Baylor bests Xavier to advance to South Regional final

Third-seeded Baylor did enough to shake off a fight-to-the-finish Xavier squad, 75-70, in Friday night’s Sweet 16 matchup at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. The Bears will advance to their second Elite Eight in three seasons, where on Sunday they will face No. 1 Kentucky.

Xavier wasn’t easy to dismiss, despite Baylor’s opening 14-2 lead that eventually extended to an 18-point advantage. The Musketeers closed to within three points with only 23 seconds to play, but Baylor hung on thanks to the dominant play of senior forward Quincy Acy.

“They really kept fighting,” Baylor Coach Scott Drew said. “But I am so proud of our upperclassmen. When Xavier made their runs, we answered and never let them get on top.”

Xavier never led but at times seemed to have all the momentum.

After trailing by 13 with a little more than three minutes to play, Xavier made some critical shots. Justin Martin hit a three-pointer with 1 minute 21 seconds remaining to cut the deficit to 69-63, then Tu Holloway’s deep three-pointer put the Musketeers within reach, 71-68 with only 23 seconds left.

But then Baylor made all of its final six free throws to seal the victory.

Acy scored 20 points and center Perry Jones III added another 14 as part of a comeback game for the frontcourt duo. Acy had scored only 11 points in the first two tournament games, while Jones had scored only nine.

Holloway led Xavier with 22 points and center Kenny Frease added 18.

Kentucky 102, Indiana 90: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist scored 24 points and the Wildcats shook off a quiet night by freshman star Anthony Davis, pulling away from the Hoosiers in a showdown of storied programs in the South Regional semifinals.

Davis wasn’t a huge factor after picking up two early fouls, but the top-seeded Wildcats (35-2) had five other players in double figures.

Christian Watford had 27 points to lead the Hoosiers (27-9), whose comeback season ended two wins shy of the Final Four. Indiana, which won a total of 28 games the last three seasons, has regained its usual place among the college basketball bluebloods.

But Big Blue is moving on to its third straight regional final.