Golden Lions shine in opener

| March 16, 2010 9:00 PM

By The Associated Press

Arkansas-Pine Bluff finally found a road trip to its liking.

Allen Smith scored 14 points Tuesday night, including a pair of 3-pointers during the Golden Lions' second-half surge to a 61-44 victory over Winthrop (19-14) in the NCAA tournament's opening game at Dayton, Ohio.

The Golden Lions (18-15) will play Duke - the No. 1 seed in the West - on Friday in Jacksonville, Fla., a stunning development given how their season started. Arkansas-Pine Bluff lost its first 11 games - all on the road - before rallying to earn the Southwestern Athletic Conference title and its first NCAA tournament berth.

Connecticut 59, Northeastern 57: At Storrs, Conn., Jerome Dyson scored 18 points, leading the Huskies (18-15) past Northeastern (20-13) in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.

Connecticut advances to play the winner of tonight's game between Quinnipiac and top-seeded Virginia Tech.

UAB 65, Coastal Carolina 49: At Birmingham, Ala., Elijah Millsap scored 15 points and UAB (24-8) beat Coastal Carolina (28-7) in the first round of the NIT.

N.C. State 58, South Florida 57: At Tampa, Fla., Dennis Horner scored 25 points and North Carolina State (20-15) defeated South Florida (20-13) in the first round of the NIT.

North Carolina State advances to play UAB.

North Carolina 80, William & Mary 72: At Chapel Hill, N.C., Dexter Strickland hit the go-ahead free throws with 2:34 left and North Carolina (17-16) beat the Tribe (22-11) in the first round of the NIT.

Mississippi State 81, Jackson state 67: At Starkville, Miss., Jarvis Varnado had 21 points and 11 rebounds to lead Mississippi State (24-11) past Jackson State (19-13) in the first round of the NIT.

The Bulldogs will play North Carolina in the second round Saturday.

Texas Tech 87, Seton Hall 69: At Newark, N.J., John Roberson scored 22 points and Texas Tech (18-15) beat Seton Hall (19-13) in the first round of the NIT.

Texas Tech will play Jacksonville in the second round.

Jacksonville 67, Arizona State 66: At Tempe, Ariz., Ben Smith made a 24-foot jump shot with 1.5 seconds remaining and Jacksonville (20-12) rallied past Arizona State (22-11) in the first round of the NIT.