Duke's Cameron Boozer (12) and Nikolas Khamenia battlefor the ball with Siena's Riley Mulvey (55), Brendan Coyle (21) and Gavin Doty during Thursday's first round NCAA tourney game in Greenville, S.C. (AP photo)

GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — For most of Thursday, Duke looked nothing like the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. Not with 16th-seeded Siena challenging the Blue Devils at every turn, determined to pull off the rarest of March Madness upsets.

And Duke barely avoided exactly that.

The Blue Devils had to rally from 13 points down and going ahead for good in the final 5 minutes to beat Siena 71-65, a first-round game that will stand out both for how Duke looked uncharacteristically tight and shaky compared to the confidence of the upstart Saints.

“A tournament’s all about your competitive readiness, and Siena had that as well as any team we’ve gone against,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “We anticipated them trying to really do things to keep us out of the paint, and they executed great. The moments we made runs, they didn’t flinch.”

Cameron Boozer had 22 points and 13 rebounds for the East Region’s headliner, which hit its first four shots yet needed a comeback against a fearless upstart playing just five players right up to the final seconds.

The No. 1 seeds entered the week with a 158-2 record against 16 seeds in the tournament, the outliers being Virginia’s loss to UMBC in 2018 and Purdue’s loss to Fairleigh Dickinson in 2023.

And Duke — a blueblood with five NCAA titles — spent much of Thursday in serious danger of being added to that list before finally wrestling away control of the game in the last 8 minutes.

“He outcoached me, he outcoached us,” Scheyer said of Siena coach Gerry McNamara. “That’s one of the hardest moments for me in sport, period, to not have your best stuff.”

Gavin Doty scored 21 points to lead the Saints (23-12), with his third 3 giving Siena a 61-56 lead with 7:53 left. But Duke ran off 11 unanswered points to finally push ahead for good, securing a date against TCU in Saturday’s second round.

“I’m just really proud,” McNamara said. “I’m devastated for them because we were fearless. … I’m crushed for them because they played well enough to win.”

In other notable first round games Thursday:

HIGH POINT 83, WISCONSIN 82

Chase Johnston converted an easy layup for his first 2-point basket of the season, giving High Point the lead with 11.7 seconds remaining, and the 12th-seeded Panthers held on from there to beat No. 5 seed Wisconsin for the first major upset of the NCAA Tournament.

Johnston finished with 14 points, including four 3-pointers for the Panthers (31-4). His last 3 was the 415th of his career, one more than Stephen Curry and good for 22nd in Division I history.

“We’ve seen Johnston make some circus ones today off one leg,” Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said. “It’s exactly what I saw on film. His ability to shoot the ball and get it off quick.”

High Point was a 10 1/2-point underdog, according to BetMGM Sportsbook, and for most of Thursday’s game, Johnston filled his usual role in the Panthers’ offense — coming off the bench and hunting long-range shots that he converts with incredible efficiency. He went 4 of 6 beyond the arc, and his final 3 pulled High Point within 82-81 with 55 seconds to go.

VCU 82, NORTH CAROLINA 78

Hill Jr. made a stepback 3-pointer with 15 seconds left in overtime and 11th-seeded VCU erased from a 19-point second-half deficit to stun sixth-seeded North Carolina 82-78 in the teams’ opener.

Hill finished 7 for 10 from 3-point range and scored 23 of 34 points after halftime as VCU (28-7) won its first March Madness game since 2016.

Nyk Lewis added 16 points, including two free throws in OT, to seal the game for the Rams, who pulled off the sixth-biggest comeback in tournament history and the second-largest second-half comeback, behind Nevada’s 22-point rally against Cincinnati in 2018.

TEXAS 79, BYU 71

Matas Vokietaitis had 23 points and 16 rebounds, and No. 11 seed Texas knocked off sixth-seeded BYU overcoming 35 points from Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa.

