Category: NCAA Basketball

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Houston Mallette hit a 3-pointer with 51 seconds remaining in the second overtime and No. 25 Alabama survived one of the best single-game performances of the season to edge 20th-ranked Arkansas 117-115 on Wednesday night.

Arkansas freshman Darius Acuff Jr. scored 49 points — the second most in college basketball this season — while playing all 50 minutes. But Acuff missed jumpers at the end of both extra frames that would have given the Razorbacks (19-7, 9-4 Southeastern Conference) a short-handed road victory.

Arkansas used a seven-man rotation throughout regulation but had four players foul out in overtime. That forced coach John Calipari to turn to two guys who had played a combined 35 minutes all season.

It was the opening the Crimson Tide (19-7, 9-4) needed to pull out a game that will go down as an instant classic.

Labaron Philon Jr. scored 35 points and Aiden Sherrell added 26 — both career highs — to help Alabama win its fifth consecutive game.

Arkansas, meanwhile, lost for the first time in four games. Acuff’s 49 points are the second most by an Arkansas player and the most by an Arkansas player in SEC play.

Alabama trailed by 14 in the second half, but an 18-4 run tied the game. They moved in front in the waning seconds of regulation — until Acuff’s 3-pointer tied the game at 95 and sent it to OT.

Meleek Thomas (24) and Billy Richmond III (20) also scored in double figures for the Razorbacks before fouling out.

NO. 4 ARIZONA 75, NO. 23 68

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Anthony Dell’Orso scored a season-high 22 points after coming off the bench, Ivan Kharchenkov added 18 and Arizona bounced back from its first two losses of the season by beating BYU.

Arizona (24-2, 11-2 Big 12) started the season with 23 consecutive wins, spending nine straight weeks as the nation’s No. 1 team before losing back-to-back games to No. 9 Kansas and No. 16 Texas Tech.

Dell’Orso — a 6-foot-6 Australian — helped the Wildcats get back in the win column after shooting 8 of 15 from the field, including 4 of 8 on 3-pointers.

BYU (19-7, 7-6) was led by freshman star AJ Dybantsa, who finished with 33 points on 12-of-27 shooting. The 6-foot-9 forward topped 30 points for the sixth time this season.

The Cougars were playing their first game without starting guard Richie Saunders, who tore his ACL in a 90-86 overtime victory against Colorado on Saturday. He’s out for the rest of the season.

Arizona never trailed in the second half and slowly pulled away, taking a 66-50 lead on Dell’Orso’s 3-pointer with 6:40 left. BYU cut the deficit 73-68 with 1:05 remaining but couldn’t get any closer.

CREIGHTON 91, NO. 5 UCONN 84

STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Josh Dix scored 13 of his 21 points in the second half, Nik Graves added 18 points and Creighton beat UConn to spoil former Huskies star Emeka Okafor’s number retirement.

Creighton (14-13, 8-8 Big East) handed UConn (24-2, 14-2) its first conference home loss of the season. Creighton coach Greg McDermott became the first coach to beat a Dan Hurley-coached team four times on the road.

Okafor became the third UConn men’s basketball player to have his number retired, with the Huskies honoring the 2004 NCAA champion and national player of the year at halftime. Ray Allen and Richard Hamilton are the only players to have their numbers retired.

The Huskies led by seven points early in the second half, but shot 34% in the half.

Braylon Mullins led UConn with 25 points. Silas Demary Jr. added 17 points and nine assists. Tarris Reed Jr. had 15 points and 11 rebounds, but had just two points in the second half.

Fedor Zugic added 14 points for Creighton, which outscored UConn 27-11 at the foul line.

NO. 8 KANSAS 81, OKLAHOMA STATE 69

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Freshman Darryn Peterson scored 20 of his 23 points in the first half, sparking Kansas to a win over Oklahoma State.

Peterson, a guard who is expected to be among the first picks in the NBA draft later this year, had shot 13 for 36 from the field combined in his previous three games. He made 7 of 12 field goals against the Cowboys, including 6 of 10 3-pointers.

Tre White scored 16 points and Elmarko Jackson added 14 for Kansas. Bryson Tiller had 10 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists and Flory Bidunga added eight points, 11 rebounds and four blocks for the Jayhawks (20-6, 10-3 Big 12), who made 11 of 24 3-pointers and bounced back from a blowout loss at Iowa State last Saturday.

Parsa Fallah scored 21 points and Anthony Roy added 16 for Oklahoma State (16-10, 4-9), which lost its fourth straight since a win over BYU.

NO. 14 VIRGINIA 94, GEORGIA TECH 68

ATLANTA (AP) — Thijs De Ridder scored 22 points, Malik Thomas added 17 and Virginia won its seventh straight game and eighth in a row on the road, beating Georgia Tech.

