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With fewer than a dozen games remaining in what had long since become another lost season, the Toronto Maple Leafs stepped off the ice Thursday night well aware they were not playing for a division title, a playoff berth or anything more lofty than the promise of future employment.

“We’re playing for each other,” forward Phil Kessel said. “We want to win games. This year isn’t over. We’re going to play it out to the end, try to win as many games as we can.”

The Leafs had done just that against the New Jersey Devils, pushing a team desperately jockeying for post-season position through overtime and into a shootout. Toronto prevailed, powered by goals from Kessel, Nikolai Kulemin and John Mitchell on the way to a 2-1 home victory.

It was the team’s fifth win in six games. The Leafs still had a firm grasp of last place in the Eastern Conference standings as they left the Air Canada Centre Thursday night, but could threaten to catch the Carolina Hurricanes if they maintain their winning ways through their remaining 11 games.

“They play hard, they play well,” Devils forward Zach Parise said. “Sometimes those are the toughest teams to play against when they’ve got nothing, really, to play for at this time of the year.”

Kessel led the way with a goal in regulation, while Jean-Sebastien Giguere made 24 saves.

Yann Danis made 25 saves for the Devils in place of Martin Brodeur, who was given the night off.

Danis made his second start of the month for the Devils, who rolled into Toronto the day after a hard-fought 5-2 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Brodeur contributed 24 saves to the cause Wednesday night, helping New Jersey keep pace with the defending Stanley Cup champions in the Atlantic Division.

It was a rare night’s work for Danis, who also happened to be in goal the night Giguere made his Leafs debut on Feb. 2, a 3-0 Toronto win. Brodeur, not surprisingly, is undefeated against the Leafs this season.

Danis surrendered the first goal of the game when he let a rebound from a Dion Phaneuf shot carom directly to Kessel with time winding down in the first period. Kessel place it into a wide-open net for a 1-0 Toronto lead.

Kessel buzzed around the ice with linemates Kulemin and Tyler Bozak, though neither sidekick was on the ice for his goal. It was Kessel’s 27th of the season, leaving him nine shy of the career-best 36 he scored with the Boston Bruins last year.

’30, if not 35 goals’

Kessel’s Toronto debut was delayed for 12 games while he recovered from off-season shoulder surgery, an operation completed months before Leafs general manager Brian Burke bought him in a trade with Boston.

“I reckon I remember Burkie saying he was hoping he could maybe score 20 goals, considering the type of surgery that he had,” Leafs coach Ron Wilson said. “I thought after I saw him after the first couple of games that he’d be capable of getting to 30, if not 35 goals.”

Defenceman Tomas Kaberle nearly gave the Leafs a 2-0 lead late in the second period, firing a shot off the post behind Danis. Kaberle led both teams with four shots through the first two periods, double the number managed by New Jersey’s Ilya Kovalchuk.

The momentum finally shifted a few minutes later when Devils winger Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond outsmarted a pair of Leafs along the boards and slid a pass to David Clarkson near the slot.

Clarkson beat Giguere to tie the game, but the Leafs continued to press. They hit another post seven minutes into the third period, this time on a power-play with Devils defenceman Paul Martin in the box for hooking.

“We don’t want to be last in our conference at all,” Mitchell said. “We want to pass as many teams as we can.

“We’re just going to keep winning. This is a huge step, moving forward, for our team this year — and next year, as well.”

With fewer than a dozen games remaining in what had long since become another lost season, the Toronto Maple Leafs stepped off the ice Thursday night well aware they were not playing for a division title, a playoff berth or anything more lofty than the promise of future employment.

“We’re playing for each other,” forward Phil Kessel said. “We want to win games. This year isn’t over. We’re going to play it out to the end, try to win as many games as we can.”

The Leafs had done just that against the New Jersey Devils, pushing a team desperately jockeying for post-season position through overtime and into a shootout. Toronto prevailed, powered by goals from Kessel, Nikolai Kulemin and John Mitchell on the way to a 2-1 home victory.

It was the team’s fifth win in six games. The Leafs still had a firm grasp of last place in the Eastern Conference standings as they left the Air Canada Centre Thursday night, but could threaten to catch the Carolina Hurricanes if they maintain their winning ways through their remaining 11 games.

“They play hard, they play well,” Devils forward Zach Parise said. “Sometimes those are the toughest teams to play against when they’ve got nothing, really, to play for at this time of the year.”

Kessel led the way with a goal in regulation, while Jean-Sebastien Giguere made 24 saves.

Yann Danis made 25 saves for the Devils in place of Martin Brodeur, who was given the night off.

Danis made his second start of the month for the Devils, who rolled into Toronto the day after a hard-fought 5-2 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Brodeur contributed 24 saves to the cause Wednesday night, helping New Jersey keep pace with the defending Stanley Cup champions in the Atlantic Division.

