The madness has begun in earnest as 32 men’s basketball teams battled Thursday to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
No. 12 Murray State was among three double-digit seeds to win. Ja Morant recorded the ninth triple-double in NCAA Tournament history, delivering 19 points, 16 assists and 12 rebounds in the Racers’ 83-66 win over No. 5 Marquette. Markus Howard scored 26 points for the Golden Eagles but shot 9 of 27 as Murray State moved into the next round against No. 4 Florida State.