Butler survives upset bid by Murray St.
March 20, 2010
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP)—Ronald Nored hit a tiebreaking layup and free throw with25.4 seconds left, and Butler narrowly evaded 13th-seeded Murray State’s secondupset attempt in three days, advancing to the regional semifinals of the NCAAtournament with a 54-52 victory Saturday.
Nored scored 15 points and Gordon Hayward had 12 before making the decisivedefensive play for the fifth-seeded Bulldogs (30-4), who extended the nation’slongest winning streak to 22 games.
Butler advanced to the round of 16 for the second time in four years—butonly after surviving a thriller against the undersized but big-hearted Racers(31-5), who beat fourth-seeded Vanderbilt in the first round of the WestRegional on a buzzer-beater.
Isaiah Canaan scored 14 points and hit four 3-pointers for the Racers. Hehad the ball on Murray State’s last possession, but Hayward deflected his passinto the backcourt in the final seconds.