Morning Box Score

By Matt Motyka in News on Mar 11, 2009 3:00PM

College Basketball
It's March, so let the madness begin. DePaul was 0-18 in conference play this season, but a timely 67-57 win over the Cincinnati Bearcats advances the Blue Demons to the second round of the Big East tourney. Cincinnati held a seven-point lead early in the second half, but DePaul went on a 22-5 run over the next ten minutes to turn the tables on the Bearcats. The Blue Demons had the hot hand on Tuesday, shooting nearly 50 percent from the field, while Cincinnati struggled to convert at 36 percent. Will Walker and Dar Tucker led the charge with 17 each, while Mac Koshwal and Jeremiah Kelly both hung a dozen for DePaul. Next up for the Blue Demons: the Providence Friars at 11a.m. today.

Notre Dame will be moving on after defeating the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, 61-50, Tuesday evening. The Knights found themselves within a point of the Irish five minutes into the second half, but the Irish established the upper hand by scoring the game's next 12 points. Notre Dame's lead would not dip below two possessions for the rest of the contest. In a game where big man Luke Harangody was not his usual, dominant self, Tory Jackson contributed to the cause with a team-high 12 points. Notre Dame faces a stiffer test this evening when they play the West Virginia Mountaineers.

NIU couldn't hold on against the Kent State Golden Flashes, losing 64-61 and being eliminated from the MAC tournament. The Huskies led by a narrow margin for most of the game, but went ice cold in the final 5:30, scoring only three points in that stretch. Kent State capitalized, overtaking NIU with just under three minutes left, but thanks to an Al Fisher turnover the Huskies had a shot to tie on the game's final possession. Jake Anderson misfired from behind the arc, and the Huskies season came to an end. Darion Anderson scored 19 and Michael Fakuade grabbed 11 boards for NIU.