DAYTON, Ohio — Aaron Craft hit a 3-pointer with a half-second left, and Ohio State escaped Dayton — a place of heartaches — as the lone high seed left in the NCAA tournament’s wild West Regional, beating Iowa State 78-75 on Sunday.
No. 2 Ohio State (28-7) needed Craft’s only 3-pointer of the game — an arching shot over 6-foot-7 defender Georges Niang from the top of the key — to avoid yet another upset in the West. Four of the top five seeds have fallen fast and hard in that most-busted bracket.
The Buckeyes’ 10th straight win sends them into the round of 16 for the fourth straight year, a school record. They’ll play sixth-seeded Arizona on Thursday in Los Angeles.
Tenth-seeded Iowa State (23-12) overcame a late 13-point deficit by hitting 3s — the Cyclones’ specialty — but wound up beaten by Craft’s lone basket from behind the arc.
