SAN JOSE, Calif. — Caleb Homesley scored 22 of his 30 points in the second half and Lovell Cabbil hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:16 to play to send 12th-seeded Liberty to its first NCAA Tournament win in school history, 80-76 over fifth-seeded Mississippi State on Friday night.

The Flames (29-6) were making their fourth tournament trip in school history, but lost twice as a No. 16 seed and once in the play-in game. This year’s team had more respect, a higher seeding and capitalized on the opportunity.

Duke 85, N.D. State 62COLUMBIA, S.C. — Zion Williamson had an explosive NCAA Tournament debut with 25 points and a can’t-miss second-half showcase to lead top-seeded Duke to an 85-62 win over North Dakota State on Friday night.RJ Barrett led Duke with 26 points and 14 rebounds and combined with Williamson for a prolific showing for the freshmen stars. But it was Williamson who could not be contained in the second half and he turned a tight early contest into a Duke runaway in the first round of the East Region.

Houston 84, Ga. St. 55TULSA, Okla. — It’s beginning to look like old times for Houston in the NCAA Tournament.Corey Davis scored 26 points to help the third-seeded Cougars beat Georgia State 84-55 in the Midwest Region on Friday night.After reaching the national final in 1984, Houston went more than three decades without winning an NCAA Tournament game.

Washington 78, Utah State 61COLUMBUS, Ohio — Noah Dickerson had 20 points and 12 rebounds, and ninth-seeded Washington made a successful return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in eight years, beating Utah State 78-61 on Friday.The Pac-12’s regular season champions swept the league’s awards — top player, best defensive player and coach of the year — and got something from all of them against one of the hottest teams in March.

Oregon 72, Wisconsin 55SAN JOSE, Calif. — Payton Pritchard scored 19 points, Kenny Wooten protected the rim with four blocks, and 12th-seeded Oregon extended its surprising March run by beating No. 5 seed Wisconsin 72-54 Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.The Ducks (24-12) won four games in four days to win the Pac-12 tournament last week just to make the NCAAs then followed it with an impressive victory over a higher-seeded opponent. Oregon advanced to play No. 13 seed UC Irvine (31-5) on Sunday in the second round of the South Region.

Virginia 71, Gardner-Webb 55COLUMBIA, S.C. — No. 1 seed Virginia rallied from 14 points down Friday to beat No. 16 seed Gardner-Webb and avert another first-round exit as a top seed in the NCAA Tournament.The Cavaliers trailed 30-16 with 6:42 left in the first half of the South Region openere.

Tennessee 77, Colgate 70COLUMBUS, Ohio — Admiral Schofield had 19 points and No. 2 seed Tennessee held off a second-half rally by No. 15 seed Colgate in the opening round.Jordan Bone added 16 and Jordan Bowden 14 for Tennessee (30-5).Buffalo 91, Ariz. St. 74TULSA, Okla. — Jeremy Harris and Nick Perkins each scored 21 points and had 10 rebounds to help lead No. 6 seed Buffalo past No. 11 Arizona State in the West Region.CJ Massinburg had 18 points and six rebounds for Buffalo (32-3), which won its 13th straight game.

UC Irvine 70, Kansas St. 64SAN JOSE, Calif. — UC Irvine got back-to-back 3-pointers from Evan Leonard to spark the deciding run in an upset over Kansas State, the Anteaters’ first NCAA Tournament victory in school history.Leonard and Max Hazzard each scored 19 points to send UC Irvine (31-5) into the second round of the South Region.

Texas Tech 72, Northern Ky. 57TULSA, Okla. — Jarrett Culver had 29 points, eight rebounds and seven assists to help No. 3 seed Texas Tech shake off a slow start against No. 14 seed Northern Kentucky in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.Tariq Owens scored 12 points and Davide Moretti had 10 for Texas Tech (27-6).

Oklahoma 95, Mississippi 72COLUMBIA, S.C. — Rashard Odomes and Christian James scored 20 points apiece, Kristian Doolittle had 19 points and matched a career-high with 15 rebounds and No. 9 seed Oklahoma blitzed Mississippi with a season high in points in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.The Sooners (20-13) scored on eight of their first nine possessions for a 12-0 lead and led by 17 at halftime.

Iowa 79, Cincinnati 72COLUMBUS, Ohio — Luka Garza scored 20 points, Jordan Bohannon made a three-point play during Iowa’s closing surge as the 10th-seeded Hawkeyes rallied past No. 7 seed Cincinnati in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.