It took a while, but the NCAA tournament got its first big upset last night, and it was one that Maryland fans could savor: No. 6 seed Duke lost to No. 11 seed Virginia Commonwealth, 79-77, in a West Regional first-round game in Buffalo, N.Y. Eric Maynor hit a 15-foot jumper with 1.8 seconds left to win it for the Rams of the Colonial Athletic Association. Duke lost a first-round game for the first time since 1996.
Article, PG 9F
Cardinal collapse
When coaches (mainly Syracuse's Jim Boeheim) of snubbed teams started whining after the field was announced, one team mentioned as not deserving of a bid was Stanford. Well, the 11th-seeded Cardinal went out and played more like an NIT team, losing to Louisville, 78-58.
Drama drain
Other than VCU's victory over Duke, the first day lacked for big upsets and tight games. Of the 16 games, only three were decided by fewer than 10 points.
On the mark
We hate to brag. ... OK, we love to brag. Heather A. Dinich, The Sun's Maryland men's basketball reporter, correctly predicted the score of the Terps' first-round game against Davidson. If you don't believe us, check Page 5E of yesterday's paper. No word yet on which numbers she played in tonight's MegaMillions drawing.
On TV today
Channels 13 and 9 will telecast the following games today:
12:15 p.m. Virginia vs. Albany
2:30 p.m. Notre Dame vs. Winthrop
7:10 p.m. Virginia Tech vs. Illinois
9:40 p.m.* Kentucky vs. Villanova
*-Approximate time
Online
More coverage, including Paul McMullen's online reports, Heather A. Dinich's answers to readers' questions about the Maryland men and archived stories.
baltimoresun.com/sports/college/basketball
Inside
Tournament coverage, PG 2F and PGS 5-10F