Raleigh, NC -- (Sports Network) - Stephen Curry poured in 40 points, knocking down 8-of-10 from three-point range, as the Davidson Wildcats rallied past the Gonzaga Bulldogs, 82-76, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament's Midwest Regional.

Jason Richards added 15 points and nine assists for the Wildcats (27-6), who ran through the Southern Conference season without a loss and have won an NCAA-best 23 straight games. Andrew Lovedale had 12 points and 13 rebounds for Davidson, which won an NCAA Tournament game for the first time since advancing to the East Final in 1969.

The 10th-seeded Wildcats will next face second-seeded Georgetown in Sunday's second round.

"I don't want to get caught up in this is a big atmosphere and people are watching kind of mind-set," Curry said. "My teammates were open, Jason found me in open spots and I just had a lot of confidence to shoot it. The big-time or the NCAA Tournament doesn't change my mindset at all."

Steven Gray scored 21 points and Jeremy Pargo 18 for the Bulldogs (25-8), who end their season on a two-game losing streak. Josh Heytvelt added 12 points and eight rebounds for Gonzaga, which lost in the championship game of the West Coast Conference Tournament and exited the NCAA tourney in the first round for the second straight season.

Gonzaga was hampered by 19 turnovers.

"That's one of the things we have been stressing in practice and didn't execute on, and we have been talking about it all year," Pargo said. "Myself included we made some big mistakes and cost us the game. Any time you have 19 turnovers in the game, it usually turns out bad for you."

Curry scored 30 second-half points, including the tie-breaking three-pointer with 1:04 remaining to help seal the win for the Wildcats, snapping their seven-game NCAA Tournament losing streak.

Heytvelt's jumper with 15:11 left pushed the Bulldogs lead to 56-45. Davidson then went on a 10-2 run to pull within 58-55 with 12:08 left to play. Curry scored nine points in the surge.

A Curry triple with 9:49 to go tied the game at 62. Just over five minutes later, the Wildcats went ahead on Max Paulhus Gosselin's three with 4:11 remaining.

After a Lovedale free throw, Pargo's fastbreak layup knotted the score at 74 apiece with 1:45 showing on the clock.

Lovedale then grabbed the most important offensive rebound of the game off a Davidson miss and found Curry who drilled another three giving the Wildcats a 77-74 edge with 1:04 to go.

Austin Daye then misfired from downtown before Lovedale made two foul shots pushing Davidson's advantage to 79-74 with 37 ticks to go. Curry added three free throws down the stretch.

Robert Sacre's layup with 18:21 left in the opening half gave Gonzaga an early 7-2 advantage. Davidson, though, fought back, and Curry's three with 5:34 to play in the first half tied the game at 15.

The Bulldogs then went on a 13-2 run. Back-to-back triples by Gray put Gonzaga on top 28-17 with 8:17 left until halftime. Davidson, however, again had an answer as a Curry three sparked a 7-0 flurry that pulled the Wildcats within 28-24 with 6:31 left in the half.

Larry Gurganious' dunk with 10 seconds left in the half gave Gonzaga a 41-36 lead at the intermission.

Game Notes

Gray, a freshman, shot 7-of-12 from three-point range...Curry shot 14-of-22 overall and was one-point shy of his career high...Gonzaga outrebounded Davidson 34-29...The Bulldogs bench outscored the Wildcats reserves, 22-6.