The Cavaliers (23-3, 11-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) raced to a 42-9 lead in the opening 13:24. Virginia’s 59-27 advantage at the half was its largest in an ACC game since February 2001.

Jaeden Mustaf led Georgia Tech (11-16, 2-12) with 18 points. Baye Ndongo had 13 points and eight rebounds. The Yellow Jackets have lost eight straight.

Virginia was 36 of 79 from the field and 14 of 37 from 3-point range. Georgia Tech was 24 of 64 from the field and 4 of 19 on 3s.

Cavaliers forward Devin Tillis had six points and a rebound before leaving in the second half because of a lower-body injury.

NO. 17 ST. JOHN'S 76, MARQUETTE 70

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Bryce Hopkins had 23 points and 10 rebounds as St. John’s defeated Marquette to earn its 12th straight victory and move atop the Big East standings.

St. John’s (21-5, 14-1) rallied from a six-point deficit in the second half after squandering an 11-point lead. The Red Storm took over the conference lead from No. 5 UConn, which lost 91-84 at home to Creighton earlier Wednesday.

UConn (24-3, 14-2) hosts the Johnnies on Feb. 25 in the second meeting between the teams. St. John’s beat the Huskies 81-72 at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 6.

St. John’s has won its last 11 Big East road games dating to last season.

Marquette freshman Nigel James Jr. made a three-point play that cut the St. John’s lead to 72-70 with 27.5 seconds left, but Zuby Ejiofor and Hopkins each made a pair of free throws to seal the victory.

James had 18 of his 25 points in the second half for Marquette (9-18, 4-12). Royce Parham added 13 for the Golden Eagles, who have lost three straight.

Oziyah Sellers scored 12 and Ejiofor added 10 for St. John’s.

MISSOURI 81, NO. 19 VANDERBILT 80

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Jayden Stone had 19 points, Trent Pierce and T.O. Barrett each added 16 and Missouri held off Vanderbilt after squandering a big lead.

Anthony Robinson II scored 13 points, and Mark Mitchell had 11 points and a career-best nine assists for Missouri (18-8, 8-5 Southeastern Conference). The Tigers have won four of five and improved to 9-0 against Vanderbilt in Columbia.

Tyler Tanner scored 27 points for Vanderbilt (21-5, 8-5), which entered play having won five of six. Devin McGlockton added 13 points.

Vanderbilt’s Tyler Nickel hit a 3-pointer with two seconds remaining after Barrett hit a pair of free throws. Tanner then intercepted Mitchell’s inbound pass and heaved a half-court shot that rattled around the rim and bounced out.

Vanderbilt rallied after falling behind 66-45 with 8:43 remaining after McGlockton was called for his second flagrant 1 foul. Tigers coach Dennis Gates used a challenge to review contact on a rebound on Vanderbilt’s offensive possession after Tyler Harris was called for a foul on Mitchell as he attempted a layup. Vanderbilt coach Mark Byington unsuccessfully challenged that Missouri’s Anthony Robinson II committed a flagrant foul on the same play.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Elliot Cadeau scored 14 of his 17 points in the second half Tuesday night, and Aday Mara added 10 points and 11 rebounds to send No. 1 Michigan past No. 7 Purdue 91-80.

Trey McKinney, Yaxel Lendeborg and L.J. Cason each had 13 points for the Wolverines, who won their 11th straight and took a big step toward capturing their first outright Big Ten regular-season title in five years.

The win came one day after Michigan (25-1, 15-1) moved into the nation’s top spot for the first time since January 2013.

It was the 7-foot-3 Mara’s early tone-setting presence that helped the Wolverines turn the tables on Purdue’s usually dominant front line as two-time national player of the year Zach Edey watched from the second row. Mara made each of his first four shots on the way to a 10-point, eight-rebound first half. He spent most of the second half in foul trouble, finishing 4 of 6 from the field as Michigan had a 39-31 rebounding advantage.

Trey Kaufman-Renn scored a season high 27 points to lead Boilermakers on a night most of his teammates struggled. Braden Smith added 20 points as the Boilermakers (21-5, 11-4) had their four-game winning streak end. They now trail Michigan by 3 1/2 games in the league race.

Michigan took control quickly by using an early 13-0 spurt to take a 23-10 lead. A 14-4 scoring flurry gave Michigan a comfortable 44-22 cushion with 4:23 left in the first half, forcing Purdue to futilely play catchup the rest of the night.

IOWA 57, NO. 9 NEBRASKA 52

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Bennett Stirtz scored 25 points and Cooper Koch added 10 as Iowa overcame a cold-shooting second half to defeat Nebraska.

