he added. “Marcel, when he skis like that, and it’s the finals and it’s about the globe, he’s difficult to beat,” said Neureuther, who cited lingering back problems to explain his disappointing 12th place in Sunday’s slalom. In the final overall standings, the best skier of the last four seasons eventually left closest rival Kjetil Jansrud of Norway 160 points behind. Jansrud had decided not to take part in Sunday’s slalom, effectively MERIBEL: Anna Fenninger of Austria holds up the alpine ski, women’s World Cup handing Hirscher the season’s overall title, but took MERIBEL: Marcel Hirscher of Austria competes during the men’s World Cup slalom race, at the giant slalom discipline trophy at the World Cup finals. — AP the downhill and Super-G crowns. — Reuters World Cup finals. — AP