N.C. State nips LSU to earn date with Villanova

PITTSBURGH - Villanova has an opponent for Saturday's third-round NCAA East Regional game, and it's not the team that trailed for 19 minutes, 59.9 seconds in the second half.

Sophomore forward BeeJay Anya hit an eight-foot hook shot in the lane with one-tenth of a second to play Thursday night to propel eighth seed North Carolina State to an unlikely 66-65 victory over Louisiana State in the second game of a doubleheader at the Consol Energy Center.

The Wolfpack (21-13) trailed by as many as 16 points in the second half and by 62-48 with 9:15 to play.

But the Tigers (22-11) inexplicably scored just three points after that, punctuating their offensive futility by missing their last six free throws, four by 6-foot-8 forward Jordan Mickey, a 66 percent shooter from the line.

Tim Quarterman scored LSU's final point with 3:59 remaining to give the Tigers a 65-60 lead. But Trevor Lacey, who made just 4 of 15 shots and scored nine points, seven below his average, hit a baseline fade and Anya converted a tip-in to make it a one-point game with 46 seconds to play.

Anthony Barber led the Wolfpack with 17 points and Abdul-Malik Abu added 13. Quarterman scored 17 points to lead LSU.