Iowa (19-7, 9-6 Big Ten) won despite not making a field goal over the final 4:59. The Hawkeyes were 7 of 28 from the field in the second half, including 3 for 13 on 3-pointers.

Nebraska (22-4, 11-4), which has lost four of six, wasn’t much better. The Cornhuskers went 9 of 23 from the field, including 2 for 12 on 3s, and missed eight of their last 11 shots, going through an 11 1/2-minute stretch with just one basket.

Stirtz scored 10 of Iowa’s final 14 points. His jumper with 5:38 left gave the Hawkeyes a 47-45 lead, then he added a step-back 3 only 40 seconds later.

Iowa was coming off back-to-back losses last week to Maryland and Purdue after a six-game winning streak.

Pryce Sandfort, making his first appearance at Iowa since transferring after last season, led the Cornhuskers with 13 points. Sandfort was booed and taunted by Iowa’s student section throughout the game, but hit two 3-pointers to become Nebraska’s single-season leader with 90.

Jamarques Lawrence added 11 points for Nebraska.

NO. 12 FLORIDA 76, SOUTH CAROLINA 62

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Alex Condon had 20 points and 10 rebounds, Rueben Chinyelu also notched a double-double and Florida handled South Carolina for the second time in three weeks.

Chinyelu finished with 15 points and 17 boards for his 16th double-double of the season. The Gators won their sixth consecutive game and improved to 11-1 since losing at Missouri to open Southeastern Conference play.

This one was much closer than the previous meeting, a 47-point blowout in Columbia, South Carolina, in late January.

Still, the Gamecocks (11-14, 2-11 SEC) trailed by 10 points early and never mounted much of a threat in Gainesville, where Florida improved to 12-1 this season.

It was lopsided enough that 7-foot-9 walk-on center Olivier Rioux played the final minute after the home crowd chanted for him.

The best rebounding team in the country dominated inside, with Florida (20-6, 11-2) mounting a 47-30 rebounding advantage and outscoring South Carolina 44-28 in the paint.

Thomas Haugh added 10 points for Florida, which is trying to win the SEC’s regular season for the first time since 2014 and stay in the Sunshine State to open the NCAA Tournament in Tampa.

South Carolina leading scorer Meechie Johnson, who had 10 points in the first meeting, led the Gamecocks with 22 this time around.

NO. 15 MICHIGAN STATE 82 UCLA 59

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Jeremy Fears Jr. had 16 points and 10 assists, leading Michigan State to a victory over UCLA.

The Spartans (21-5, 11-4 Big Ten) bounced back with a strong performance after losing three of four games and falling five spots in the AP Top 25 this week.

The Bruins (17-9, 9-6) have lost two straight games after winning five of six.

UCLA forward Tyler Bilodeau scored 22 points but didn’t have much help. None of his teammates were in double figures until Skyy Clark made some late shots to finish with 12 points.

Fears made three 3-pointers in the first half and Michigan State took a 43-23 lead into the break. He finished with four 3s, a career high.

The Spartans were 8 of 14 from beyond the arc in the opening period and finished with a season-high 14 3-pointers on 27 attempts.

Coen Carr also scored 16 points for Michigan State. Carson Cooper had 12 and freshman Jordan Scott added 11. Jaxon Kohler provided nine points and 10 rebounds.

NC STATE 82, NO. 16 NORTH CAROLINA 58

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Quadir Copeland scored 20 points while N.C. State held North Carolina to 31.7% shooting in a rivalry win.

Freshman Matt Able added 19 points for the Wolfpack (19-8, 10-4 Atlantic Coast Conference), who desperately needed this win to regroup after a 41-point loss at Louisville and a final-minute collapse in a home loss to Miami. And that had pushed Will Wade’s first N.C. State team onto shakier footing when it came to securing its ticket to March Madness.

But N.C. State pressed the attack all night against an injury-depleted rival, backed by a boisterous crowd. The Wolfpack shot 53.1% to build a 16-point halftime lead and never looked back.

By the end, N.C. State had its biggest margin of victory in the series since a 28-point win (85-57) in February 1962, according to College Basketball Reference.

Copeland added six rebounds and seven assists. Darrion Williams added 13 points on a night when he had a scary first-half fall that required stitches, coming after he hit his face on the court and trainers needed multiple towels to tend to the bleeding near his left eyebrow.

RHODE ISLAND 81, NO. 18 SAINT LOUIS 76

KINGSTON, R.I. (AP) — Jonah Hinton made nine 3-pointers and scored 29 points as Rhode Island upset Saint Louis, snapping the Billikens’ 18-game winning streak.

