2024 March Madness scores, takeaways: Zach Edey carries Purdue into second round, Yale does it again

GCU pulls off upset

Final: (12) GCU 75, (5) Saint Mary's 66

The final game of the first round of the NCAA Tournament provided another stunner. GCU upset Saint Mary's 75-66 for its first NCAA Tournament victory in school history. GCU led by as many as 17 points in the second half and held off a late surge by Saint Mary's to advance. GCU will face Alabama on Sunday with a trip to the Sweet 16 hanging in the balance.

GCU star Tyon Grant-Foster scored a game-high 22 points, and Ray Harrison added 17. Saint Mary's finishes its season with a 26-8 record.

Utah State snaps tournament drought

Final: (8) Utah State 88, (9) TCU 72

Utah State used a dominant second-half effort to eliminate TCU 88-72 in one of the final games of the first round of the NCAA Tournament.  The Aggies picked up their first NCAA Tournament win since 2001 after the program previously lost 10 straight games in the Big Dance. This success comes in Year 1 of Danny Sprinkle's tenure at the school after he left his post at Montana State last spring to take the job in Logan, Utah.

The Aggies extended their lead to as many as 18 points midway through the period to set up an intriguing showdown with top-seeded Purdue on Sunday. Utah State guard Ian Martinez scored a game-high 21 points, and Isaac Johnson added 19. TCU ends its season with a 21-13 record.

James Madison upsets Wisconsin

Final: (12) James Madison 72, (5) Wisconsin 61

James Madison thoroughly picked apart a really good Wisconsin team that only a week ago was playing in the Big Ten Tournament title game after a red-hot run. The Dukes forced 19 turnovers and their ball pressure disrupted and dismantled Wisconsin's plan offensively. 

JMU, the champions of the Sun Belt Conference, converted 27 points off those 19 forced turnovers which served as the difference in the game. It didn't shoot it well from deep and struggled with its own turnover problems but Wisconsin was totally frazzled with JMU's pressure throughout.

James Madison will advance into the second round for the first time since 1983 (!) and will face No. 4 seed Duke on Sunday with a chance to earn its first-ever Sweet 16 berth.

Houston cruises past Longwood

Final: (1) Houston 86, (16) Longwood 46

The only drama in Houston's dismantling of Longwood was whether walk-on Ryan Elvin would score as he entered with five minutes remaining in a blowout. He did, going 2 for 3 from the floor as part of a 58% shooting performance for Houston. LJ Cryer and Damian Dunn lead the way with 17 apiece for the Cougars, who advanced to play No. 9 seed Texas A&M in Sunday's second round. Houston produced a dud in the Big 12 Tournament Championship Game, and Longwood was the unfortunate victim of the Cougars' "get right game" here in first-round action. In less than 48 hours after they dismantled Nebraska in Friday's earlier action, the Aggies could pose a test for Houston.   

Alabama rolls past Charleston

Final: (4) Alabama 109, (13) Charleston 96

Alabama stiff-armed any talks of an upset with a dominant win over Charleston to advance into the second round. The Crimson Tide scored 100-plus for the 10th time this season and hit 13 3-pointers. Mark Sears led all scorers with 30.

Latrell Wrightsell cashed six of the team's 13 triples in another banner day for the Bama offense. The win helped the Tide avoid the same fate of SEC rival Auburn, which lost as a No. 4 seed earlier in the day to No. 13 seed Yale.

Alabama will play in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday for the third time in four years under coach Nate Oats, who earned a contract extension several weeks ago. The Tide have advanced to the Sweet 16 twice under Oats, but the school has not earned an Elite Eight berth since its lone appearance in 2004.

Edey's historic performance powers Purdue

Final: (1) Purdue 78, (16) Grambling 50

Reigning National Player of the Year Zach Edey became just the third player in the last 50 years to record at least 30 points and 20 rebounds in an NCAA Tournament game. Edey finished with 30 points and 21 rebounds for his third career 30-20 game -- the most of any Division l player in the last 25 seasons. The Boilermakers will face the winner of (9) TCU vs. (8) Utah State on Sunday.

After recording a career-high seven turnovers in a first-round loss to No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson last season, Braden Smith recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 assists with zero turnovers. Grambling's season comes to an end after the Tigers won the program's first NCAA Tournament game against Montana State earlier this week.

