The final field of 64 is set for the 2011 NCAA Tournament after Texas-San Antonio and Virginia Commonwealth won their opening round games in the First Four. They join UNC-Asheville and Clemson as the other members of the First Four.
Texas-San Antonio defeated Alabama St., 70-61, in the first game of the night. Melvin Johnson III had a big scoring night with 29 points. He was 9-of-17 from the field and 9-of-13 at the free throw line. Freshman Jeromie Hill added a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. The bench scored only nine points. Alabama State never looked quite into it, but did narrow a 27-point deficit at halftime to only a nine-point loss.
The Va. Commonwealth Rams won a tough game against the USC Trojans, 59-46. Neither team shot the ball that well, the Rams at 33.9 percent and the Trojans at 39.5 percent. The Rams put up 24 three-pointers, but made only nine. The Trojans threw up nine treys, sinking only one. The Trojans' Donte Smith went 0-of-6 from beyond the arc. VCU forward Jamie Skeen led the game with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
Texas-San Antonio now plays as the No. 16 seed against No. 1 seed Ohio St. Virginia Commonwealth takes an 11 seed and faces No. 6 Georgetown. Both games will be played on Friday.