Robbie Avila led Saint Louis (24-2, 12-1 Atlantic 10) with 21 points and Dion Brown added 19. The Billikens committed 18 turnovers and trailed for 36 minutes.

The 18-game run had marked the second-longest active winning streak in the country, and the program’s longest since the 2013-14 squad won a school-record 19 games in a row.

Down 79-76 after URI’s Myles Corey made both free throws with 26.3 seconds remaining, Saint Louis had two chances to tie but Avila and Ishan Sharma each missed from beyond the arc. Tyler Cochran wrapped it up for the Rams (15-11, 6-7) by sinking two free throws with 13.6 seconds left.

Corey had 15 points and was 11 of 11 from the foul line. Cochran scored 11.

SMU 95, NO. 21 LOUISVILLE 85

DALLAS (AP) — Jaron Pierre Jr. scored 25 points and Boopie Miller had 23 points with nine assists as SMU beat Louisville, ending the Cardinals’ five-game winning streak.

SMU (18-8, 7-6 Atlantic Coast Conference) went ahead to stay on Miller’s short floater in the lane with 6:19 left that broke a 76-all tie. That was the second of six consecutive made field goals by the Mustangs, including a pair of 3-pointers by Corey Washington, who finished with 18 points.

Miller’s alley-oop pass to Pierre for a dunk with 1:49 remaining pushed the lead to 91-83 and sent the already-loud Moody Coliseum crowd into a real frenzy.

It was the Mustangs’ second win at home over a ranked ACC opponent this season, and could be significant in their push to reach their first NCAA Tournament since 2017. They beat then-No. 12 North Carolina 97-83 on Jan. 3, which was their first victory over a Top 25 opponent under second-year coach Andy Enfield.

Standout freshman Mikel Brown Jr. had 29 points for Louisville (19-6, 8-5), whose winning streak started with an 88-74 home win over SMU on Jan. 31. J’Vonne Hadley had 14 points and nine rebounds, while Ryan Conwell scored 12.

NO. 22 MIAMI (OHIO) 86, UMASS 77

AMHERST, Mass. (AP) — Miami of Ohio won its 26th straight game to remain the last unbeaten team in Division 1, defeating UMass thanks to 23 points from Peter Suder.

Luke Skaljac had 16 points and seven assists for Miami (26-0, 13-0 Mid-American Conference). Leonardo Bettiol scored 18 points with nine rebounds, Isaiah Placide scored 19 and Danny Carbuccia had 15 for UMass (15-12, 6-8).

Miami led by eight points with 14 minutes left before UMass scored seven straight to make it a one-point game and then added a 5-0 run to take a 62-60 lead. It was tied for the final time at 68-68 when Placide banked in a 3-pointer at the shot clock buzzer, leaving defender Eian Elmer shrugging in disbelief.

But Elmer answered with a 3 for Miami, then Suder hit a layup after a UMass turnover to give the RedHawks a five-point lead.

UMass never got any closer than three points after that.

OHIO STATE 86, NO. 24 WISCONSIN 69

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Bruce Thornton scored 27 points and Devin Royal added 25 for Ohio State as the Buckeyes knocked off Wisconsin.

Ohio State (17-9, 9-6 Big Ten) beat a ranked team for the first time in seven tries this season.

Braeden Carrington made five 3-pointers in the second half and led the Badgers with 20 points while Nick Boyd and John Blackwell each had 14 points.

Wisconsin (18-8, 10-5) entered as one of the hottest teams in the Big Ten, having beaten then-No. 8 Illinois and then-No. 10 Michigan State last week, but the Badgers couldn’t overcome a first half in which they shot 40% from the floor.

Ohio State shot 51.7% in the first half, including going 6 for 13 from 3-point range, to build a 38-26 lead at the break. The Buckeyes were 11 for 21 from behind the arc for the game.

The Associated Press national player of the week in men’s college basketball for Week 15 of the season:

Mikel Brown Jr., No. 21 Louisville

The 6-foot-5, 190-pound freshman regarded as a high-end NBA prospect had been struggling with his shot after returning from a lengthy injury absence. That was before he broke out with two huge performances in wins against N.C. State and Baylor.

The first was an Atlantic Coast Conference freshman single-game record of 45 points in a rout of N.C. State. Brown made 14 of 23 shots and 10 of 16 3-pointers to go with nine rebounds and three steals in that performance while tying the program's single-game scoring record set by Wes Unseld in December 1967. He followed with 29 points, six assists and five steals in a win against Baylor.

For the week, Brown made 22 of 37 shots (.595) and 14 of 21 3-pointers (.667) while being named ACC player and rookie of the week.

