It's March. And with the 2017 NCAA Tournament kicking off Thursday, it's mad.Action got rolling just after noon in Buffalo, New York, with a game that nearly busted scores of brackets right out of the gate. It finished with Arizona easing past North Dakota.Below, you'll find highlights from those matchups, as well as some of the best plays from the rest of Thursday's games.Princeton vs. Notre DameThe Fighting Irish got all they could handle from Princeton and needed a little bit of luck to avoid a 12-5 upset in the first game of the tournament.Following critical missed free throws, Princeton got a great look at a potential game-winner as time expired in the second half, as shown by March Madness:It wasn't pretty, but as is often said, it's all about surviving in March, and the Fighting Irish won 60-58.UNC Wilmington vs. VirginiaAnother potential 12-5 upset tipped off shortly after Princeton and Notre Dame, as UNC Wilmington did its best to up the pace against Virginia, with highlight plays like this one shared by March Madness:In the end, though, the Cavaliers took control of the game like they did the boards in this play, via March Madness:Virginia advanced 76-71.Winthrop vs. ButlerButler used a strong first half to cruise to a 76-64 victory over the Winthrop Eagles thanks in large part to the kind of sharp offense seen in this March Madness highlight:South Dakota State vs. GonzagaThe Jackrabbits of South Dakota State put up a spirited fight, particularly in the first half, against No. 1 Gonzaga. Sequences like this one, shared by CBS Sports, had people thinking upset for a hot minute:The Bulldogs took over in the second half, though, as four players in double figures carried the team to a 66-46 victory.Bucknell vs. West VirginiaBob Huggins and No. 4 West Virginia got all they could handle against Bucknell. But tough play inside, as seen in this clip from March Madness, helped the Mountaineers come out on top:West Virginia took the game 86-80.East Tennessee vs. FloridaNo. 13 East Tennessee kept things interesting against Florida in the first half. But the one point deficit it faced at halftime soon ballooned thanks to an onslaught on the rim at the hands of the Gators.March Madness shared the highlights:The Buccaneers went down 80-65.Middle Tennessee vs. MinnesotaThe first big upset of the day came in Milwaukee, where No. 12 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders knocked off No. 5 Minnesota 81-72.In the first half, Bleacher Report tweeted that Middle Tennessee would be tough to beat:Turns out, it didn't go down at all.Vanderbilt vs. NorthwesternThe early feelgood story of the tournament comes by way of Northwestern, a school making the first March Madness appearance in its history.It got off to a good start too, winning 68-66 over Vanderbilt in its first-round matchup. The players were understandably thrilled with the result, as shown by CBS Sports:Before the celebration, the Wildcats got some help from the Commodores. CBS Sports was there for the highlight again:Xavier vs. MarylandThe second upset of the day came courtesy of Xavier, who knocked off Maryland.As the Musketeers began to pull away in the second half, the bench blessed us with a GIF-worthy celebration, shared by CBS Sports:Xavier beat the Terrapins 76-65.VCU vs. Saint Mary'sThe Saint Mary's Gaels opened up a comfortable lead in the first half and then cruised to victory over theVCU Rams.This breakaway, shared by March Madness, helped seal the win:The Gaels advanced 85-77.Vermont vs. PurdueVermont had a strong start against Purdue, but the Boilermakers seized momentum at the end of the first half with this sequence, shared by CBS Sports:Purdue outscored the Catamounts by nine in the second half and went on to win 80-70.Mount St. Mary's vs. VillanovaLike several other games on Thursday, the lower-seeded Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers were able to hang tough in the first half.But much like the pattern seen above, Villanova started to assert its dominance in the waning minutes of the opening frame with plays like this one, shared by CBS Sports:The Wildcats offense took off after that, and this Jalen Brunson assist, tweeted by CBS Sports, was the exclamation mark to a 76-56 victory:The tourney's top overall seed is moving on.Virginia Tech vs. WisconsinNo. 8 Wisconsin was tested by No. 9 Virginia Tech but finished with a fairly comfortable 84-74 victory.Winning the battle of the boards 37-25 certainly helped, as it did in this play, shared by CBS Sports:Florida Gulf Coast vs. Florida StateThere will be no Cinderella run for Dunk City this year, as Florida Gulf Coast's strong effort came up just short against No. 3 Florida State.Jams like this one from Dwayne Bacon, tweeted out by March Madness, held the Eagles at bay:The Seminoles progressed 86-80.Nevada vs. Iowa StateIn the last 12-5 matchup of the day, Iowa State held off a rally in the middle of the second half to beat Nevada 84-73.Sequences like this onefromDeonteBurton, shared by CBS Sports,helped Iowa State establish a big enough cushion in the first half to get the victory:North Dakota vs. ArizonaIn Day 1's final game, perennial powerhouse Arizona cruised to a 100-82 victory over North Dakota, often getting out in transition, as it did in this play, shared by CBS Sports:Following all the action on Thursday, 16 teams are moving on. Sixteen more will punch their tickets to the next round on Friday. For another batch of highlights, come back to Bleacher Report after the games wrap.
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