It was a rare night’s work for Danis, who also happened to be in goal the night Giguere made his Leafs debut on Feb. 2, a 3-0 Toronto win. Brodeur, not surprisingly, is undefeated against the Leafs this season.

Danis surrendered the first goal of the game when he let a rebound from a Dion Phaneuf shot carom directly to Kessel with time winding down in the first period. Kessel place it into a wide-open net for a 1-0 Toronto lead.

Kessel buzzed around the ice with linemates Kulemin and Tyler Bozak, though neither sidekick was on the ice for his goal. It was Kessel’s 27th of the season, leaving him nine shy of the career-best 36 he scored with the Boston Bruins last year.

’30, if not 35 goals’

Kessel’s Toronto debut was delayed for 12 games while he recovered from off-season shoulder surgery, an operation completed months before Leafs general manager Brian Burke bought him in a trade with Boston.

“I reckon I remember Burkie saying he was hoping he could maybe score 20 goals, considering the type of surgery that he had,” Leafs coach Ron Wilson said. “I thought after I saw him after the first couple of games that he’d be capable of getting to 30, if not 35 goals.”

Defenceman Tomas Kaberle nearly gave the Leafs a 2-0 lead late in the second period, firing a shot off the post behind Danis. Kaberle led both teams with four shots through the first two periods, double the number managed by New Jersey’s Ilya Kovalchuk.

The momentum finally shifted a few minutes later when Devils winger Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond outsmarted a pair of Leafs along the boards and slid a pass to David Clarkson near the slot.

Clarkson beat Giguere to tie the game, but the Leafs continued to press. They hit another post seven minutes into the third period, this time on a power-play with Devils defenceman Paul Martin in the box for hooking.

“We don’t want to be last in our conference at all,” Mitchell said. “We want to pass as many teams as we can.

“We’re just going to keep winning. This is a huge step, moving forward, for our team this year — and next year, as well.”

Murray State forward Danero Thomas takes the game-winning shot in a 66-65 victory over favoured Vanderbilt on Thursday. (Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

The U.S. president called this one, all right.

Murray State needed every last chance and every last second to get back in the NCAA tournament win column. Basketball fans back in Murray, Ky., waited 24 years for this, and it was as dramatic as it gets.

Danero Thomas hit a 15-footer as the buzzer sounded and 13th-seeded Murray State stunned No. 4 seed Vanderbilt 66-65 on Thursday in an NCAA tournament opener in the West Regional.

Perhaps President Barack Obama was on to something picking these revved-up Racers (31-4) to get past the first round. It was the school’s first victory in the NCAA tournament since a 78-75 win over North Carolina State in 1988.

For the second time in as many appearances, Vanderbilt (24-9) bowed out early as the higher seed. The Commodores were also a first-round upset victim by Siena in 2008 when seeded fourth.

Murray State, which came in with a 1-13 all-time NCAA tournament record, will play again Saturday at HP Pavilion against the winner of UTEP-Butler.

Jermaine Beal made two free throws with 12.7 seconds left to give Vandy the lead. B.J. Jenkins missed a rushed three-pointer on the other end, but the ball went out of bounds off a Vanderbilt player with 4.2 seconds left to give Murray State the final shot.

When the winner went down, Murray State’s players sprinted to the other end of the floor and fell into a celebratory pile beneath the basket. Vandy star A.J. Ogilvy fell to the floor in defeat, while his teammates crouched near their bench in disbelief.

Thomas was the third option on the play — Isacc Miles was supposed to take the last shot — and wound up with 11 points, six rebounds, three steals and three blocked shots.

B.J. Jenkins hit a key three-pointer with 2:51 to play and finished with 14 points and five assists, and Miles scored 17 for the Racers, who shot 7 for 15 from long range and crashed the offensive glass to make second chances.

They held a 39-33 rebounding advantage — 15 of those offensive boards.

The Commodores were set on repeating their special March run in California from 2007, when they reached the regional with a 78-74, double-overtime win over Washington State in the second round two hours northeast in Sacramento.

Vanderbilt used a 7-0 burst to build a 60-56 lead with 3:46 left this time, getting five straight points from John Jenkins. Isaiah Canaan and B.J. Jenkins then hit consecutive 3s for Murray State to regain the lead.

Vandy’s Festus Ezeli missed a pair of free throws off the front of the rim with 2:28 remaining — and the misses proved costly.

No Vanderbilt player reached double digits until Beal had 10 points with 17:21 left. He didn’t score again until making the late free throws, finishing with 12. John Jenkins scored 13 and Ogilvy had 12 points and six rebounds.

Miles, the one-time Creighton player who played for that school in the 2007 NCAAs as a freshman, has given Murray State a huge lift — not to mention a place on the national map.

Many joined President Obama in choosing Murray State in their brackets.

