With Duke having to navigate the East region to get to the 2017 Final Four, The Chronicle is taking a close look at the Blue Devils' path to Phoenix. We'll have scores and recaps of each East region game as they finish and will be updating our graphic as Duke looks to advance to its 17th Final Four, so check back as the madness begins. Click here for our broader look at the 64-team field, which will have scores and previews from other regions as well.
Champion: South Carolina
Elite Eight
No. 7 South Carolina 77, No. 4 Florida 70
The Gamecocks went into halftime trailing by seven, just as they did against Duke. And just as they did against the Blue Devils, head coach Frank Martin's team turned the tide with its rugged style of play on both ends, dominating the paint and getting 26 points from star Sindarius Thornwell to make their first Final Four.
Sweet 16
No. 4 Florida 84, No. 8 Wisconsin 83
The game of the tournament so far saw enormous shots made by both teams and a back-and-forth overtime period. Wisconsin veteran Zak Showalter made a running 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds left in regulation to force overtime, and the Badgers looked poised to make another Elite Eight when they went up two with four seconds left in overtime. But Gator point guard Chris Chiozza covered a ton of ground in just a few seconds, pulled up and drained a 3-pointer from the top of the key as time expired to give his team the dramatic victory.
No. 7 South Carolina 70, No. 3 Baylor 50
The Gamecocks showed their upset of Duke was no fluke, thoroughly outplaying Baylor from the opening tip and using their defense to control the game. Sindarius Thornwell once again led the way with 24 points for South Carolina.
Round of 32
The Badgers used a late Nigel Hayes layup and stifling defense on Josh Hart to upset the No. 1 overall seed. Villanova missed three late free throws and did not get the calls down the stretch en route to a fourth Round of 32 upset since 2010.
No. 4 Florida 65, No. 5 Virginia 39
The Gators took Virginia out of its offense, holding head coach Tony Bennett's team to 30.2 percent shooting en route to the Sweet 16.
No. 3 Baylor 82, No. 11 Southern California 78
Johnathan Motley had 19 points and 10 boards for the Bears, who avoided an early-round upset to give themselves a chance to advance to the Final Four for the first time since 1950. Baylor is now the highest-seeded team left in the region.
No. 7 South Carolina 88, No. 2 Duke 81
The Blue Devils gave up 65 second-half points en route to a third first-weekend exit since 2012. Duke failed to take advantage of a horrendous offensive start by South Carolina, which used its physical defense to feed off a rowdy crowd's energy in Greenville, S.C.
Round of 64
No. 1 Villanova 76, No. 16 Mount St. Mary's 56
After a sluggish start saw Villanova only lead by one point at halftime, the heavily-favored Wildcats pulled away in the second half. Freshman Donte DiVincenzo led the way with 21 points and 13 rebounds for head coach Jay Wright's team.
No. 8 Wisconsin 84, No. 9 Virginia Tech 74
The Badgers got a masterful performance from point guard Bronson Koenig, who canned eight 3-pointers, and Ethan Happ and Nigel Hayes showed their experience as well by controlling the paint with 26 points and 18 rebounds combined to set up a matchup with Wisconsin Saturday.
No. 5 Virginia 76, No. 12 UNC-Wilmington 71
Despite falling behind 26-11 against UNC-Wilmington's pressure, the Cavaliers got strong performances from guards London Perrantes and Marial Shayok—who combined for 47 points—to get back to the Round of 32.
No. 4 Florida 80, No. 13 East Tennessee State 65
The Gators got going after halftime, turning a one-point lead after intermission into a stress-free victory led by forward Devin Robinson, who had 24 points and seven rebounds.
No. 11 Southern California 66, No. 6 SMU 65
The Trojans were trailing throughout the game but used a late Elijah Stewart 3-pointer to upend the Mustangs, who faltered down the stretch.
No. 3 Baylor 91, No. 14 New Mexico State 73
Although the Bears were trailing heading into halftime, Baylor started controlling the boards in the second half and had five players score in double figures to move on.
No. 7 South Carolina 93, No. 10 Marquette 73
Led by SEC Player of the Year Sindarius Thornwell, who had 29 points and 11 rebounds, the Gamecocks wore down former Duke assistant coach Steve Wojciechowski's Golden Eagles in the second half and will take on the Blue Devils Sunday.
The Blue Devils jumped out to a 16-4 lead and made seven of their first 10 3-pointers to maintain a comfortable cushion against Troy. Although the Trojans fought hard, a 9-0 run put Duke up 18 with about 12 minutes left as the Blue Devils eventually pulled away.
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