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Deadspin | Big 12 tournament roundup: BYU rolls behind AJ Dybantsa’s 40

Deadspin | Big 12 tournament roundup: BYU rolls behind AJ Dybantsa’s 40

Mar 10, 2026; Kansas City, MO, USA; BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa (3) shoots the ball over Kansas State Wildcats guard C.J. Jones (3) during the second half at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images

AJ Dybantsa exploded for 40 points, Kennard Davis Jr. heated up in the second half with 15 points, and BYU pulled away for a 105-91 victory over Kansas State in the first round of the Big 12 tournament on Tuesday night in Kansas City, Mo.

Dybantsa also pulled down nine rebounds and dished out six assists. Robert Wright III added 14 points — all in the first half. The 10th-seeded Cougars (22-10) will face seventh-seed West Virginia in the second round on Wednesday night.

Kansas State (12-20), the 15th seed, was led by P.J. Haggerty’s 27 points. Nate Johnson finished with 19 points, including 14 in the first half, and Khamari McGriff added 13 points.

The Cougars closed the first half on a 7-0 run, highlighted by consecutive fastbreak dunks by Dybantsa, to take a 50-49 lead into the locker room. BYU opened the second half with consecutive treys by Aleksej Kostic and Davis to quickly extend its lead to 56-49, and the Cougars never trailed the rest of the way.

Arizona State 83, Baylor 79

Anthony “Pig” Johnson racked up 19 points off the bench as the 12th-seeded Sun Devils downed the 13th-seeded Bears.

The Sun Devils (17-15) advance to play fifth-seeded Iowa State, which is ranked No. 7 nationally, on Wednesday afternoon.

Andrija Grbovic added 14 points for Arizona State, with Santiago Trouet hitting for 13 points and taking nine rebounds. Cameron Carr led Baylor (16-16) with 25 points and seven rebounds. Isaac Williams IV added 15 points, and Tounde Yessoufou hit for 14.

Cincinnati 73, Utah 66

Jalen Celestine scored 19 points and Baba Miller added 11 points, 14 rebounds and six assists as the ninth-seeded Bearcats beat the 16th-seeded Utes.

The Bearcats advance to face eighth-seeded UCF in the second round on Wednesday afternoon. Cincinnati (18-14) is still fighting for a spot in the NCAA Tournament and took a step toward that goal, with the latest win its seventh in the past nine games. Moustapha Thiam tallied 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Bearcats.

Terrence Brown led all scorers with 22 points as Utah (10-22) finished its season with six straight losses. Keanu Dawes added 15 points and 12 rebounds. The Utes’ 10 wins are their fewest in a campaign since they went 6-25 in 2011-12.

Oklahoma State 92, Colorado 83

Anthony Roy poured in 24 points, Christian Coleman tallied 17 points and 14 rebounds and the 14th-seeded Cowboys went on to beat the 11th-seeded Buffaloes.

Oklahoma State (19-13) advances to face sixth-seeded TCU on Wednesday night. Jaylen Curry added 15 points and five rebounds for the Cowboys, who won the rebounding battle 44-34 and outscored Colorado 40-30 in points in the paint.

The Buffaloes (17-15) were led by Bangot Dak, who had 22 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Barrington Hargress finished with 18 points and nine assists.

–Field Level Media

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On Selection Monday, the Auburn Tigers were slotted in as the fourth overall team in the NCAA baseball field, thanks to a 38-19 overall record against the toughest schedule in all of college baseball. Their reward? A spot as a regional host, and a first-game date with Milwaukee out of the Horizon League, a 25-31 team that secured a spot in the field after winning the conference tournament.

Even better, Auburn would be sending left-hander Jake Marciano to the mound, he of the 2.65 ERA and 0.97 WHIP.

To say things were set up well for the Tigers would be putting it mildly. But by the top of the first inning the Panthers had put six runs on the board, Marciano was already in the showers, and Milwaukee was on its way to a stunning 13-8 win, putting Auburn on the brink of elimination.

The Panthers hung four runs on the board in the top of the first. A single from designated hitter Dom Kibler brought two runs home, staking Milwaukee to the early lead. That brought left fielder Bradyn Horn to the dish with a pair of runners aboard.

In the blink of an eye, it was 4-0 Panthers:

It was the fifth home run of the year for Horn, and an unexpected start to the contest. And after keeping the Tigers scoreless in the bottom of the first, Milwaukee chased Marciano in the top of the second with two more runs.

Milwaukee held a 6-0 lead in the top of the fourth, when they broke into double digits. Third baseman Grant Ross singled to bring home Connor Bozak, bringing Charlie Marion to the plate with a pair of Panthers aboard.

