March Madness: Xavier continues Cinderella run by upsetting Arizona in Sweet 16

Dave DeLuca

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March Madness: Xavier continues Cinderella run by upsetting Arizona in Sweet 16 image

We officially have our first Cinderella of the 2017 NCAA Tournament. 

No. 11 seed Xavier ended the game on a 9-0 run to knock off No. 2 Arizona, 73-71, in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament for the right to play Gonzaga in the Elite Eight on Saturday. It's Xavier's first trip to the Elite Eight since 2008.

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The Musketeers trailed Arizona by eight with three minutes to go, but Sean O’Mara's inside bucket with 40 seconds left completed a spirited comeback and gave Xavier the lead for good. Xavier held Arizona scoreless over the final 2:50 of the game.

Arizona's Allonzo Trier had a chance to tie it for the Wildcats in the closing seconds, but his 3-pointer was off the mark and Xavier dribbled out the clock from there.

Trevon Bluiett led Xavier with 25 points. Trier led Arizona with 19 points. 

Xavier vs. Arizona score, highlights

 

O'Mara's go-ahead bucket gave Xavier the lead for good.

 

Trier scored 12 of his 19 points in the second half.

 

Bill Murray is feeling it.

Dave DeLuca

Dave DeLuca is an intern at Sporting News and a recent graduate of Buffalo State. He's a former intern and digital editor at The Buffalo News and executive editor of The Record, Buffalo State's student-run newspaper.