It’s been almost wall-to-wall action in the NCAA Tournament on Thursday as games have gone down to the wire at an astonishing rate throughout the day. Vanderbilt and Richmond were no exception as yet another game headed for an exciting finish in the final moments.
Lance Goulbourne hit one of two free throws with 50 seconds to go to bring Vanderbilt within one, but Kevin Anderson answered for Richmond. Anderson put on a show throughout the game, hitting floaters from all over the court for the Spiders. With 19 seconds to go, Anderson did it again, hitting a tough, contested teardrop to give Richmond a three-point lead.
Vanderbilt wasn’t able to get a shot off on the other end of the floor, wasting a possession that ended in a turnover with five seconds to go. The Commodores got another chance, though, after Richmond missed the front-end of a one-and-one and fouled immediately, putting Festus Ezeli on the line. He made the first and missed the second on purpose, but Vandy couldn’t come up with the rebound.
Anderson hit one of two free throws to push the lead back to three for Richmond after a quick foul on the rebound. Vanderbilt never got a good look at the last shot as Vanderbilt hung on for a 69-66 upset win.
Anderson finished with a game-high 25 points for Richmond. John Jenkins and Festus Ezeli led the way for Vanderbilt with 21 points apiece. Darrius Garrett had a block party for the Spiders, as well, rejecting four shots and altering numerous others.
Richmond moves on to face the other big upset winner of the day, Morehead State, in the round of 32. The rest of the Southwest region bracket can be found below.
No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 16 Boston University Terriers in Tulsa on Friday
No. 8 UNLV Runnin’ Rebels vs. No. 9 Illinois Fighting Illini in Tulsa on Friday
No. 12 Richmond Spiders def No. 5 Vanderbilt Commodores, 69-66
No. 13 Morehead St. Eagles def No. 4 Louisville Cardinals, 62-61
No. 6 Georgetown Hoyas vs. No. 12 VCU Rams on Friday
No. 3 Purdue Boilermakers vs. No. 14 Saint Peter’s in Chicago on Friday
No. 7 Texas A&M Aggies vs. No. 10 Florida St. Seminoles in Chicago on Friday
No. 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. No. 15 Akron Zips in Chicago on Friday
Check out the rest of the NCAA Tournament bracket over at SB Nation for the latest updates. For the full television lineup, check out our March Madness schedule. Be sure to check back in with our NCAA Tournament results StoryStream for updates throughout the day.