Connecticut Gets a Scare

Connecticut relied on its skill and experience to avoid a historic upset.

Marcus Williams scored a season-high 21 points and Denham Brown added 17, helping the top-seeded Huskies overcome a 12-point second-half deficit to beat 16th-seeded Albany, 72-59, on Friday night in Philadelphia.

An overwhelming underdog in its first NCAA tournament appearance, Albany spent a week proclaiming, “Why not us?” The Great Danes then went out and made a good run at becoming the first 16th-seeded team to beat a No. 1 in the NCAA tournament.

“They shocked us into such a state that they put us in a situation where I witnessed our poorest offensive effort in 20 years at UConn,” Husky Coach Jim Calhoun said. “I never saw us look like that. They were magnificent for the first 30 minutes. We were equally magnificent for the final 10.”

Jamar Wilson had 19 points for Albany (21-11), which had a 50-38 lead 8 1/2 minutes into the second half, before the Huskies (28-3) went on a 20-4 run.

A 21 1/2 -point favorite, Connecticut led only 31-30 at halftime. A 13-0 run early in the second half gave Albany a 43-33 lead.

Kentucky 69, Alabama Birmingham 64 -- Bobby Perry scored 19 of his career-high 25 points in the second half, nine straight early in the half, and made all 10 of his free-throw attempts to lead the eighth-seeded Wildcats in Philadelphia. He had little help offensively, with no other Kentucky player in double figures.

Neither team could build much of a lead. With Kentucky (22-12) seemingly safe in the final minute, Marvett McDonald made a three-pointer with 19.2 seconds left to make the score 67-64.

Rajon Rondo, a 57% free-throw shooter, missed one of two free throws. McDonald missed a three-pointer. The Wildcats rebounded -- they had a 47-38 edge on the boards -- and the game was theirs.

North Carolina 69, Murray State 65 -- Murray State, a team with one NCAA victory in its history, took third-seeded North Carolina down to the closing seconds in Dayton, Ohio, before the Tar Heels pulled out the victory.

Tyler Hansbrough scored 24 points for North Carolina (23-7), his 14th 20-point game -- a Carolina freshman record.

Trey Pearson led Murray State (24-7) with 18 points, but he missed a three-point attempt in the closing seconds. Carolina got the rebound and Marcus Ginyard was fouled, going to the line for his clinching free throws.

George Mason 75, Michigan State 65 -- Folarin Campbell scored 21 points and the 11th-seeded Patriots used hot shooting, a balanced attack and a surprising 40-24 rebounding advantage to upset sixth-seeded Michigan State in Dayton.

The Patriots (24-7) didn’t make it easy on themselves, making only 10 of 21 free throws over the final 3 1/2 minutes. But they made 59% of their shots from the field (29 of 49).

Maurice Ager scored 10 consecutive points and 13 of 15 to lead the Spartans (22-12) back to a 52-51 lead with 6:41 left. But the Patriots made two more three-pointers to help put the game out of reach.