Colorado defeated Boise State 60-53 on Wednesday in the final First Four game. The battle of No. 10 seeds came down to the wire, and now the Buffaloes will face No. 7 seed Florida in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday in Indianapolis.
Colorado closed the game on a 15-4 run and held Boise State scoreless for over four minutes down the stretch. Tristan da Silva scored a team-high 20 points, while KJ Simpson scored 19. Boise State fell to a record 0-10 all-time in NCAA Tournament games.
Grambling State erased a 14-point second-half deficit to stun Montana State 88-81 earlier in the evening. The overtime comeback victory came in the program's first NCAA Tournament game, and now the Tigers will face No. 1 seed Purdue in the first round on Friday.
Jimel Cofer scored a team-high 19 points, and Jourdan Smith added 18 in the comeback win. Montana State ends its season with a 17-18 record in Year 1 of the Matt Logie era.
The opening day of the First Four on Tuesday was eventful. Colorado State used a near wire-to-wire effort to eliminate Virginia 67-42 in a matchup of No. 10 seeds, while Wagner defeated Howard 71-68 in a battle of No. 16 seeds. Colorado State and Wagner will face Texas and North Carolina, respectively, in the first round.
Colorado will be a dangerous out in the NCAA Tournament
This Colorado team reminds me of another team that played in Dayton a few short years ago. That would be the 2020-21 UCLA Bruins, who went from the First Four to the Final Four. Colorado has the talent to beat anyone and make a similar run. Simpson and da Silva are a dynamic duo that can give opposing teams nightmares. Eddie Lampkin has previous experience in this tournament when he was at TCU. Colorado star freshman Cody Williams could prove to be a valuable bench piece. Florida will be a tough matchup for Colorado, but you have to love the upside of what this team can accomplish when it is firing on all cylinders.
Grambling State shows grit in win over Montana State
With 14:37 remaining in regulation, Montana State took a 14-point lead. Shots weren't falling for Grambling State, and it appeared its season could be on the verge of ending. Then something changed. Shots started falling. Grambling State forced turnovers. It took an extra five minutes beyond regulation, but now the Tigers will have a chance to repeat history in their next matchup against Purdue. Last season, FDU won its First Four matchup and parlayed that by knocking off the No. 1 seed from its region. If Grambling State wants to pull off the massive upset, they will need to rely on Cofer, Jourdan Smith, and Antwan Burnett. It would take a historic performance, but FDU showed that anything is possible.
Why was Boise State placed in Dayton?
Tuesday, we witnessed a Virginia team score 14 points at halftime and play an ugly style of basketball against Colorado State. Virginia shouldn't have received an at-large invite to the tournament. Boise State was not supposed to be playing in Dayton for another reason ... because it deserved to receive an at-large bid safely. When Boise State received its tournament pairing, the whole team was shocked, and for good reason. The Broncos expected to receive a pass to the first round. It emphasizes how poorly teams in the Mountain West were seeded. Boise State and Virginia shouldn't have played in Dayton this week, and the latter was because of the eye test. Boise State was better than a First Four team, and it deserved better.
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First Four schedule, scores
Wednesday, March 20
- (16) Grambling State 88, (16) Montana State 81 (OT) | Recap
- (10) Colorado 60, (10) Boise State 53 | Recap
CBS Sports will be with you the entire way updating this story with the latest from every First Four game on Wednesday. Keep it locked here for scores, analysis and highlights throughout the evening.
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