Auburn Mens Basketball Makes History, Advances to Elite 8
The first No. 1 seed has fallen in the NCAA Tournament – and it’s North Carolina.
Fifth-seeded Auburn upset the Tar Heels 97-80 in the Midwest Region semifinal behind a barrage of second-half 3-pointers. And that sent the Tigers on to the Elite Eight for only the second time and first since 1986.
Chuma Okeke had 20 points and 11 rebounds before going down with an apparent knee injury midway through the second half. He was moving to the basket when his left leg bent awkwardly to the inside. Teammates and North Carolina players alike gathered around Okeke before he walked to the locker room with assistance.
Auburn led just 41-39 at halftime before taking over. The Tigers hit 12 of 18 3-pointers after halftime and 17 of 37 for the game, scoring 56 points after halftime to take control by building a big lead.
Coby White and Cameron Johnson each had 15 points for the Tar Heels, who shot just 43 percent and made 7 of 28 3-pointers.
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