Noah Hartsock scored 16 of his 23 points in the second half Tuesday night to fuel Brigham Young's incredible comeback from a 25-point deficit, leading the Cougars past Iona, 78-72, in the first round of the NCAA tournament in Dayton, Ohio. Brandon Davies added 18 points and Damarcus Harrison 12 for the Cougars (26-8), who will play third-seeded Marquette Thursday in Louisville, Ky. It was the second stunning turnaround of the night in Dayton. With US President Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron watching, Western Kentucky came back from a 16-point deficit in the final five minutes to beat Mississippi Valley State. Iona (25-8) seemed assured of its first NCAA tournament victory after dominating the first half. But despite 15 points and 10 assists by Scott Machado, the Gaels dropped to 0-8 in tournament play. W. Ky. 59, MISS. VALLEY STATE 58: T. J. Price's 3-point play with 33 seconds left completed a furious rally, and Western Kentucky held on for a victory over Mississippi Valley State. The Hilltoppers (16-18) are the only squad in the 68-team field with a losing record. They turned up the full-court pressure in the last five minutes, overcoming a 16-point deficit with a comeback that won over the crowd. MVSU (21-13) led for much of the game but could not close it out. Seton Hall 63, Stony Brook 61: Jordan Theodore scored 21 points, Herb Pope had 20 and host Seton Hall ended an 11-game losing streak in the National Invitation Tournament by holding off Stony Brook. The win was the first for the Pirates (21-12) in the event since 1956. Stony Brook did not make it easy. Bryan Dougher had a 3-pointer bounce off the rim with about two seconds to go, and Tommy Brenton had a rebound follow roll off the rim at the buzzer. Dallas Joyner had 14 points and 9 rebounds for the Seawolves (22-10). UMASS 101, Mississippi St. 96: Chaz Williams scored 28 points, Sean Carter added 20 and Massachusetts outlasted host Mississippi State in double overtime in the first round of the NIT UMass (23-11) won by outscoring the Bulldogs (21-12) by 11-6 in the second overtime. Northwestern 76, Akron 74: Drew Crawford scored 27 points, John Shurna added 23 and host Northwestern (19-13) held off Akron (22-12) in the first round of the NIT Shurna hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1 minute 33 seconds to play. Akron had a chance to win at the buzzer, but a 3-point attempt by Alex Abreu bounced off the backboard. Iowa 84, Dayton 75: The freshman Aaron White scored a career-high 25 points, the sophomore Zach McCabe tied a career high with 20 and host Iowa (18-16) rolled past Dayton (20-13) in the opening round of the NIT. Middle Tenn. 86, Marshall 78: LaRon Dendy had 18 points and 13 rebounds, and host Middle Tennessee (26-6) beat Marshall (21-14) in the first round of the NIT. Tennessee 65, Savannah St. 51: Jarnell Stokes scored 13 points and host Tennessee (19-14) beat Savannah State (21-12) in the first round of the NIT.
