Stanford vs West Virginia

West Virginia held off a furious Stanford comeback at the MGM Grand Garden Arena to steal a 82-77 thriller in the College Basketball Crown's First Four. The Mountaineers controlled the first half, building a 35-29 lead, and extended their advantage to eight points before the Cardinal mounted a desperate rally. Four lead changes and six ties made this a back-and-forth battle, but West Virginia's clutch free-throw shooting down the stretch proved decisive. The final five minutes were pure chaos. Stanford clawed back within one, with Ryan Agarwal draining a layup at 4:11 to make it 68-71, but the Mountaineers refused to fold. Honor Huff took over in crunch time, hitting a crucial 14-footer to push it to 75-73, then nailing two more jumpers to extend the lead to 79-75. Stanford answered with Ebuka Okorie's layup, but Huff's free throws in the final seconds sealed it. West Virginia's ice-cold composure at the line—hitting eight straight down the stretch—proved too much for the upset bid.