After needing to beat N.C. State on Tuesday in the First Four just to reach the first round, Texas (19-14) advanced to face third-seeded Gonzaga on Saturday in the West Regional.

Dybantsa played every minute of the game but it wasn’t enough as BYU (23-12) had its season — and perhaps his college career — come to an end. Dybantsa was two

ILLINOIS 105, PENN 70

David Mirkovic had 29 points and 17 rebounds, and No. 3 seed Illinois dominated No. 14 seed Penn.

Keaton Wagler added 18 points, seven assists and seven rebounds for the Fighting Illini (25-8), who moved on to face No. 11 VCU in the second round on Saturday in Greenville, S.C.

Kylan Boswell had 13 points, while Ben Humrichous and Tomislav Ivisic each chipped in with 12 as Illinois shot 50% from the field and made 15 3-pointers while outrebounding the much smaller Quakers 48-25.

Michael Zanoni finished with 20 points on 9-of-18 shooting for Penn (18-12), the Ivy League champion.

ARKANSAS 97, HAWAII 78

Darius Acuff Jr. had 24 points and seven assists, and No. 4 seed Arkansas continued its strong play after winning the Southeastern Conference Tournament, beating No. 13 seed Hawaii.

Arkansas (27-8) moves on to face No. 12 High Point in the second round of the West Region. The Panthers knocked off No. 5 Wisconsin 83-82 in the first game in Portland.

MICHIGAN STATE 92, NORTH DAKOTA STATE 67

Carson Cooper matched his career high with 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as Michigan State routed North Dakota State in Buffalo, N.Y. to reach the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the 22nd time in 28 consecutive appearances under coach Tom Izzo.

Coen Carr added 17 points for the third-seeded Spartans. Freshman forward Cam Ward scored 13 points and Jaxon Kohler had 12 points and nine rebounds. Leading scorer Jeremy Fears Jr. managed only seven points, but had 11 assists, exceeding his season average of 9.2 that ranks first in the country.

Michigan State (26-7) advanced to play Louisville (24-10) in the second round Saturday after the No. 6 seed in the Midwest held on to beat South Florida 83-79. It will be the fifth March Madness matchup between the schools and first since 2015, when the Spartans beat the Cardinals in overtime to reach the Final Four.

VANDERBILT 78, MCNEESE 68

Tyler Tanner had 26 points, seven rebounds and five assists, and Vanderbilt rallied to beat McNeese in Oklahoma City for its first victory in the NCAA Tournament since 2012.

The Commodores (27-8), the No. 5 seed in the South Region, will play No. 4 seed Nebraska in the second round on Saturday.

Duke Miles scored 13 points and Devin McGlockton and Tyler Nickel each added 12 for Vanderbilt, which trailed by 12 points in the first half and then took control after the break.

The Commodores shot 51% (26 of 51) from the field and made 17 of 20 free throws.

LOUISVILLE 83, SOUTH FLORIDA 79

Isaac McKneely scored 23 points, and Louisville hung on to beat South Florida to win its first NCAA Tournament game since Rick Pitino’s final season as coach.

Ryan Conwell scored 11 of his 18 points in the second half and backup forward Sananda Fru had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Cardinals.

Louisville (24-10) showed signs of struggling without starting point guard Mikel Brown Jr., who missed his fifth straight game with back issues. It was evident in the Cardinals’ issues against South Florida’s press in nearly squandering a 23-point lead over the final 12:50.

Brown is not expected to return for the second round on Saturday. That’s when the East Region’s sixth seed Louisville plays third-seeded Michigan State (26-7).

NEBRASKA 76, TROY 47

Pryce Sandfort scored 23 points and the Cornhuskers rolled to their long-awaited first NCAA Tournament victory, beating in what looked and sounded like a Nebraska home game in Oklahoma City.

The Cornhuskers (27-6), the No. 4 seed in the South Region, entered March Madness as the only school from a power conference without a tournament win — they were 0-8, with many of the losses coming as the higher seed. Sandfort helped the Huskers end the drought by making seven 3-pointers.

