Gabe Kalscheur scored 24 points to lead 10th-seeded Minnesota to an 86-76 victory over seventh-seeded Louisville on Thursday in the first round of the East Region at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa. The Gophers (22-13) advance to take on the winner of No. 2 Michigan State vs. No. 15 Bradley.
Minnesota, in the NCAA Tournament after missing out last season, won its first tournament game since 2013 when it opened with a victory over UCLA. The victory Thursday was just the second NCAA Tournament win for the Gophers, officially, since 1990. Tournament runs in 1994, 1995 and the Final Four appearance in 1997 were all vacated because of NCAA violations.
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