The first four games of the Thursday slate of the NCAA Tournament are in the books with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Virginia Cavaliers holding on.
The early afternoon games of the 2017 NCAA Tournament were still exciting, even though no upsets were to be had. However, a pair of No. 5 seeds were tested into the final minute by their No. 12 seeded competitors.
The No. 5 Notre Dame Fighting Irish held on to beat the No. 12 Princeton Tigers 60-58 at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo. Princeton botched an in-bounds play with 20 seconds left. The Tigers got the ball back with a chance to sink the game-winning three, but came up short. Notre Dame will face the winner of No. 4 West Virginia and No. 13 Bucknell in the Round of 32.
RELATED: Updated 2017 NCAA Tournament bracket
Here is the updated bracket. Just click on it below to see a larger image.
In the second game of the day, the No. 5 Virginia Cavaliers outlasted a late, second-half surge by the No. 12 UNC-Wilmington Seahawks 76-71 at the Amway Center in Orlando. The Seahawks dominated the Cavaliers for much of the first half, but Virginia buckled down defensively to advance to the Round of 32. Virginia will play the winner of No. 4 Florida and No. 13 East Tennessee State.
The two other games weren’t particularly close. No. 4 Butler handled No. 13 Winthrop throughout the contest at the BMO Harris Bradley Center in Milwaukee 76-64. The Butler Bulldogs will play the winner of No. 5 Minnesota and No. 12 Middle Tennessee.
No. 1 Gonzaga looked all sorts of horrible in the first half of their game with the No. 16 South Dakota State Jackrabbits. However, the No. 1 Gonzaga Bulldogs pummeled South Dakota State in the second half at Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City to advance, 66-46. Gonzaga will play the winner of No. 8 Northwestern and No. 9 Vanderbilt in the Round of 32.
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