SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Ronald Nored hit a tiebreaking layup and free throw with 25.4 seconds left, and Butler narrowly evaded 13th-seeded Murray State’s second upset attempt in three days, advancing to the regional semifinals of the NCAA tournament with a 54-52 victory Saturday.
Nored scored 15 points and Gordon Hayward had 12 before making the decisive defensive play for the fifth-seeded Bulldogs (30-4), who extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 22 games.
Butler advanced to the round of 16 for the second time in four years — but only after surviving a thriller against the undersized but big-hearted Racers (31-5), who beat fourth-seeded Vanderbilt in the first round of the West Regional on a buzzer-beater.
Isaiah Canaan scored 14 points and hit four 3-pointers for the Racers. He had the ball on Murray State’s last possession, but Hayward deflected his pass into the backcourt in the final seconds.
