No. 1 seed Duke survives against UCF

COLUMBIA, SC (AP) — The No. 1 overall seed rallied in the final seconds to beat UCF 77-76 and reach the Sweet 16 in the East Region.

The Knights had two shots for the win on the final possession, but B.J. Taylor missed a driving shot that rolled off the rim. The same then happened to Aubrey Dawkins’ last-ditch tip-in attempt, securing the win for Duke.

Duke trailed 74-70 late before pushing back ahead on RJ Barrett’s putback of a missed free throw by Zion Williamson.

Williamson had 32 points for Duke, while Dawkins had 32 for UCF.

No. 9 seed UCF used back-to-back 3-pointers from Dayon Griffin and B.J. Taylor, a stepback jumper from Aubrey Dawkins and a dunk by Tacko Fall after a shot clock review to take a 74-70 lead on No. 1 Duke with 2:09 left.

The Knights shot 9 of 18 from behind the arc. Dawkins is leading the way with 32 points on 12 of 16 shooting, including 5 of 7 on 3s.