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Wednesday Recap: Sacred Heart upsets Fordham, MTSU dominates Ole Miss and more

Also: UVU almost bit another Cougar

NCAA Basketball: NCAA Tournament-Second Round-Middle Tennessee State vs Syracuse Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Wednesday was filled with plenty of mid-major excitement.

Saint Mary’s stayed undefeated by beating Stanford and BYU stopped its two-game losing streak by beating Utah State. You can read full recaps of those games at the links above.

In Oxford, Middle Tennessee ran out to a 29-point halftime lead behind a barrage of three’s, particularly from Giddy Potts (15 points, 4-6 3FG). Ole Miss would cut the lead in the second half but never really threatened.

"I've been coaching a long time and we had about as good of a half as you can play in the first half," Head Coach Kermit Davis said in a release. "We just made shots and our ball movement was terrific.

The Blue Raiders fed Reggie Upshaw (23 points, 10 rebounds) down the stretch and now sit at 7-1. With wins over Toledo, Murray State, UNC Wilmington (!) and now an SEC school on the road, it would seem MTSU has declared itself the C-USA favorite.

Here’s a rundown of some other notable action:

Sacred Heart Surprises Fordham in the Final Seconds

De’von Barnett hit a game winner with 2.7 seconds left in the game as the Pioneers upset the Rams, 71-70.

Sacred Heart moves to 3-4 on the season after this immense win for Anthony Latina.

There’s always another side to the story, and in this case it’s a devastating loss for the Rams. Sacred Heart sits at 325th in the KenPom ratings. Fordham’s other two losses to ETSU and UT Arlington are more than excusable. This one is harder to understand.

Northern Iowa Loses a Tough Game To George Mason

It came down to foul shots in the final seconds, and George Mason won the day. UNI needed its bench in this game, and the Patriots held them to just 19 points. Only Spencer Haldeman (16 points) and Bennett Koch (10 points) were able to produce much, and UNI clearly cannot weather off nights from Jeremy Morgan and Klint Carlson. Jaire Grayer lead all George Mason players with 14 points in what was a big win for Dave Paulsen’s team.

Utah Valley Almost Pulls the Upset

Utah Valley nearly bit another Cougar. The Wolverines trailed Washington State by as many as 19 in the second half before a furious rally. They got within a point with one minute to play but were unable to score after that. Kenneth Ogbe lead the Wolverines with 20 points.

Also of Note:

  • Colorado State dominated Colorado 72-58 behind forward Nick Caravacho’s 14 points.
  • Drake couldn’t hang on to a 15-point second half lead and fell to DePaul. It would’ve been the Bulldogs first win against Div. I competition this year.
  • UMKC ran out to its best start since 2000-01 at 6-2 with a tight victory at home over South Dakota.
  • Boise State picked up a solid win over SMU behind Chandler Hutcheston’s 21 points. This capped a nice two-game stretch for the Broncos, as they took Oregon to the wire on the road earlier in the week.