Runner-up

Nick Boyd, No. 24 Wisconsin. The 6-3 senior was Big Ten player of the week after posting 54 points in wins against then-No. 8 Illinois and then-No. 10 Michigan State. Boyd, who was AP national player of the week on Jan. 13, had 25 points and five assists in 39 minutes of the overtime road win against the Illini. He followed with 29 points against the Spartans. Those wins propelled the Badgers to No. 24 in Monday's new AP Top 25 poll after receiving no votes a week earlier.

Honorable mention

JT Toppin, No. 13 Texas Tech.

Keep an eye on

Dontae Horne, Prairie View A&M. The 6-4, 190-pound senior has been on a monthlong tear. He had 46 points on 14-for-25 shooting in a loss to Southern that stood as the highest output in Division I last week and tied for the fifth best of the season. That followed a 27-point showing in a loss to Florida A&M. Going back to a 38-point effort in a loss to Jackson State, Horne entered this week averaging a national-best 28.1 points since Jan. 17, according to SportRadar.

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DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Cameron Boozer had 22 points and 12 rebounds and helped No. 3 Duke rout Syracuse 101-64 victory Monday night.

Isaiah Evans scored 21 points, Nikolas Khamenia added 14 points off the bench and Patrick Ngongba and Cayden Boozer each had 12 for the Blue Devils (24-2, 13-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who looked primed for a weekend nonconference showdown with top-ranked Michigan.

Duke shot 62.3% from the field, including 12 for 20 from 3-point distance.

Boozer shot eight for 10 from the field and finished with the 14th double-double of his freshman season.

William Kyle III scored 12 points and Nate Kingz added 10 for Syracuse (15-12, 6-8), which failed to carry the momentum from back-to-back victories for the first time since winning three straight in January.

NO. 6 IOWA STATE 70, NO.. 2 HOUSTON 67

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Nate Heise hit a go-ahead 3-pointer and Tamin Lipsey came up with an offensive rebound in the final seconds to cap Iowa State’s rally in a victory over Big 12 leader and Houston.

Heise was 3 for 3 from 3-point range hours after sister Taylor Heise scored to help the U.S. Women’s Olympic hockey team beat Sweden 5-0 to reach the gold-medal game in Milan.

The Cyclones (23-3, 10-3) closed with a 17-4 run to take down a second top-10 team in three days. Iowa State topped No. 8 Kansas 74-56 on Saturday.

The Cougars (23-3, 11-2) had their six-game winning streak snapped and their conference lead was cut to a half-game over No. 4 Arizona heading into their matchup Saturday in Houston. Iowa State is third, a game behind Houston.

Heise hit the 3-pointer from the left corner with 1:17 to play to give the Cyclones a 69-67 lead. Houston had two chances to tie or take the lead, but was called for a shot-clock violation with 43 seconds to play, then Chris Cenac Jr., missed a shot with four seconds left.

Blake Buchanan was fouled after rebounding Cenac’s miss, but missed the front end of a one-and-one. Lipsey, though, got the offensive rebound, tapping the ball back to Joshua Jefferson, who was fouled with asecond left. Jefferson made his first free throw for the final margin.

Jefferson led Iowa State with 12 points. Heise had 11 and Buchanan had 10.

Kingston Flemings led Houston with 22 points. Emanuel Sharp had 16 points, all in the first half. Milos Uzan had 11 points.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kiki Rice had 17 points and nine rebounds, Lauren Betts added 16 points and 14 rebounds, and No. 2 UCLA beat Indiana 92-48 on Sunday to extend its win streak to 19 games.

UCLA (25-1, 15-0 Big Ten), which is unbeaten since a 76-65 loss to No. 4 Texas on Nov. 26 at the Players Era Championship, has the third-longest active win streak in the nation behind North Dakota State (21 straight) and UConn (43).

Betts had her 10th double-double this season and the 43rd in her career. Charlisse Leger-Walker and Gianna Kneepkens had 12 points apiece for the Bruins and Gabriela Jaquez scored 11. Sienna Betts and Lena Bilic each had 10 points.

Maya Makalusky led Indiana (14-13, 3-12) with 13 points. Lenee Beaumont added 11 points on 4-of-14 shooting and Nevaeh Caffey scored 10. Shay Ciezki, the Big Ten’s leading scorer who went into the game averaging 24.0 points (No. 5 nationally), left the game due to an apparent ankle injury late in the first quarter and did not return.

The Hoosiers shot a season-low 31% (15 of 48) from the field, 4 of 20 (20%) from 3-point range, and tied their season low for points in a game. Indiana went into the game shooting 47.9% this season, which ranked 14th nationally.