Duke dominates in first round

Final: (4) Duke 64, (13) Vermont 47

No. 4 seed Duke is dancing its way into the second round after a strong finish that sent No. 13 seed Vermont packing. This game was closer than expected leading into halftime, but the Blue Devils ran away with it late by holding the Catamounts to only 18 second-half points. 

Duke leading scorer Kyle Filipowski finished with just three points but was vital as the team's offensive hub down the stretch. Four different Duke players finished in double figures, led by Jared McCain and Mark Mitchell, who each turned in 15. 

Duke will face the winner of Houston and Longwood on Sunday with a chance to make its first Sweet 16 appearance since Jon Scheyer took over the program.

Texas A&M continues surge

Final: (9) Texas A&M 98, (8) Nebraska 83

Texas A&M continued its late-season surge with an authoritative offensive performance against Nebraska. The Aggies entered among the nation's worst 3-point shooting teams at 28.4% but hit 13 of 23 from beyond the arc against the Cornhuskers. Nebraska kept pace early, but had no answer for Wade Taylor, Manny Obaseki and Tyrece Radford. All three A&M guards reached at least 20 points.

The Aggies will have a serious chance against Houston (their likely opponent) on Sunday if they can continue this recent run of hot shooting. Texas A&M has been up and down, but it's up right now and playing much better than the No. 9 seed next to its name would suggest.

Alabama up big at the break

Half: (4) Alabama 51, (13) Charleston 34

No. 13 seed Charleston made No. 4 seed Alabama sweat early after racing out to a six-point lead in the opening few minutes, but it's been all Alabama since as we enter the halftime period. The Crimson Tide own a 51-34 lead heading to the locker room, which marks its biggest lead of the day thus far. 

Alabama started making 3s after a sluggish start and its defense stood tall after sleepwalking early, holding Charleston to 1 of 11 shooting in its final 12 shots to close out the first half. Mark Sears is leading the way with 20 points for Bama and seven different Alabama players have scored in what is quickly bordering on a blowout.

Texas A&M is unfazed

Half: (9) Texas A&M 58, (8) Nebraska 44

Nebraska has a significant fan advantage in Memphis as the Cornhuskers seek their first-ever NCAA Tournament victory. However, Texas A&M is undaunted by the environment and taking it to the Cornhuskers' defense. The Aggies are just sizing up Nebraska on every possession and saying, "stop me, I dare you." 

It's working. Texas A&M entered at No. 353 in the nation in 3-point shooting but is also hitting from the outside, which has stopped Nebraska from just setting up shop in the paint. There were four times this season that A&M didn't score this many points in an entire game. What a performance for the Aggies thus far. Manny Obaseki scored 19 in the final 10:02 of the half.

Jack Gohlke gets a major shoutout

Thursday night hero Jack Gohlke shares a hometown with JJ Watt, as both are from Pewaukee, Wisconsin. Watt had this shoutout for the March Madness legend for Oakland after he scored a career-high 32 points in an upset victory over No. 3 seed Kentucky.

Yale pulls upset over Auburn

Final: (13) Yale 78, (4) Auburn 76

No. 13 seed Yale pulled off the biggest upset of Friday's first-round NCAA Tournament action with a 78-76 takedown of No. 4 seed Auburn. The Bulldogs were 11.5-point underdogs entering the game, trailed by as many as 10 points with 7:16 to go and faced a six-point deficit with 4:07 to go before finishing on a 14-6 run to advance to the second round for the second time in school history.

John Poulakidas led the charge to the finish line with 28 points, 16 of which came in the second half. He hit three big 3s in the final 20 minutes and finished 6 of 9 from distance on the game. Danny Wolf and August Mahoney added 13 and 12 points, respectively.

March Madness 2024: Yale shocks Auburn, roaring back from 10-point deficit in first-round upset

Kyle Boone

Simpson's game-winner lifts Buffaloes

Final: (10) Colorado 102, (7) Florida 100

Colorado star KJ Simpson's corner jumper that touched practically every part of the rim before dropping through nylon was the difference in a thrilling first-round victory over the Gators. Walter Clayton Jr. halfcourt heave at the buzzer never came close for the Gators, and the Buffaloes advance with a 102-100 win. Clayton tied the game with a 3-pointer on Florida's previous possession before Simpson hit the go-ahead shot.

