No. 11 Michigan pulls away from No. 6 Colorado State

Freshman Frankie Collins provided the spark Michigan needed in a turbulent year for the Wolverines and coach Juwan Howard, helping the 11th-seeded Wolverines rally from a 15-point deficit to beat sixth-seeded Colorado State 75-63 on Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Collins, pressed into the starting lineup because starting point guard DeVante' Jones was out with a concussion, had season highs of 14 points, six rebounds and 31 minutes. He came in averaging less than 10 minutes per game.

Big man Hunter Dickinson led Michigan with 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting. Eli Brooks had 16 points and Caleb Houstan, of Mississauga, Ont., added 13 for the Wolverines (18-14), who will face either third-seeded Tennessee or 14th-seeded Longwood in the second round of the South Region on Saturday.

Houstan, from Mississauga, Ont., chipped in another five rebounds and two assists.

The Wolverines, highly touted at the beginning of the season, squeaked into the tournament thanks largely to their stout schedule. Howard was suspended for five games down the stretch for hitting a Wisconsin assistant in the postgame handshake line, and Michigan hasn't won two straight games in more than a month.

Dischon Thomas scored 15 points on 5-of-7 3-point shooting for Colorado State (25-6), and Mountain West Conference player of the year David Roddy had 13 points and six rebounds.

Al Durham had 13 points, eight rebounds and six assists and Jared Bynum made three big free throws with 29.9 seconds left as Providence snapped the longest winning streak in college basketball by beating South Dakota State 66-57.

The fourth-seeded Friars (26-5) advanced to face Iowa or Richmond in the Midwest Region on Saturday.

It was a typical grind for the Big