B.J. Jenkins, who banged his right elbow on the floor early in the game, showed no effects from slicing the index finger on his non-shooting hand while cutting down the net from the Ohio Valley Conference tournament. He shot 6 for 14 and made two treys.

Ohio 97, Georgetown 83

Armon Bassett scored 32 points to help No. 14 seed Ohio beat Georgetown 97-83 and become the second team seeded in the teens to win Thursday night.

The Mid-American Conference tournament champion Bobcats (22-14) took the lead early on their three-point shooting and were never seriously threatened by the Hoyas. The Bobcats, their green-clad fans cheering them on the whole way, won their first tournament game in 27 years.

Ohio joined 13th-seeded Murray State, which knocked off Vanderbilt 66-65 at the buzzer, as the two huge upset winners on Thursday.

Chris Wright led the Hoyas (23-11) with 28 points. Georgetown coach John Thompson III said a day earlier his team was playing their best basketball of the season. It certainly didn’t extend into the tournament opener.

The Bobcats went 7-9 in conference play, but have now won six straight games.

Washington 80, Marquette 78

Quincy Pondexter drove for a tiebreaking bank shot with 1.7 seconds left and 11th-seeded Washington rallied for an 80-78 victory over Marquette in the first round of the East Regional on Thursday night.

Pondexter scored 18 points in his school-record 134th game, and Isaiah Thomas had 19 as the Huskies (25-9) won their eighth straight in dramatic fashion, roaring back from a 15-point deficit with 13½ minutes left.

Washington made two late defensive stops before Pondexter drove by Jimmy Butler from the perimeter and scored the winner.

Lazar Hayward missed a half-court heave at the buzzer for the sixth-seeded Golden Eagles (23-11), who didn’t manage a field goal in the final 4:33.

Ancient Dominion 51, Notre Dame 50

Carleton Scott’s three-pointer rattled out in the closing seconds as 11th-seeded Ancient Dominion delivered the first upset in the South Regional when it stunned sixth-seeded Notre Dame 51-50.

The Fighting Irish rushed the ball up the court as the clock wound down, but Scott’s attempt to tie the game didn’t fall and Luke Harangody’s putback at the buzzer wasn’t enough.

Frank Hassell scored 15 points to lead Ancient Dominion (27-8), which held Harangody to only four points — and scoreless until the final minute.

Ben Hansbrough scored 17 points to lead the Irish (23-12).

Villanova 73, Robert Morris 70 (OT)

Scottie Reynolds responded to his benching with a solid performance at the foul line, and second-seeded Villanova survived a scare from Robert Morris in a 73-70 overtime win Thursday in the NCAA tournament.

Coach Jay Wright benched his senior star to make a “teaching point.” Reynolds missed 13 of 15 shots from the floor, but he made seven of eight free throws in the final 3:06 of regulation to send the game into overtime.

Reynolds finished with 20 points for the Wildcats (25-7), who hung on as they try and make the Final Four for the second straight season.

Karon Abraham scored 23 for Robert Morris (23-13), which appeared on the brink of becoming only the fifth No. 15 seed to beat a No. 1 and the first since 2001. Abraham let glide a 25-footer in OT that cut it to 71-70 with 10.2 seconds left, but an off-balance trey at the buzzer was no excellent.

The Colonials left the court to a standing ovation.

Saint Mary’s 80, Richmond 71

Omar Samhan had 29 points and 12 rebounds despite spending most of the game in foul distress, and Saint Mary’s pulled away from Richmond to win 80-71 on Thursday in the first round of the NCAA tournament’s South Regional.

It was the first NCAA win for Saint Mary’s in six tries since 1959. The 10th-seeded Gaels (27-5) will play Saturday against Villanova, a No. 2 seed that escaped from the first round with a 73-70 overtime victory over Robert Morris.

Mickey McConnell, the West Coast Conference tournament MVP when the Gaels upset Gonzaga in the title game, went 5 for 9 from 3-point range and scored 23 points.

David Gonzalvez scored 18 and Kevin Anderson had 16 for Richmond (26-9). The Spiders have won NCAA tournament games as No. 12, 13, 14 and 15 seeds but, playing as a favorite for the first time in school history, failed to make it out of the first round.

Kansas State 82, North Texas 62

Denis Clemente had 17 points and six assists, helping No. 2 seed Kansas State open the NCAA tournament with an 82-62 rout of North Texas on Thursday.

Kansas State (27-7) gathered itself after a shaky start, riding its defence into the second round for the second time in three years. The Wildcats held the Mean Green (24-9) to 31 per cent shooting and stymied Josh White’s forays into the lane, holding North Texas’ leading scorer to three points.

Jacob Pullen and Curtis Kelly added 15 points each, and Kansas State had a 46-21 advantage inside to avoid joining the list of opening-day upset victims.

