Javion Hamlet had 24 points and 11 rebounds and No. 13 North Texas won its first career NCAA Tournament game, upsetting No. 4 Purdue 78-69 in overtime Friday in the South Region in Indianapolis.
Thomas Bell and Mardrez McBride added 16 apiece for the Mean Green (18-9), who will face either No. 5 Villanova or No. 12 Winthrop in the second round Sunday. James Reese also had 13 for North Texas, which won four games in four days in the Conference USA tournament to earn its first NCAA berth since 2010.
The Mean Green dominated the overtime, scoring the first 11 points, including a 3-pointer by Bell and a runner in the lane by Hamlet.
Jaden Ivey led Purdue with 26 points, while Trevion Williams added 14 points and 13 rebounds for his 11th double-double of the season.
The Boilermakers completed their season at 18-10.
Bell knocked down four of his first five shots and the Mean Green went on to build a 19-15 lead with 10:34 left in the first half.
Ivey’s three-point play with 6:59 left pulled Purdue to within 21-18.
Hamlet then connected on back-to-back 3-pointers to extend North Texas’ lead to 27-18 with 5:21 to go.
The Mean Green led 32-24 at halftime.
McBride hit a pair of treys early in the second half as the Mean Green pulled out to a 38-29 advantage.
Ivey and Eric Hunter Jr. came back with difficult layups and Purdue cut the deficit to 38-33 with 16:56 left.
The Boilermakers soon crept within 47-46 after another three-point play from Ivey with 10:42 to go.
Hamlet then scored all of the points on an 8-0 run as North Texas took a nine-point lead, 55-46.
Purdue battled back, and Williams later stole the ball, dribbled 50 feet to the basket and threw down a one-handed dunk to close within 57-55 with 3:48 left.
On the Boilermakers’ next possession, Ivey completed a spectacular layup to tie the game at 57. He missed the free throw for a potential three-point play.
McBride and Bell each scored and North Texas led 61-57 with 1:30 remaining.
Williams scored four straight points, and his putback with 21.3 seconds left tied the game at 61.
Reese missed a 15-foot jumper at the buzzer and the game went into overtime.
–Field Level Media