Koa Peat scored 18 points, Jaden Bradley added 16 and No. 2 Arizona blew out No. 20 Auburn 97-68 on Saturday night. Arizona used two big runs to build a 20-point lead late in the first half and reeled off another opening the second to run away from the Tigers (7-3). The Wildcats shot 61% from the floor and had a 60-24 advantage in the paint to make a case for the No. 1 spot in the AP Top 25 following top-ranked Purdue's loss to No. 10 Iowa State.
No. 23 St. John’s bounces back with 63-58 win over Ole Miss
Zuby Ejiofor had a career-high eight blocks along with 15 points and nine rebounds, anchoring a strong defensive performance that carried No. 23 St. John’s past Mississippi 63-58 on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden.
Zuby Ejiofor has 8 blocks to help No. 23 St. John’s hold off Mississippi, 63-58
Zuby Ejiofor had a career-high eight blocks along with 15 points and nine rebounds, anchoring a strong defensive performance that carried No. 23 St. John's past Mississippi 63-58 on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden. Ejiofor scored all but two of his points in the second half, and the Red Storm (5-3) held on after leading by 14 with eight minutes remaining. St. John's limited Ole Miss to 36.4% shooting from the field, including 2 for 16 from 3-point distance (12.5%), and forced 20 turnovers.
Emanuel Sharp scores 27 points, No. 8 Houston beats Florida State 82-67
Emanuel Sharp scored 27 points, Kingston Flemings added 21 and No. 8 Houston beat Florida State 82-67 on Saturday night. Flemings and Sharp each scored 13 points in the first half and were a combined 10 of 15 from the floor as the Cougars (8-1) held a 41-33 halftime lead. Sharp finished 10 of 17 from the field, including 6 of 12 on 3-pointers.
No. 14 Illinois beats No. 13 Tennessee 75-62 in Music City Madness
Tomislav Ivisic and Keaton Wagler each scored 16 points and No. 14 Illinois beat No. 13 Tennessee 75-62 Saturday night in the second part of the Music City Madness. The Fighting Illini (7-2) came in rested after an eight-day break with this their last of four Top 15 opponents over a seven-game stretch. Illinois snapped a five-game skid on neutral courts against ranked opponents and also gave coach Brad Underwood his first win in three tries against Tennessee.
Bennett Stirtz scores 25 points and Iowa beats Maryland 83-64, gives Ben McCollum first Big Ten win
Bennett Stirtz scored 25 points and Iowa beat Maryland 83-64 on Saturday to give coach Ben McCollum his first Big Ten victory.
Washington rallies from 18-point deficit to beat No. 24 USC 84-76
Washington rallied from an 18-point, first-half deficit to beat No. 24 Southern California 84-76. Hannes Steinbach led with 24 points and tied his career-high with 16 rebounds.
No. 10 Iowa State takes down No. 1 Purdue, 81-58
Milan Momcilovic scored 20 points and Iowa State sank 11 3-pointers to propel No. Iowa State to a dominant 81-58 win over No. Purdue on Saturday.
No. 24 USC gives up 18-point lead, falling to Washington for first loss
The Trojans, who were 8-0 entering Saturday, led for all but six minutes in the game, but the Huskies outscored them 54-28 in the second half for the win.
Eric Dailey Jr. goes from zero to hero, powering UCLA to victory over Oregon
After being shutout in UCLA's Big Ten opener earlier in the week, Eric Dailey Jr. responds with 18 points to lead the Bruins to a 74-63 win over Oregon.
Michael Porter Jr.'s 35 points, Nic Claxton's triple-double lead Nets over Pelicans, 119-101
NEW YORK (AP) — Michael Porter Jr. tied his season high with 35 points, Nic Claxton had his second triple-double and the Brooklyn Nets beat the New Orleans Pelicans 119-101 on Saturday.
Porter matched his career best by reaching 30 for a third straight game, having also done it last Feb. 3-6 during his final season with Denver. He made five 3-pointers and had nine rebounds after sitting out Thursday to rest his back in the second night of a back-to-back.
Claxton finished with 14 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. He’s the first Nets player with multiple triple-doubles in a season since James Harden (nine) and Kevin Durant (four) in 2021-22, and the second Nets center with multiple career triple-doubles. Shawn Bradley had five from 1995-97.
Day’Ron Sharpe added 16 points on 7-for-8 shooting as Brooklyn won for the third time in four games to improve to 6-17.
Trey Murphy III scored 23 points for the Pelicans, who lost their sixth straight game and fell to 3-21. Saddiq Bey added 18 points and Bryce McGowens had 16.
The Nets shot 63.6 percent and had 13 assists on their 14 baskets in the first quarter, taking a 35-24 lead. Porter scored 13 points in the second quarter on 5-for-6 shooting as Brooklyn made it 62-44 at halftime.
The Nets led by 28 points in the second half.
Up next
Pelicans: Host San Antonio on Monday night.
Nets: At Dallas on Friday night.
Johnson scores 22 as No. 3 Michigan routs Rutgers 101-60
Morez Johnson Jr. scored 22 points on 9-of-11 shooting, and No. 3 Michigan won its fifth consecutive game by 25 or more points, beating Rutgers 101-60 on Saturday.
Acuff scores 18 points to lead No. 25 Arkansas over Fresno State 82-58
Darius Acuff Jr. scored 18 points to lead No. 25 Arkansas to an 82-58 win over Fresno State on Saturday at Simmons Bank Arena.
Michigan basketball obliterates Rutgers 101-60 in Big Ten opener, remains unbeaten
Michigan basketball continued its stretch of dominating opponents, opening Big Ten play with a 101-60 win over Rutgers at Crisler Center.
Lakers star Luka Doncic might play Sunday after birth of second child
Luka Doncic was removed from the team’s status report entering Sunday’s game at Philadelphia after the Lakers superstar and his fiancee announced the birth of their second child Saturday.
Doncic missed the last two games, but before Friday’s game against Boston, coach JJ Redick was open to the possibility of him rejoining the team in time for Sunday’s road trip finale. The Lakers (16-6) went 1-1 to begin the trip with a thrilling, three-point win in Toronto on Thursday before getting blown out in Boston.
LeBron James, who also missed Friday’s game because of sciatica and joint arthritis in his left foot, is questionable to return Sunday. The 40-year-old has played in only six of the Lakers’ 22 games.
Guard Marcus Smart will miss a sixth consecutive game because of a left lumbar muscle strain.
Doncic, who shared a photo of his new daughter, Olivia, on social media, leads the NBA with 35.3 points per game. If he returns against the 76ers (13-9), the game will feature three of the league’s top five scorers.
Philadelphia guard Tyrese Maxey ranks third with 31.6 points per game and Lakers guard Austin Reaves is fifth with 29.3 points. Reaves’ career season has helped the Lakers go 4-2 in games without Doncic, as Reaves is averaging 40 points per game without Doncic in the lineup.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.