JT Toppin had 31 points, eight of them in overtime, and pulled down 13 rebounds to lead No. 16 Texas Tech to a 78-75 win over No. 1 Arizona on Saturday at Tucson, Ariz.
Toppin recorded his 16th double-double of the season for the Red Raiders (19-6, 9-3 Big 12), who have won three straight. Arizona (23-2, 10-2) has lost consecutive games after starting the season unbeaten through its first 23 games.
Christian Anderson, who played all 45 minutes, finished with 19 points, eight assists and six rebounds for Texas Tech.
Arizona had five players in double figures, led by 16 points from Tobe Awaka and Brayden Burries. Ivan Kharchenkov finished with 13 points, Jaden Bradley had 11 and Motiejus Krivas scored 10 points and pulled down 11 rebounds. .
No. 2 Michigan 86, UCLA 56
Yaxel Lendeborg had 17 points and eight rebounds as the Wolverines ran away in the second half to earn a Big Ten win over the Bruins in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Michigan (24-1, 14-1), which led 40-38 at halftime, maintained a two-and-a-half-game lead in the conference standings and is expected to be the top-ranked team in the country for the first time since 2013 when the Associated Press poll is released Monday, following No. 1 Arizona’s 0-2 week. Morez Johnson Jr. posted 15 points to lead the way for Michigan, which never trailed while winning its 10th in a row.
Trent Perry scored 14 points while Donovan Dent and Tyler Bilodeau each added 10 points for UCLA (17-8, 9-5), which had won five of its last six. Senior guard Skyy Clark, who had been out since Jan. 3 with a hamstring injury, contributed eight points in 16 minutes off the bench.
No. 3 Houston 78, Kansas State 64
Emanuel Sharp scored 23 points and the Cougars defense did the rest to help host Houston produce a win over the reeling Wildcats in a Big 12 clash.
The Cougars (23-2, 11-1 Big 12) relied on their defense to limit Kansas State to just five field goals in the first half and scored the final 13 points on the way to a 33-19 lead at halftime. Milos Uzan and Kingston Flemings added 12 points each for Houston, whose next three games are against teams ranked in the top 10 beginning with No. 5 Iowa State on the road on Monday. The Cougars shot 53.8% in the second half.
P.J. Haggerty led the Wildcats with 23 points while Johnson had 12 and Taj Manning scored 10. Kansas State (10-15, 1-11 Big 12) dropped its sixth game in a row.
No. 4 Duke 67, No. 20 Clemson 54
Cameron Boozer posted a game-high 18 points and eight rebounds as the Blue Devils maintained first place in the Atlantic Coast Conference by defeating the Tigers in Durham, N.C., for the 22nd straight time.
Isaiah Evans scored 17 points and Cayden Boozer added 12 for Duke (23-2, 12-1 ACC), which hit 10 3-pointers for the first time since Jan. 10 against SMU. The Blue Devils held a 31-26 edge at halftime and led by as many as 22 in the second half.
Carter Welling paced Clemson (20-6, 10-3) with 12 points and RJ Godfrey added 10. The Tigers hit just 35.1% from the field, which included a 6-for-24 showing from 3-point range. Godfrey added eight rebounds and two blocks.
No. 5 Iowa State 74, No. 9 Kansas 56
Milan Momcilovic scored a game-high 18 points and the Cyclones limited the Jayhawks to 37.2% percent shooting during a Big 12 clash in Ames, Iowa, that snapped Kansas’ eight-game winning streak.
Joshua Jefferson, Tamin Lipsey, Jamarion Batemon and Blake Buchanan added 11 points apiece for Iowa State (22-3, 9-3 Big 12), which moved into a third-place tie with Kansas (19-6, 9-3). Jefferson and Lipsey each added four assists while Buchanan grabbed six rebounds.
Melvin Council Jr. paced Kansas with 15 points, four assists and two steals. Flory Bidunga had 11 points and 13 rebounds, but prized freshman Darryn Peterson was limited to a season-low 10 points on 3-of-10 shooting in 24 minutes.
No. 6 UConn 79, Georgetown 75
Solo Ball scored 20 points as the Huskies stayed atop the Big East standings by holding on for a victory over the Hoyas in Storrs, Conn.
UConn (24-2, 14-1 Big East) won its second straight game following an 81-72 loss to then-No. 22 St. John’s on Feb. 6. Ball scored 16 in the first half after tallying 24 Wednesday at Butler. Alex Karaban added 13 of his 18 points in the second half, becoming the all-time winningest player in school history with his 116th career win.