NO. 4 TEXAS 65, NO. 22 TENNESSEE 63

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Madison Booker scored 14 points while Jordan Lee and Rori Harmon each added 12 as Texas held off Tennessee.

The Longhorns (24-3, 9-3 in Southeastern Conference) led by as many as 10 points midway through the fourth quarter. The Lady Volunteers (16-7, 8-3) closed the gap to one with a 3-pointer from Janiah Barker and two 3-pointers by Talaysia Cooper.

Two free throws by Booker put Texas up by three with 16 seconds left. Cooper answered with a layup to make the difference 64-63. Lee made one of two free throws for a 65-63 score. Cooper, who led the Lady Vols with 29 points, had the ball stripped as time expired.

Barker added 12 points for Tennessee and Nya Robertson had 11.

The first half, which ended in a 34-34 tie was full of spurts. Texas had an 18-2 run from late in the first quarter to early in the second to lead by 14. Tennessee scored the last 10 of the second quarter to tie it up. Cooper led all scorers with 15.

GEORGIA 76, NO. 5 VANDERBILT

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Dani Carnegie scored 29 points to lead Georgia to an upset win over Vanderbilt.

Trinity Thomas made a mid-range jumper with 50 seconds remaining to give the Bulldogs (20-6, 6-6 SEC) a 75-74 lead. After forcing a turnover on the ensuing Vanderbilt (24-3, 10-3) possession, Carnegie split a pair of free throws to give Georgia a two-point advantage with 22.2 seconds remaining,

Vanderbilt had one final opportunity to force overtime, but Sacha Washington’s floater fell short off the front rim as time expired.

Carnegie scored 18 of her points in the first half to help Georgia build a 14-point advantage over the Commodores, before Vanderbilt closed the first half with a 16-3 run to create a tight game. Vanderbilt led by as many as five points in the fourth quarter, but Mia Woolfolk scored 11 of her 19 points to help the Bulldogs win.

NO. 7 MICHIGAN 86, NO. 13 MICHIGAN STATE 65

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Syla Swords had 24 points and Olivia Olson scored 23, helping Michigan beat Michigan State to sweep the season series.

Mila Holloway, who finished with 15 points, made a 3-pointer to give the Wolverines (22-4, 13-2 Big Ten) their first lead with 5:53 left in the first half and scored eight points in one minute to spark a 10-0 run.

The Spartans (20-6, 9-6) were outscored 26-9 in the second quarter and didn’t recover, losing for the fourth time in five games.

Michigan State’s Kennedy Blair scored 21, Jalyn Brown had all 11 of her points in the first half and Grace VanSlooten scored seven of her 10 points in the first quarter when the visitors led by as much as eight points.

NO. 9 LOUISVILLE 88, FLORIDA STATE 65

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Laura Ziegler scored 14 points for Louisville in a rout of Florida State.

The matchup between the Atlantic Coast Conference’s top scoring offense (Louisville, 81.9 ppg) and its next-to-last defense (Florida State, 76 ppg) played out that way as the Cardinals (24-4, 14-1 ACC) took control early and never trailed en route to their third straight win.

Ziegler scored the game’s first five points and Louisville used a 9-0 run later in the opening quarter to build a 16-5 lead with 2:45 remaining. Meanwhile, the Seminoles (9-17, 4-10) shot just 25.8% (8 of 31) in the first half as Louisville led 34-20 at halftime.

The senior forward opened the third quarter with a 3-pointer, and the Cardinals added to their lead throughout the second half, leading by as much as 80-51 midway through the fourth quarter. She also flirted with a triple-double, finishing with eight rebounds and seven assists before exiting the game with 6:37 remaining and the Cardinals up 71-49.

NO. 10 OKLAHOMA 79, NO. 23 ALABAMA 71

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Raegan Beers scored 21 points and Payton Verhulst added 17 to help Oklahoma beat Alabama.

Oklahoma led by double digits on three separate occasions, but each time Alabama cut the deficit down to four points or less.

The Sooners (19-6, 7-5 SEC) rallied behind freshman Aaliyah Chavez’s nine points in the fourth quarter to win the game, she finished with 15 points, six rebounds and six assists.

Oklahoma had its struggles offensively- — missing five of its first six shots from the field and only shooting 23% from 3-point range and 58% from the free throw line for the game. Turnovers were also an issue with 19 which resulted in 15 Alabama points.

Alabama (20-6, 6-6) was led by Ta’Mia Scott’s 17 points and 11 apiece by Jessica Timmons and Ace Austin.

NO. 11 DUKE 72, NO. 21 NORTH CAROLINA 68

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Ashlon Jackson and Taina Mair scored 14 points each on their senior day and Duke edged North Carolina, the Blue Devils’ 16th consecutive win.

