BYU overcomes 25-point deficit to shock Iona

| March 14, 2012 9:15 PM

* NCAA

Noah Hartsock scored 16 of his 23 points in the second half to fuel BYU's incredible comeback from a 25-point deficit, leading the Cougars past Iona 78-72 in the first round of the NCAA tournament Tuesday night at Dayton, Ohio.

Brandon Davies added 18 points and Damarcus Harrison 12 for the Cougars (26-8), who advance to play third-seeded Marquette on Thursday in Louisville, Ky.

Iona (25-8) seemed assured of its first NCAA tournament victory after dominating the first half. But despite 15 points and 10 assists by Scott Machado, the Gaels dropped to 0-8 in NCAA play.

Western Kentucky 59, MVSU 58: At Dayton, Ohio, T.J. Price's three-point play with 33 seconds left completed Western Kentucky's furious comeback for a victory over Mississippi Valley State (21-13) in an NCAA tournament opener.

The Hilltoppers (16-18) are the longest of long shots, the only squad in the 68-team field with a losing record. They overcame a 16-point deficit in the final 5 minutes.

Washington 81, Texas-Arlington 72: At Seattle, Terrence Ross scored 23 points and top-seeded Washington (22-10) beat Texas-Arlington (24-9) in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.

C.J. Wilcox added 14 points off the bench and Darnell Gant had 13 for the Huskies, regular-season champions of the Pac-12. Washington is the first team to win a regular-season title in a power conference and get left out of the NCAA tournament.

Washington will host fourth-seeded Northwestern in the second round Friday night.

Oregon 96, LSU 76: At Eugene, Ore., Devoe Joseph scored 25 points and Oregon beat LSU (18-15) in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.

Garrett Sim also had 15 points and Tony Woods 14 for the Ducks (23-9), who will host Iowa in the second-round. E.J. Singler and Carlos Emory added 11 points each.

Stanford 76, Cleveland State 65: At Stanford, Calif., Aaron Bright scored 17 points and Stanford (22-11) beat Cleveland State (22-11) in the first round of the NIT.

Stanford advances to play the winner of today's game between Illinois State and Mississippi.

* NJCAA

Southern Idaho 74, Arizona Western 58: At Twin Falls, Fabyon Harris had 21 points and 10 rebounds as the fourth-ranked Golden Eagles won the district playoff game to advance to the NJCAA tournament next week in Hutchinson, Kan.

CSI (30-3), the defending NJCAA champions, will face Eastern Oklahoma State (30-3) next Tuesday in the opening round.