Thornton, LSU hold off Butler in NCAA opener

Butler has put together quite a few upsets in recent NCAA tournaments. Marcus Thornton kept LSU off that list. Thornton scored 30 points, and the hot-shooting Tigers held off a late rally to beat Butler 75-71 today in a first-round NCAA Tournament game in Greensboro, N.C. Tasmin Mitchell had 14 points and Chris Johnson added 12 for the Tigers (27-7), seeded eighth in the South Regional. They shot 49% against one of the nation’s toughest defenses in advancing to Saturday’s second round against the North Carolina-Radford winner. The Bulldogs (26-6) made things interesting by twice pulling within three in the final minute. The last came when Willie Veasley tipped in Gordon Hayward’s missed 3 with 5.4 seconds left to make it 74-71. Johnson hit one of two free throws with 4.5 seconds left to seal the victory for LSU. Hayward, Butler’s top 3-point shooter, finished with 12 points for the Bulldogs, who rallied from an early 13-point deficit but went on to lose in the first round for the first time since 2000. Considered one of the nation’s most dangerous mid-majors, Butler had knocked off Maryland, Wake Forest, Louisville and Mississippi State in recent tournaments.