It was the first regulation NCAA Tournament game in which both teams scored at least 100 points since 2005.

Florida trailed by 10 with less than four minutes left before buckets began falling. Clayton then made a  3-pointer with 38 seconds remaining that cut the deficit down to three. 

NCAA Tournament 2024: Colorado escapes Florida with first-round game-winner after blowing double-digit lead

Cameron Salerno

Reigning champs roll in Round 1

Final: (1) UConn 91, (16) Stetson 52

The Huskies outscored the Hatters 52-19 in the first half to set the tone and then cruised down the stretch, extending in the process their NCAA Tournament winning streak to seven games.

Donovan Clingan had 19 points and eight boards; all five UConn starters finished in double figures. Its defense was just as exceptional, too, holding the Hatters -- a top-40 team nationally in 3-point shooting percentage -- to 3 of 20 from 3-point range.

UConn advances to the second round on Sunday to face No. 9 seed Northwestern, which defeated No. 8 seed Florida Atlantic in an overtime thriller earlier on Friday.

Clemson cruises 

Final: (6) Clemson 77, (11) New Mexico 56

Clemson won an NCAA Tournament game for the first time since 2018 by jumping out to a massive early lead and never letting New Mexico within single digits during the second half. Chase Hunter led the way with 21, including 15 in the second half. New Mexico shot just 29.7% from the floor and 3 of 23 from beyond the arc. The Lobos got 13 of their 28 points in the second half from the free-throw line, struggling otherwise from the floor.

With UNM's loss, the Mountain West is now just 1 for 5 in first-round games; No. 5 seed San Diego State is the league's only representative to advance thus far. No. 8 seed Utah State takes on No. 9 seed TCU late tonight in a game the conference desperately needs to win in order to validate its six bids to the Big Dance.

Jaedon LeDee powers Aztecs to second round

Final: (5) San Diego State 69, (12) UAB 65

San Diego State survived an upset bid from UAB behind a monster performance from LeDee. The All-American scored a game-high 32 points, and last year's Final Four hero Lamont Butler added 15. The Aztecs led by as many as 12 points in the opening minutes of the second half before UAB went on a run to take a brief lead with 6:02 remaining.

The Aztecs will face the winner of (13) Yale vs. (4) Auburn on Sunday.

UAB guard Efrem Johnson had a chance to tie the game in the final seconds but missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer. UAB ends its season with a 23-12 record.

Marquette on upset alert

Halftime: (15) Western Kentucky 43, (2) Marquette 36

No. 2 seed Marquette welcomed back star point guard Tyler Kolek today from a six-game absence due to an oblique injury, but his team is on upset alert in Indianapolis. Western Kentucky closed the first half on a 24-8 run behind a big performance from forward Tyrone Marshall, who scored 17 points during the first 20 minutes of action. Kolek has a team-high 13 points for the Golden Eagles.

UAB has no answers for LeDee 

Half: (5) San Diego State 35, (12) UAB 29

It's been the Jaedon LeDee show so far for San Diego State as the Aztecs take a 35-29 lead into halftime. LeDee, one of college basketball's most underrated and under-appreciated big men, already has 18 points and three boards at the break to go with one steal and one block. SDSU's defense has also done a good job creating pressure early after forcing 12 first-half turnovers. 

"We're guarding hard," said SDSU coach Brian Dutcher at halftime. "We got a little sloppy with the ball near the end of the half. We need to be stronger with the ball." 

Reese Waters and Lamont Butler added five points each to help build an early Aztecs lead going into the second half.

Northwestern wins a thriller over FAU

Final: (9) Northwestern 77, (8) FAU 65 (OT)

Northwestern guard Ryan Langborg scored 25 of his game-high 27 points after halftime, and Boo Buie added 22 in the 77-65 overtime win over FAU. The Wildcats extended the game after Brooks Barnhizer tied things up at 58 with a last-second layup in regulation. FAU had a chance to win the game at the buzzer, but Johnell Davis' 3-pointer was blocked.