KJ Lewis led all scorers with 24 points, including a 4-point play with 24 seconds left to get the Hoyas (13-12, 5-9) within 77-74. Vince Iwuchukwu added 16 and Kayvaun Mulready contributed 15, but Georgetown lost its 12th straight game in the series.
No. 7 Nebraska 68, Northwestern 49
Pryce Sandfort swished six 3-pointers on the way to scoring 29 points as the Cornhuskers defeated the Wildcats in Lincoln, Neb.
Nebraska (22-3, 11-3 Big Ten) surpassed last season’s win total despite matching a season-high with 18 turnovers, two fewer than slumping Northwestern (10-16, 2-13). Sam Hoiberg recorded 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists while Cale Jacobsen added 10 points. Rienk Mast grabbed nine boards to help Nebraska to a 40-24 edge on the glass.
The Wildcats tied their season-long losing streak with a fifth straight defeat. Nick Martinelli scored 11 points to pace the Wildcats, who held a 39-38 lead with 12:32 to go before the Huskers went on an 11-2 run to take control.
No. 11 North Carolina 79, Pitt 65
Jarin Stevenson and Seth Trimble scored 19 points apiece to help the short-handed Tar Heels hand the Panthers their fifth straight loss in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Zayden High had 15 points and seven rebounds for North Carolina (20-5, 8-4 ACC), which played without its two leading scorers in Caleb Wilson (19.8 points per game) and Henri Veesaar (16.4 ppg), who both missed the game with injuries. Luka Bogavac added 15 points for the Tar Heels, who won their sixth game in seven tries.
Cameron Corhen led Pittsburgh (9-17, 2-11) with 23 points, six rebounds and six assists. Roman Siulepa scored 14 points and Barry Dunning Jr. contributed 10.
No. 12 Gonzaga 94, Santa Clara 86
Graham Ike recorded 21 points and a season-high 15 rebounds and the Bulldogs moved into first place in the West Coast Conference with a victory over the host Broncos on Saturday night.
Adam Miller scored 21 points and Tyon Grant-Foster had 20 points and seven rebounds off the bench as the Bulldogs (25-2, 13-1 WCC) won their third straight game and 18th in the past 19. Gonzaga also reached the 25-win mark for the 19th straight season. Emmanuel Innocenti added 16 points and six rebounds.
Christian Hammond had 16 points and Elijah Mahi scored 15 for the Broncos (22-6, 13-2), who dropped to 13-1 at home this season. Allen Graves had 13 points before fouling out for Santa Clara, which lost to the Zags for the second time this season.
No. 13 Purdue 78, Iowa 57
Four players scored in double figures and the Boilermakers clamped down on the Hawkeyes in a win in Iowa City.
C.J. Cox led the balanced Boilermakers (21-4, 11-3 Big Ten) with 14 points, connecting on four of their 12 made 3-pointers. Reserve Gicarri Harris also scored 14, while Fletcher Loyer and Trey Kaufman-Renn each added 12 points in Purdue’s fourth straight win. Braden Smith dished out 12 assists to give him 980 for his career. Smith is 97 assists away from passing Bobby Hurley for the all-time NCAA record.
Bennett Stirtz scored a game-high 19 points for the Hawkeyes (18-7, 8-6), who fell to 0-5 against ranked opponents this season. Stirtz made 7 of 12 field goals but the rest of his teammates hit just 13 of 41.
No. 14 Florida 92, No. 25 Kentucky 83
Urban Klavzar netted 19 points off the bench and sparked a second-half run as the Gators led wire-to-wire to knock off the Wildcats in Gainesville, Fla.
Klavzar, who was 5 of 11 from distance, scored eight points in a span of 4:06 to turn an eight-point game into a 14-point lead and help the Gators win their fifth straight game and 10th in their last 11. The Gators (19-6, 10-2 SEC) led by 15 in the first half.
Kentucky’s Denzel Aberdeen notched 19 points and four assists, while Collin Chandler had 18 points, three rebounds and three steals. Otega Oweh had 13 points and five boards and Malachi Moreno totaled 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Wildcats (17-8, 8-4).
No. 15 Virginia 70, Ohio State 66
Malik Thomas had 13 points and six rebounds as the Cavaliers extended their winning streak to six games with a nonconference victory over the Buckeyes at the inaugural Nashville (Tenn.) Hoops Showdown.
Virginia (22-3) got 12 points apiece from Chance Mallory and Sam Lewis. Ugonna Onyenso added eight points, 10 rebounds and four blocks. The Cavaliers held a 40-26 rebounding edge.
