HOUSTON (AP) β Freshman Justise Winslow drained a pair of 3-pointers down the stretch and finished with 16 points as top seed Duke beat Gonzaga 66-52 to win the South Region and advance to the NCAA Final Four. The Blue Devils turned a four-point, second-half deficit into a 60-51 lead once Winslow hit a trey with 2:28 remaining. Matt Jones finished with 16 points for Duke, which is in the Final Four for the first time since its 2010 title run.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) β Michigan State captured the East Region as the seventh seed, knocking off Louisville 76-70 in overtime. Bryn Forbes opened OT with a 3-pointer that put the Spartans ahead to stay. Travis Trice paced the Spartans with 17 points, Denzel Valentine added 15 and Forbes wound up with 14 as the Spartans earned their seventh trip to the Final Four under Tom Izzo (IH’-zoh).
UNDATED (AP) β The Houston Rockets have taken over the NBA’s Southwest Division lead and the second seed in the Western Conference. James Harden dropped in 24 points and the Rockets moved a half-game ahead of Memphis by downing Washington 98-91. Kawhi (kah-WY’) Leonard had 25 points and 10 rebounds in San Antonio’s 103-89 victory over the Grizzlies.
CLEVELAND (AP) β LeBron James scored 20 points and Kyrie Irving added 17 as the Cleveland Cavaliers earned their 16th consecutive home win, downing the 76ers 87-86. The Sixers had a chance to win it until Nerlens Noel missed a shot inside in the waning seconds. The win moved the Cavaliers 2Β½ games ahead of Chicago for second place in the NBA’s Eastern Conference and first place in the Central Division.
UNDATED (AP) β The Boston Bruins have a better stranglehold on the NHL’s final Eastern Conference playoff berth, moving three points ahead of Ottawa and staying four in front of Florida. David Pastrnak (PAS’-tur-nahk) scored 4:34 into overtime and Tuukka (TOO’-kah) Rask turned back 30 shots as the Bruins beat Carolina 2-1. Jaromir Jagr (YAH’-roh-meer YAH’-gur) scored twice, including the game-winner to help the Panthers beat the Senators 4-2.
