MAREEBA product Aron Baynes is heading into uncharted territory after his team made the final 16 of the national college basketball championship.

Baynes’ Washington State University Cougars are headed to the NCAA tournament’s sweet 16 for the first time since 1941 after they smashed Notre Dame 61-41 in their knockout second-round clash yesterday.

It has been a big week for 208cm centre Baynes, who was named in Australia’s preliminary Olympic squad last week and led the Cougars to a 71-40 win against Winthrop in the opening round of the national tournament on Friday.

The 21-year-old former Cairns Marlin has had a reasonably strong season with the Cougars in his junior year, averaging 10.3 points and 5.9 rebounds a game.

Baynes started the year well but dropped off slightly during play in the strong Pacific-10 conference, playing below his standard in the conference finals in Los Angeles.

But he hit back in the first round of the national tournament – known as the "big dance" in the US – contributing 19 points and eight rebounds in the win against Winthrop.

Baynes was perfect from the field on Friday, an effort he could not repeat yesterday as he finished with six points on two-of-seven shooting.

But he was outstanding on the glass, grabbing 11 rebounds to help the Cougars past the second round after their loss at the same stage last year.

Washington State will meet the winner of the second-round clash between Arkansas and the University of North Carolina, due to take place early today, at Charlotte on Friday.

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