Michigan State’s Travis Trice couldn’t imagine that he might play in his last college basketball game Sunday afternoon in Charlotte, North Carolina.
So he did something about that.
Trice, a senior guard, scored 23 points as seventh-seeded Michigan State led almost the entire way in a 60-54 upset victory over second-seeded Virginia in the NCAA East Regional third round at Time Warner Cable Arena.
“That was our mindset coming in,” Trice said. “They’re a great team and we had to jump on them early.”
Another No. 2 seed fell later in the day when Wichita State knocked off Kansas 78-65 in the South Region third-round game in Columbus, Ohio.
Forward Branden Dawson added 15 points for the Spartans, who eliminated Virginia for the second year in a row, though this time it came one round earlier.
Michigan State (25-11) will play Friday night at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y.
“We know no other way,” Michigan State guard Bryn Forbes said. “Win or go home.”
The Spartans are going to the Sweet 16 for the 13th time in 18 years.
Forwards Anthony Gill, who fouled out, and Darion Atkins scored 11 and 10 points, respectively, for the Cavaliers.
Virginia (30-4), which was trying to reach the Sweet 16 for the ninth time and for the second year in a row, was one of the teams identified as most likely to challenge unbeaten Kentucky until a late-season slide, during which the Cavaliers lost three of their last five games.
“We got ourselves in a hole,” Virginia coach Tony Bennett said. “It wasn’t a matter of heart or effort. But when we needed a key stop, it wasn’t there.”
Atlantic Coast Conference teams had gone a collective 9-0 in the tournament before Virginia’s loss.
“It just leaves that feeling that I wish I could have taken them farther,” Bennett said.
Virginia began the second half with a couple of buckets and had a chance to go ahead. But after guard Malcolm Brogdon’s missed 3-pointer that would have caused a lead change, the Spartans ran off eight points in a row for a 32-22 edge, capped by Dawson’s three-point play in transition.
“Our defense leads to our offense,” Brogdon said. “When you’re not getting stops and not seeing the ball go down, you’re going to struggle.”
Forbes’ 3-pointer pushed the Spartans to a 37-25 lead. Trice delivered the pass to Forbes in the corner for the shot, which created the largest margin of the game.
Wichita State 78, Kansas 65
Tekele Cotton scored 19 points as the Shockers outplayed the Jayhawks in Omaha, Nebraska, during the teams’ first meeting in 22 years, to reach the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
Fred VanVleet contributed 17 points, six rebounds, six assists and four steals for seventh-seeded Wichita State (30-4), which will next play Notre Dame. Evan Wessel made four 3-pointers while contributing 12 points and nine rebounds, Ron Baker scored 12 and Darius Carter added 10.
Perry Ellis had 17 points and eight rebounds and Devonte Graham added 17 points and five steals for second-seeded Kansas (27-9). Frank Mason III scored 16 points for the Jayhawks, who shot just 35.1 percent from the field.
Wichita State led 61-48 after Zach Brown’s 3-pointer with 7:25 remaining and the Jayhawks briefly threatened to make a run as Graham’s steal and layup pulled them within eight with 5:55 to play. Carter’s basket halted that burst and the Shockers stretched the lead to 16 points with 1:06 to play while closing it out strong.
Kansas led by eight points with just over five minutes left in the first half before the Shockers closed with a 13-2 burst and grabbed a 29-26 lead on VanVleet’s 3-point basket.
Duke 68, San Diego St. 49
Jahlil Okafor scored 18 of his 26 points in the first half and added three blocks as the Blue Devils routed the Aztecs in the round of 32 of the NCAA Tournament in Charlotte, N.C.
Fellow freshman Justise Winslow contributed 13 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, four steals and three blocks for top-seeded Duke (31-4), which will meet fifth-seeded Utah in Houston on Friday. Quinn Cook nailed three 3-pointers en route to 15 points as the Blue Devils shot 54.5 percent from the floor — the 18th time they have converted at least half of their field goals.
Winston Shepard finished with 13 points for No. 8 seed San Diego State (27-9), which shot 32.8 percent from the field — including 2-of-13 beyond the arc. J.J. O’Brien chipped in eight points, seven rebounds and two steals as the Aztecs scored fewer than 50 points for the fifth time this season.
Oklahoma 72, Dayton 66
Jordan Woodard scored six of his 16 points in the final minute as the Sooners held off the Flyers in the NCAA Tournament round of 32 in Columbus, Ohio.
Buddy Hield added 15 points and five assists for No. 3 seed Oklahoma (24-10), which will take on seventh-seeded Michigan State in the Sweet Sixteen. Frank Booker hit four 3-pointers off the bench while TaShawn Thomas and Ryan Spangler combined to grab 21 rebounds for the Sooners, who are headed to the regional semifinals for the first time since 2009.
Scoochie Smith scored 16 points and Darrell Davis poured in all of his 15 points from beyond the arc for No. 11 seed Dayton (27-9), which was playing its sixth game in 10 days. Kendall Pollard scored 13 points and Dyshawn Pierre had 10 for the Flyers.
Gonzaga 87, Iowa 68
Kyle Wiltjer authored a sizzling shooting display en route to 24 points as the Bulldogs rolled past the Hawkeyes in the NCAA Tournament’s round of 32 in Seattle.
Wiltjer made 10-of-12 shots and drained 4-of-6 from outside the arc as No. 2 seed Gonzaga (34-2) advanced to Friday’s matchup with No. 11 seed UCLA in Houston. Domantas Sabonis added 18 points and nine rebounds, Wiltjer grabbed seven boards and Kevin Pangos knocked down 4-of-7 from long range en route to 16 points.
Seventh-seeded Iowa (22-12) was arguably the most impressive team in the round of 64, throttling Davidson by 31 points before getting humbled by Gonzaga, which shot 61.5 percent from the field and 62.5 percent from the arc (10-of-16). Jarrod Uthoff had 20 points and eight rebounds for the Hawkeyes, while Aaron White contributed 19 points.