TEXAS A&M, SAINT MARY’S

Rashaun Agee had 22 points and nine rebounds, and No. 10 seed Texas A&M beat seventh-seeded Saint Mary’s.

Ruben Dominguez added 11 points for the Aggies (22-11), who advanced in the South Region to face No. 2 seed Houston on Saturday.

Texas A&M had not allowed fewer than 59 points all season, but it forced 18 turnovers, limiting the opportunities for the Gaels’ dangerous shooters. The Aggies forced a 10-second call against Saint Mary’s on its first possession.

HOUSTON 78,IDAHO 47

Kingston Flemings scored 18 points, Emanuel Sharpe added 16 and Houston routed Idaho 78-47 Thursday night in its NCAA Tournament opener after losing last year’s championship game.

The Cougars (29-6), the second seed in the South Region, will play No. 10 seed Texas A&M in the second round on Saturday. The Aggies beat St. Mary’s 63-50 on Thursday.

Chris Cenac Jr. had a career-high 18 rebounds for Houston, which lost to Florida in last year’s final.

Kolton Mitchell scored 14 points for 15th-seeded Idaho, a heavy underdog making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1990.

MICHIGAN 101, HOWARD 81

Morez Johnson Jr. had 21 points and 10 rebounds on a perfect shooting night, and No. 1 seed Michigan rode a second-half surge to a 101-81 victory over 16th-seeded Howard,

Towering center Aday Mara had 19 points, seven rebounds and six assists for a Wolverines team that set the Big Ten regular-season record with 19 conference victories. Johnson shot 8 of 8 from the field as Michigan (32-3) moved within one win of matching a program record set in 2017-18.

Top-seeded teams improved to 160-2 against No. 16 seeds, with Duke outlasting Siena earlier in the day.

TCU 66, OHIO STATE 64

David Punch delivered a textbook entry pass to Xavier Edmonds, who converted a layup to beat the shot clock with 4.3 seconds left as No. 9 seed TCU held off a furious second-half rally by eighth-seeded Ohio State.

Bruce Thornton’s half-court heave at the buzzer hit all backboard, and the Buckeyes’ standout senior leaned forward and put his hands on his knees in dismay near midcourt as TCU began its celebration.

Micah Robinson made four 3-pointers and scored 18 points to lead TCU, Edmonds scored 16 and Punch had 16 points and 13 rebounds. The Horned Frogs (23-11) will play Saturday against Duke, the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament, which survived an upset scare from Siena.

SAINT LOUIS, GEORGIA

Dion Brown scored 18 points on 9-of-10 shooting, all on layups and dunks, and Saint Louis blew out Georgia.

Amari McCottry added 13 points and nine rebounds, while Robbie Avila had 12 points, five rebounds and five assists for the ninth-seeded Billikens.

Saint Louis (29-5) set a school record for victories in a season and advanced to meet Michigan, the Midwest Region’s top seed, on Saturday.

Jeremiah Wilkinson scored 30 points for No. 8 seed Georgia. This was the most lopsided loss of the season for the Bulldogs (22-10), who had the most regular-season wins in program history.

GONZAGA 73, KENNESAW STATE 64

Graham Ike scored 19 points and third-seeded Gonzaga held off tenacious No. 14 seed Kennesaw State 73-64 in a defensive battle that ended with some drama in Portland, Ore.

Davis Fogle added 17 points for the Bulldogs, who will face No. 11 seed Texas Saturday in the West Region.

RJ Johnson and Amir Taylor each had 15 points for Kennesaw State (21-14), which made its second March Madness appearance after winning the Conference USA Tournament.

Fogle’s dunk gave Gonzaga its first double-digit lead at 57-46 with 7:54 to go, but the Owls capitalized on a series of late fouls by the Bulldogs that enraged both the large Gonzaga crowd and coach Mark Few.