NCAA Tournament results: Ole Miss unable to continue magical March Madness run

Ole Miss, who knocked out Iowa State last weekend, comes up short in Sweet 16 vs. Michigan State

Ole Miss was knocked out of the NCAA Tournament by Michigan State Friday night. / Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

The final four games of the Sweet 16 hit the court Friday night, as we now have the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight field set. On Thursday, Texas Tech, Alabama, Duke and Florida all punched tickets to the next round.

Texas Tech will play Florida and Duke squares off with Alabama on Saturday for spots in San Antonio and the Final Four. 

Friday kicked off with a battle of Big Ten vs. SEC, as Ole Miss played Michigan State. Two other SEC teams, Kentucky and Tennessee, squared off for a third time, while Michigan played Auburn and Purdue squared off with Houston to conclude the session.

Ole Miss comes up short vs. Michigan State

The run for Chris Beard, former Texas Tech head coach, and Ole Miss came to an end Friday night. The Rebels, who eliminated Iowa State last weekend in the second round, were topped by Michigan State, 73-70.

Ole Miss held a halftime lead on the Spartans, who advanced to the final eight for the 11th time under head coach Tom Izzo. Sean Pedulla led the Rebels with 24, adding four assists and two steals.

For Michigan State, Jase Richardson scored 20 to lead four players in double figures.

Houston survives vs. Purdue on game-winning basket

Kelvin Sampson drew up the perfect play and Houston executed, punching a ticket to the Elite Eight with a thrilling 62-60 victory over Purdue. 

Milos Uzan, who scored a game-high 22 points, had the winning bucket. After inbounding the ball, Uzan was left wide open for an uncontested layup at the rim. Purdue’s Braden Smith got off a desperation 3-point attempt, but it came up short.

Emanuel Sharp added 17 points and J’Wan Roberts had 12 rebounds as the Cougars overcame a tough night from star L.J. Cryer, who was just 2-for-13 with five points.

For Purdue, Fletcher Loyer had 16 and Braden Smith dished out 15 assists. 

NCAA TOURNAMENT RESULTS

Sweet 16 Round

Thursday’s results

• Alabama 113, BYU 88
• Florida 87, Maryland 71
• Duke 100, Arizona 93
• Texas Tech 85, Arkansas 83 (OT)

Friday’s results

• Michigan State 73, Ole Miss 70
• Kentucky vs. Tennessee
• Auburn 78, Michigan 65
• Houston 62, Purdue 60

Elite Eight Round

Saturday’s Games

• Texas Tech vs. Florida (-6.5-point favorites), 5:09 p.m. (TBS/truTV)
• Alabama vs. Duke (-6.5-point favorites), 7:49 p.m. (TBS/truTV)

Sunday’s Games

• Tennessee vs. Houston, 1:20 p.m. (CBS)
• Michigan State vs. Auburn, 4:05 p.m. (CBS)

(All start times are CST)