That’s when Marion blasted his 13th home run of the season:

Auburn would start chipping away at Milwaukee’s lead, and a blast from Eric Guevara in the bottom of the seventh cut the Panthers’ advantage to 12-7. And the Tigers got out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth, when Jett Johnston struck out Horn to keep Auburn within five.

But the Tigers could not complete the comeback.

Riley Peterson held Auburn scoreless in the eighth, retiring the side in order with a strikeout and a pair of groundouts. Milwaukee pushed another run across in the ninth, when Marion walked with the bases loaded, the fourth walk given up by Auburn pitchers in the frame.

The Tigers loaded the bases in the ninth and got a sacrifice fly from Guevara to cut the score to 13-8, but Peterson got catcher Chase Fralick to line out to center for the final out.

The celebration was on in the Panthers’ dugout.

For Milwaukee, it was just the second NCAA tournament win in program history, the first coming back in 1999 when the Panthers knocked off Rice. Milwaukee finished the afternoon having gone 8-for-16 with runners in scoring position, and the 13 runs were the most scored by the team in their NCAA tournament history.

As for the Tigers, they became just the sixth top four national seed in NCAA tournament history to lose a regional opener, joining Alabama (No. 3, 2002), Georgia Tech (No. 3, 2003), Florida State (No. 4, 2008), Baylor (No. 4, 2012), Florida (No. 2, 2014), and North Carolina (No. 2, 2017).

The Tigers will hope to join an even smaller list with Florida State and Baylor, as those two teams still went on to win their regional.

Milwaukee will take on the winner of No. 3 NC State and No. 2 UCF, while Auburn will face the loser of that contest in an elimination game.

#NCAA #baseball #tournament #Milwaukee #stuns #Auburn">NCAA baseball tournament 2026: Milwaukee stuns Auburn  On Selection Monday, the Auburn Tigers were slotted in as the fourth overall team in the NCAA baseball field, thanks to a 38-19 overall record against the toughest schedule in all of college baseball. Their reward? A spot as a regional host, and a first-game date with Milwaukee out of the Horizon League, a 25-31 team that secured a spot in the field after winning the conference tournament.Even better, Auburn would be sending left-hander Jake Marciano to the mound, he of the 2.65 ERA and 0.97 WHIP.To say things were set up well for the Tigers would be putting it mildly. But by the top of the first inning the Panthers had put six runs on the board, Marciano was already in the showers, and Milwaukee was on its way to a stunning 13-8 win, putting Auburn on the brink of elimination.The Panthers hung four runs on the board in the top of the first. A single from designated hitter Dom Kibler brought two runs home, staking Milwaukee to the early lead. That brought left fielder Bradyn Horn to the dish with a pair of runners aboard.In the blink of an eye, it was 4-0 Panthers:It was the fifth home run of the year for Horn, and an unexpected start to the contest. And after keeping the Tigers scoreless in the bottom of the first, Milwaukee chased Marciano in the top of the second with two more runs.Milwaukee held a 6-0 lead in the top of the fourth, when they broke into double digits. Third baseman Grant Ross singled to bring home Connor Bozak, bringing Charlie Marion to the plate with a pair of Panthers aboard.That’s when Marion blasted his 13th home run of the season:Auburn would start chipping away at Milwaukee’s lead, and a blast from Eric Guevara in the bottom of the seventh cut the Panthers’ advantage to 12-7. And the Tigers got out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth, when Jett Johnston struck out Horn to keep Auburn within five.But the Tigers could not complete the comeback.Riley Peterson held Auburn scoreless in the eighth, retiring the side in order with a strikeout and a pair of groundouts. Milwaukee pushed another run across in the ninth, when Marion walked with the bases loaded, the fourth walk given up by Auburn pitchers in the frame.The Tigers loaded the bases in the ninth and got a sacrifice fly from Guevara to cut the score to 13-8, but Peterson got catcher Chase Fralick to line out to center for the final out.The celebration was on in the Panthers’ dugout.For Milwaukee, it was just the second NCAA tournament win in program history, the first coming back in 1999 when the Panthers knocked off Rice. Milwaukee finished the afternoon having gone 8-for-16 with runners in scoring position, and the 13 runs were the most scored by the team in their NCAA tournament history.As for the Tigers, they became just the sixth top four national seed in NCAA tournament history to lose a regional opener, joining Alabama (No. 3, 2002), Georgia Tech (No. 3, 2003), Florida State (No. 4, 2008), Baylor (No. 4, 2012), Florida (No. 2, 2014), and North Carolina (No. 2, 2017).The Tigers will hope to join an even smaller list with Florida State and Baylor, as those two teams still went on to win their regional.Milwaukee will take on the winner of No. 3 NC State and No. 2 UCF, while Auburn will face the loser of that contest in an elimination game.  #NCAA #baseball #tournament #Milwaukee #stuns #Auburn

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