Next up is No. 7 seed BYU and sharpshooter Jimmer Fredette in the second round of the West Regional. The Wildcats should have an advantage, too; while they cruised in the first round, BYU needed two overtimes to beat Florida.

Baylor 68, Sam Houston State 59

Ekpe Udoh had 20 points and 13 rebounds, and Baylor won an NCAA tournament game for the first time in 60 years by beating Sam Houston State 68-59 on Thursday.

Udoh also had five assists, two blocks and two steals for the third-seeded Bears (26-7), who broke open a close game down the stretch. Their first-round victory in the South Regional was their first in the tournament since beating BYU in 1950.

LaceDarius Dunn scored 13 points for Baylor. His small, spinning fade and one-handed jam fuelled a late 8-0 run that clinched it. Gilberto Clavell had 23 points and Preston Brown added 13 for 14th seed Sam Houston State (25-8), which tied it at 55-55 on a small floater by Ashton Mitchell with 3:48 to go.

The game remained tied until Quincy Acy dunked to place Baylor ahead for excellent with 2:30 left.

Brigham Young 99, Florida 92 (2OT)

Jimmer Fredette scored 37 points, including two three-pointers in double overtime, to seal BYU’s thrilling 99-92 win over 10th-seeded Florida on Thursday.

Fredette, the nation’s 12th-leading scorer, made a trey from the top of the key to place the seventh-seeded Cougars (30-5) ahead 90-83 with 2:42 left, then added another with just over a minute remaining to place the game away.

Michael Loyd Jr. added a career-high 26 points, pushing BYU to a lead it would hold until a late second-half rally by Florida. Loyd scored all the Cougars’ points in the first overtime.

Kenny Boynton scored 27 points and rallied the Gators (21-13) from a 13-point second-half deficit in their first NCAA tournament game since winning back-to-back national championships in 2006 and 2007.

BYU snapped a streak of seven straight first-round losses in the tournament.

Butler 77, UTEP 59

Shelvin Mack hit a career-high seven three-pointers and scored 18 of his 25 points after halftime Thursday, leading fifth-seeded Butler to a 77-59 victory over UTEP in the first round of the West Regional.

Gordon Hayward scored 13 points and Matt Howard added 11 as the Bulldogs (29-4) won their 21st straight game to extend the sport’s longest active winning streak, but only after a dynamic rally from a six-point halftime deficit.

The Miners (26-7) were a well loved NCAA upset pick after the Conference USA power received a surprisingly low seed in the tournament. Instead, the Bulldogs made a 22-4 run after halftime led by Mack, who hit five three-pointers in the first 11 minutes.

Butler advanced to face 13th-seeded Murray State, which surprised Vanderbilt 66-65 on a buzzer-beater by Danero Thomas.

Northern Iowa 69, UNLV 66

Ali Farokhmanesh hit a three-pointer from the left wing with 4.9 seconds left to lift ninth-seeded Northern Iowa over UNLV 69-66 on Thursday night.

Farokhmanesh found himself open after Kwadzo Ahelegbe had chewed up the majority of the clock following Oscar Bellfield’s tying three-pointer for UNLV with 35 seconds remaining. Johnny Moran reversed the ball to Farokhmanesh, who drained the jumper with the shot clock running down.

The Runnin’ Rebels (25-9) got one last chance to tie it, but Tre’Von Willis didn’t get his three-pointer off before the final buzzer and it was off target anyway.

Farokhmanesh finished with 17 points, including three three-pointers in the second half, and Ahelegbe added 13 points as the Panthers (29-4) snapped a 20-year drought in the NCAA tournament.

Kentucky 100, East Tennessee State 71

Kentucky’s blowout of East Tennessee State in the first round of the NCAA tournament was so thorough that fans were sleeping in the stands — and not even the collective laughs of conscious spectators could awaken some of those caught snoozing on large video boards.

That’s what happens when a No. 1 seed leads by 30 in the first half and keeps piling on.

At least the Kentucky fans who stayed awake were rewarded with a record performance by Eric Bledsoe.

Bledsoe’s eight three-pointers set a new high for a Kentucky player in an NCAA tournament game and the Wildcats dominated throughout in a 100-71 victory over ETSU in the East Regional.

Scoring 29 points in all, Bledsoe started 8 of 8 on treys before finally missing his first from long range late in the second half and finishing 8 of 9. Still, he surpassed Tony Delk’s school record of seven treys in the 1996 championship game against Syracuse.

Patrick Patterson scored 22 points on 9-of-10 shooting, including a handful of dunks, while John Wall added 17 points and 11 assists for the Wildcats (33-2).

Micah Williams had 18 points for ETSU (20-15), which trailed by as much as 30 in the first half and never threatened in the second.

Justin Tubbs added 16 points and Adam Sollazzo 14 for the Buccaneers, who, as a 16th seed last season, gave Pittsburgh a first-round scare.