Northwestern advances to face the winner of No. 16 Stetson-No. 1 UConn on Sunday.

FAU is one-and-done in the NCAA Tournament less than a year after making a run to the Final Four. The main storyline surrounding the program this offseason will be the job status of FAU coach Dusty May. The 47-year-old could be a top candidate for multiple high-major jobs in the coaching carousel.

Baylor cruises in opener

Final (3) Baylor 92, (14) Colgate 67

Baylor began its NCAA Tournament with a drama-free excoriation of Colgate on Friday. The morning after Kentucky suffered a stunning defeat as a No. 3 seed, the Bears showed no interest in meeting the same fate. Within 6 minutes, the lead was double-digits, and Baylor never oiled off. Even the deep bench came in and scored once the game was out of reach. The Bears hit 16 of 30 from beyond the arc, reinforcing their reputation as one of the nation's best 3-point shooting teams.

Jalen Bridges led the way with 23 while Ja'Kobe Walter added 19. RayJ Dennis finished with nine assists. The Bears will get the winner of No. 6 seed Clemson vs. No. 11 seed New Mexico.

Overtime!

End 2H: (9) Northwestern 58, (8) FAU 58

We are heading to overtime in Brooklyn! Northwestern guard Brooks Barnhizer tied the game at 58 with a last-second layup in regulation. FAU had a chance to win the game at the buzzer, but Johnell Davis' 3-pointer was blocked. The winner of this game faces the winner of No. 16 Stetson-No. 1 UConn on Sunday.

Yves Missi limited for Baylor

Half: (3) Baylor 54, (14) Colgate 34

Baylor star freshman big man Yves Missi was limited in the first half due to a back issue but soldiered through it to log 11 minutes. That's something to monitor with the Bears moving forward. But Scott Drew's club must have watched Oakland vs. Kentucky last night because Baylor came out on a mission and never gave the Raiders much room to breathe in the first half. Some of it has just been Colgate missing good looks. The Raiders entered at 36.1% from 3-point range on the season but were just 2 of 10 from beyond the arc in the opening frame.

Halftime: (8) FAU 20, (9) Northwestern 19

We have reached halftime in the opening game on Day 2 of the first round featuring FAU battling Northwestern. The main takeaway thus far is both teams are struggling to score. The Wildcats went 7 of 33 from the floor in the first half, while the Owls weren't much better (7 of 21, 33%). Northwestern star Boo Buie only scored three points in the opening 20 minutes. FAU star Johnell Davis leads all scorers with 11 points.

The winner of this game faces the winner of No. 16 Stetson-No. 1 UConn on Sunday.

Expert picks for Friday's first-round games

On Friday, the first-round action in the 2024 NCAA Tournament rolls along as non-stop March Madness action enters its second day beginning just after noon ET. The field will soon shrink from 64 to 48 teams, and another 16 will be whittled away before the weekend commences

The sun-up to sun-down schedule is unique in the sports world, and now that your brackets are set -- hopefully without too many red marks after the first 16 games -- there are other picks that can be made in the first round. Getting some extra skin in the game can certainly put you in the tournament spirit or liven things up even more.

Read more below for expert picks and predictions on Friday: 

2024 March Madness predictions: Expert picks against the spread, NCAA bracket odds in Friday first round games

David Cobb

Winners, losers from Thursday's Round 1 action

A series of elite individual performances highlighted first-round NCAA Tournament action on Thursday as the Big Dance began with a bang. There were upsets, comebacks and heroics throughout the day as the bracket quickly devolved into chaos.

Read more below: 

March Madness 2024 scores, winners and losers: Pac-12 looks good in NCAA Tournament, SEC stumbles early

David Cobb

Storylines to watch for Friday's second-round slate

Heading into Friday's 2024 NCAA Tournament schedule, the field has already been narrowed from 64 to 48 teams after the first day of Round 1 action. By the end of Friday, we will have just 32 teams advancing to the weekend to play for a spot in the Sweet 16. If Thursday's results are to be replicated, we are going to see some double-digit seeds advance and at least a couple thrilling finishes that deliver on the promise of getting madness in March. 

Read more on the Friday storylines to watch below: 

2024 March Madness live stream: NCAA Tournament TV schedule, watch basketball streaming online Friday

Chip Patterson