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The Sweet 16 is complete, and the Elite Eight awaits. Below, we compiled the best sights and sounds from Friday's action. Plus, here's what you missed from Thursday's games.
+ Gonzaga's defensive renaissance has it on cusp of Final Four
+ Purdue finds the cure to its Sweet 16 woes
+ Texas Tech's astonishing defense ready for Gonzaga's offense
+ Virginia inches closer to the elusive Final Four
+ RJ Barrett and Zion Williamson praise their "brotherhood"
Friday's results
No. 2 Kentucky 62, No. 3 Houston 58
Welcome back, PJ Washington. UK's star sophomore, who missed the Wildcats' first two NCAA tournament games, came off the bench to score 16 points as Kentucky held off Houston. He also had a key block in the game's final minute that was followed by Tyler Herro's clutch 3-pointer that put the Wildcats ahead for good 60-58 with 25 seconds left. Herro finished with a team-high 19 points.
No. 1 Duke 75, No. 4 Virginia Tech 73
Another game, another win by the skin of their teeth for the Blue Devils. After barely surviving UCF last weekend, a last-second shot again bounced Duke's way as it held on -- just barely -- for the win over the Hokies. With Cam Reddish out, Duke's three freshmen who did play stepped up, with Zion Williamson scoring 23 and Tre Jones and RJ Barrett adding 22 and 18, respectively. Per ESPN Stats & Information, this is the second time Duke has won multiple NCAA tournament games by two points or fewer in the same year. They also did this in 1966.
Zion has more points through 3 games in the tourney than any freshman in NCAA history 🔥
— ESPN (@espn) March 30, 2019
RJ tied the Duke record for assists in an NCAA Tournament game 🔥 pic.twitter.com/rtof9em2eV
No. 5 Auburn 97, No. 1 North Carolina 80
Auburn is headed to its second Elite Eight in school history, and the Tigers' 3-point shooting is a big reason why. Their 17 3-pointers -- the most by an SEC team in an NCAA tournament game -- propelled Auburn to the double-digit upset win over UNC. The Tigers' 97 points are also the most they've scored in an NCAA tournament game.
Injury update: Auburn's Chuma Okeke tore his ACL in his left knee in the second half and will undergo surgery, coach Bruce Pearl said on Saturday.
Tournament Challenge update: Auburn was projected to reach the Elite Eight in 8.5 percent of brackets. That pales in comparison to the 77.5 percent who had the Tigers' Sweet 16 opponent, No. 1 North Carolina, going that far.
No. 2 Michigan State 80, No. 3 LSU 63
It was a dominating win for Sparty. Freshman Aaron Henry joined Spartans lore, joining Draymond Green (twice), Mateen Cleaves, Steve Smith and Magic Johnson (three times) as the only Michigan State players with 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in an NCAA tournament game, according to ESPN Stats & Information. Michigan State made 13 3s (all were assisted), its most in an NCAA tournament game in school history. Oh, and the 22 assists (eight from Cassius Winston) are the most for the Spartans in a tournament game over the past 20 seasons.
Tournament challenge update: At 66.1 percent, Michigan State was tops among 2-seeds (and higher than No. 1 Gonzaga) in brackets that predicted they would make the Elite Eight.
Friday Feels
When the G.O.A.T. won it as a freshman
Tim Kurkjian is not confident that a team composed of his family could hold a 40-point lead vs. Duke with two minutes to play.
Let's settle it on the court, guys
Kyle Guy said earlier he played against former AAU teammate Ryan Cline several times in high school — and recalls crossing Cline over and making him fall. "I remember that vividly," Guy said. "I don't remember that," Cline just responded. "I'm going to talk to him about that."
No excuses, QB
— Patrick Mahomes II (@PatrickMahomes) March 29, 2019
Wasn't us! Swear!
Woke up to this @LSU flag on my front lawn this morning... nothing like a little neighborly competition during #MarchMadness @MSU_Basketball #GoGreen pic.twitter.com/JDwfX279qP
— Kirk Cousins (@KirkCousins8) March 29, 2019