After a back-and-forth first half that saw 16 lead changes, Duke led 41-33 at halftime and never trailed in the second half. The Blue Devils’ lead was only 56-54 with 30 seconds left in the third quarter but the Tar Heels got no closer.

Delaney Thomas’ layup made it a six-point game with 30 seconds remaining. Nyla Brooks hit a 3 for North Carolina with 15 seconds left, but Jackson added a free throw for the final margin.

Riley Nelson scored 13 points and Toby Fournier grabbed 12 rebounds for Duke (19-6, 14-0 ACC). Mair finished with seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals.

NO. 12 BAYLOR 93, UCF 63

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Taliah Scott scored 26 points and Baylor breezed to a bounce-back win, defeating UCF.

The Bears fell a half-game out of first place in the Big 12 on Thursday when they lost at home to No. 17 TCU 83-67. Baylor plays at TCU on March 1.

Led by 12 points from Scott, Baylor rolled to a 27-13 lead through the first quarter against UCF, which lost by 50 points against Big 12-leader West Virginia last time out. Baylor led 52-23 at halftime after shooting 65% in the first half compared to 37% for UCF.

Scott made 7 of 8 shots and had 21 points by halftime. She finished 8 for 10 for the game with 3 of 4 3s and 7 for 7 at the free-throw line.

Jana Van Gytenbeek had 11 assists and 10 points for her first double-double of the season to go with the triple-double she had on Dec. 9 against Alabama State. Kayla Nelms scored 12 points off the bench, Bella Fontleroy scored 11 and Darianna Littlepage-Buggs 10 for the Bears (22-5, 11-3 Big 12).

NO. 17 TCU 59, NO. 19 WEST VIRGINIA 50

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Marta Suarez and Clara Silva both finished with 14 points to help TCU beat West Virginia and take over the top spot in the Big 12 Conference.

TCU (23-4, 11-3), which won the regular-season and conference tournament titles last season, is tied with No. 12 Baylor, but the Horned Frogs have the tiebreaker advantage after beating the Bears 83-67 before taking care of the Mountaineers. Baylor visits TCU to close out the regular season on March 1.

TCU has won 40 straight games at Schollmaier Arena, tying No. 4 Texas for the longest active streak. West Virginia was the last team to win there, beating the Frogs 77-52 two years ago.

Suarez made 6 of 10 shots with two 3-pointers and Silva sank 7 of 12 shots with eight rebounds and two blocks. Olivia Miles pitched in with 12 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Taylor Bigby added 10 points and four assists as the starters did all the scoring.

NO. 18 KENTUCKY 74, NO. 14 MISSISSIPPI 57

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Clara Strack had 28 points and nine rebounds, Tonie Morgan added 14 points and nine assists, and Kentucky beat Mississippi.

Asia Boone scored 10 of her 15 points in the second quarter for Kentucky (20-7, 7-6 SEC).

Latasha Lattimore scored four points and Cotie McMahon the next five in a 9-0 spurt that trimmed the Rebels’ deficit to 57-51 with 6:45 left in the game, but Strack scored eight consecutive points over the next three-plus minutes before Morgan made a layup to give Kentucky a 16-point lead with 2:59 to play.

Ole Miss (20-6, 7-4) had won four of its last five, the lone loss in that span coming at then-No. 21 Alabama, 64-63, on Feb. 5.

McMahon led the Rebels with 18 points but made just 4 of 18 from the field. Lattimore finished with 15 points, on 6-of-17 shooting and added 11 rebounds and three blocks.

NO. 20 MARYLAND 76, NO. 8 OHIO STATE 75

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Oluchi Okananwa had 17 points and 10 rebounds, Yarden Garzon added 17 points and Maryland rallied from a 19-point deficit in the first half to beat Ohio State.

It is the Terrapins largest comeback since Nov. 13, 2019, when they were down 19 in the fourth quarter at James Madison before posting a 70-68 victory.

Addi Mack had 14 points and Saylor Poffenbarger 13 for Maryland (21-6, 9-6 Big Ten), which beat a Top 10 team for the first time since it defeated Ohio State in the Big Ten quarterfinals two years ago.

It is also Maryland’s first win over a Top 10 team on the road since 2022 against Notre Dame.

Jaloni Cambridge had 29 points and Chance Gray a season-high 25 for the Buckeyes (22-4, 11-3), who had a four-game winning streak snapped.

NO. 25 WASHINGTON 51, OREGON 43

SEATTLE (AP) — Sayvia Sellers scored 17 points to help Washington beat Oregon.