Bruce Thornton carried Ohio State (16-9) with 28 points. Amare Bynum had 15 points and six rebounds, while Christoph Tilly added 11 points. Virginia shot 23 more free throws (32-9) and outscored the Buckeyes 22-6 from the line.
No. 17 St. John’s 79, Providence 69
In a Big East clash marred by a second-half brawl that led to six ejections, Dylan Darling scored 18 of his season-high 23 points in the second half to lead the Red Storm (20-5, 13-1) over the host Friars (11-15, 4-11).
With Providence clinging to a 40-39 edge with 14:25 to play, the Friars’ Duncan Powell clotheslined former Providence standout Bryce Hopkins as he went up for a breakaway layup. As Hopkins got up off the floor and stood up to Powell, players and coaches flew off both benches to try to restore order.
After a video review, Providence’s Powell and Jaylin Sellers were ejected along with Dillon Mitchell, Kelvin Odih, Ruben Prey and Lefteris Liotopoulos for St. John’s – the latter three for leaving the Red Storm’s bench.
Zuby Ejiofor scored 14 points for St. John’s while Oziyah Sellers added 11 points and Hopkins had nine points and nine rebounds. Stefan Vaaks notched 20 points, Ryan Mela scored 14 and Jaylin Sellers added 13 for Providence, which has lost six of its last eight.
No. 19 Vanderbilt 82, Texas A&M 69
Tyler Nickel, AK Okereke and Devin McGlockton combined for 65 points to lead the Commodores over the Aggies in Nashville, Tenn.
Nickel scored 25 points, while Okereke added 23. McGlockton posted 17 points and eight rebounds. Nickel’s long-range shooting (five 3-pointers) and a season-high scoring total from Okereke allowed Vanderbilt (21-4, 8-4 Southeastern Conference) to win for the fifth time in six games.
Texas A&M (17-8, 7-5), which lost its fourth straight game, got 20 points from Marcus Hill. No other Aggie scored in double figures. Zach Clemence finished with nine points, Ali Dibba added nine points and eight rebounds, and Rashaun Agee collected eight points and 11 rebounds.
No. 21 Arkansas 88, Auburn 75
Freshman Darius Acuff Jr. tied a career high with 31 points and made a career-best seven 3-pointers as the Razorbacks ran away from the short-handed Tigers in Fayetteville, Ark.
Billy Richmond III scored a career-high 25 points for Arkansas. He was 12-of-15 from the field with four assists, three steals and two blocked shots for the Razorbacks (19-6, 9-3 Southeastern Conference), who moved into second place behind No. 14 Florida (19-6, 10-2).
Tahaad Pettiford had 29 points and seven assists and KeShawn Murphy scored a career-high 22 points and added 12 rebounds for the Tigers (14-11, 5-7), who have lost four in a row after a four-game winning streak. Auburn played without leading scorer Keyshawn Hall (20.7 points per game), who has been benched indefinitely for disciplinary reasons, according to coach Steven Pearl.
No. 22 BYU 90, Colorado 86 (OT)
Robert Wright III set a new career high with 39 points to lead the Cougars to an overtime win against the Buffaloes in Provo, Utah.
Wright made 12 of 16 field goal attempts and all four 3-point attempts to lead short-handed BYU (19-6, 7-5 Big 12). AJ Dybantsa had a double-double with 20 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists. Second-leading scorer Richie Saunders went down 45 seconds into the game, left the court with an apparent leg injury and did not return. BYU coach Kevin Young had no postgame update on Saunders.
Isaiah Johnson led Colorado (14-12, 4-9) with 27 points. Barrington Hargress contributed 20 points and Bangot Dak added 15 points and seven rebounds for the Buffaloes, who have lost two straight games.
No. 24 Louisville 82, Baylor 71
Mikel Brown Jr. scored 29 points to lead the Cardinals past the Bears in a nonconference showdown in Fort Worth, Texas.
The freshman guard followed up his 45-point performance in Monday’s win over NC State by notching his seventh 20-point game of the season. He made 8 of 14 shots, including 4 of 5 from beyond the 3-point arc. He also dished out six assists and posted a season-high five steals as he helped the Cardinals (19-6) dig out of a first-half hole.
Baylor (13-12) used a 16-2 run in a less than five-minute span to take a 32-25 lead with 3:37 left in the first half after a Michael Rataj jumper. However, that was the Bears’ last bucket in the first half as they missed their last six shots. That enabled a Brown trey with 16 seconds left before halftime to tie the game at 34-all.
–Field Level Media
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