Talented freshmen lead Duke past Utah

HOUSTON - Mike Krzyzewski and Duke are one win away from getting back to the NCAA Final Four, this time with a talented group of freshmen.

Justise Winslow had 21 points and 10 rebounds for the South Regional's top-seeded Blue Devils in their 63-57 Sweet 16 victory over revived Utah on Friday night.

Duke (32-4) is going to its 20th regional final, the 14th under Coach K for the most by any active coach.

Winslow is one of three freshman starters for Duke, a trio that includes standout big man Jahlil Okafor and guard Tyus Jones, who had 15 points. Okafor has six points and eight rebounds.

Brandon Taylor had 15 points for the Utes (26-9), the No. 5 seed with an at-large berth out of the Pac-12.

The Blue Devils play No. 2 seed Gonzaga (35-2) on Sunday in the South Regional final, with the winner going to Indianapolis for the Final Four.

The Bulldogs beat 11th-seeded UCLA, 74-62, in the earlier game Friday night at NRG Stadium, the home of the NFL's Houston Texans.

Utah and its Coach K, Larry Krystkowiak, got to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2005, and only three years after winning six games in Krystkowiak's first season.

Leading scorer Delon Wright was the Utes' only senior starter, and Bachynski the only other graduating player who played regularly.

Wright, who got his third foul on a questionable call with about five minutes left in the first half, finished with 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting. Dallin Bachynski added 11 points for the Utes, and 7-foot freshman Jakob Poeltl had 10 points and eight rebounds.

Even after Utah didn't score until nearly five minutes into the game, Duke was down by 8-5 before going ahead to stay with an 8-0 run in just over 21/2 minutes when all the Blue Devils freshman starters scored.

Gonza 74, UCLA 62 - Przemek Karnowski had 18 points and nine rebounds and second-seeded Gonzaga used a big run early in the second half to pull away for the victory in the first semifinal of South Regional.

The victory puts Gonzaga (35-2) in the Elite Eight for the second time, its first regional final since 1999. UCLA (22-14) opened the second half with a 6-0 run to get within 35-34. Gonzaga got going after that, scoring the next 12 points, thanks to the powerful inside game of 7-foot-1, 288-pound Karnowski to make it 47-34.

The Bruins, who lost in the Sweet 16 for the second straight year, were done in by a tough shooting night that included long stretches without scoring. They were led by Norman Powell's 16 points.

They quieted doubters who questioned whether they should be in the tournament by winning their first two games, but couldn't stay with the Bulldogs on a night when their shots weren't falling. Powell made just 8 of 19 shots and Bryce Alford was 3 of 11.

It's Gonzaga's second win over UCLA this season after also beating the Bruins in December. Gonzaga's only loss to UCLA in the four-game history of the series came in a 73-71 defeat in the regional semifinal in 2006.

It will be the first trip to the Elite Eight for Gonzaga coach Mark Few, who took over the season after they last made it.

The Bruins couldn't find any offense as Gonzaga built its lead early in the second half. A jump shot by Kevon Looney came after their big run to end a five-minute scoring drought and cut it to 47-36 with 13 minutes left.

Domantas Sabonis drew oohs and ahhs from the crowd when the 6-10 Lithuanian grabbed a bounce pass from Karnowski and sailed over Isaac Hamilton for a one-handed dunk that made it 51-37 with 11 minutes remaining.