Sellers made 6 of 16 shots with three 3-pointers for the Huskies (19-7, 9-6 Big Ten Conference). Avery Howell pitched in with nine points and nine rebounds.

Sarah Rambus scored 12 off the bench on 5-for-7 shooting to pace the Ducks (18-9, 6-8), who have lost two straight following a four-game winning streak.

Sellers hit two 3-pointers and scored eight in the first five minutes as Washington jumped out to a 13-1 lead. Sellers added another 3-pointer and the Huskies led 22-9 after one quarter.

Mia Jacobs’ three-point play capped a 15-0 run for Oregon and the Ducks rallied to take a 28-27 into halftime. Washington did not score after Elle Ladine sank a jumper to give the Huskies a 14-point lead with 8:29 left in the quarter.

Howell and Sellers had back-to-back baskets to begin the second half and Washington moved back in front. The lead changed hands three times before Sellers and Howell had the final two baskets of the quarter for a 37-34 advantage.

Freshman Brynn McGaughy had a three-point play to begin the final period for a six-point lead and the Huskies stayed in front from there. Sarah Rambus scored in the paint to cut the deficit to two before the Ducks went scoreless over the final 3:47.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Tessa Johnson scored 21 points as No. 3 South Carolina beat No. 6 LSU 79-72 on Saturday night and extended its winning streak over the Tigers to 18 games.

Trailing 73-72, LSU had a chance to take a one-point lead with 45.5 seconds left, but Flau’jae Johnson missed two free throws.

South Carolina (25-2, 11-1 SEC) closed out the Tigers (22-4, 8-4) by scoring six straight points, including Madina Okot’s layup with 25.5 seconds left and her two free throws with 16.1 seconds remaining.

Raven Johnson added 19 for the Gamecocks, Okot had a double-double with 12 points and 17 rebounds, and Joyce Edwards scored 10 points.

Johnson led LSU with 21 points, and Mikaylah Williams added 11.

The Tigers had their chances, but wasted too many opportunities. They missed 10 layups and nine free throws.

Despite leading for only 4:09 in the first half, South Carolina flipped LSU’s 21-16 first-quarter lead into a 41-40 halftime advantage.

The Tigers led by as many as five points several times in the second quarter, but never could pull away. Despite Johnson scoring eight points, the Gamecocks countered with 5-for-9 shooting from 3-point range in the period.

Tessa Johnson and Raven Johnson combined for 19 of South Carolina’s 25 points in the second period. Tessa Johnson, the SEC’s leading 3-point shooter, scored 11 points and was 3 for 4 from long distance.

NO. 1 UCONN 71, MARQUETTE 56

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Azzi Fudd scored 25 points, Sarah Strong had 19 of her 22 in the second half and UConn remained unbeaten with a victory over Marquette.

UConn (27-0, 16-0 Big East) has won 43 straight games and hasn’t lost since an 80-76 decision at Tennessee over a year ago. The Huskies also have won 63 straight Big East games, counting regular-season and tournament matchups.

Marquette (16-10, 10-7) did manage to end one UConn streak.

UConn had won 21 straight games by at least 25 points before Saturday, which represented the longest such streak for any Division I program over at least the last 25 seasons. The last team to lose to UConn by fewer than 25 points was No. 7 Michigan, which fell 72-69 to the Huskies on Nov. 21 at Uncasville, Connecticut.

The Huskies built a 36-24 halftime lead thanks to Fudd, who scored 17 points and shot 5 of 8 on 3-point attempts in the first two periods.

Strong, who entered Saturday shooting 60% from the floor, went 1 of 9 and scored just three points in the first half. But she shot 6 of 7 during a 15-point third quarter.

UConn guard KK Arnold had 10 points and a career-high nine assists in her return home. Arnold was a three-time Associated Press Wisconsin state player of the year while starring at nearby Germantown High School.

Lee Volker scored 15 points, Skylar Forbes 14 and Jaidynn Mason 11 for Marquette, which has lost three straight games for the first time since December 2022.

OKLAHOMA STATE 75, NO. 16 TEXAS TECH 65

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Jadyn Wooten scored 16 points, Amari Whiting added 13 points and 11 rebounds, and Oklahoma State outscored the Lady Raiders in the second quarter to beat Texas Tech.

Oklahoma State (20–7, 9–5 Big 12) took a 36–24 halftime lead, holding Tech scoreless for the final 3:18 of the half. The win marked the Cowgirls’ second victory over a ranked opponent this season and secured their first 20‑win campaign since 2022–23.

Wooten shot 7 of 10 from the field and added seven assists, while Whiting posted her second double‑double of the year. Achol Akot scored 13 points and Stailee Heard added 12 for the Cowgirls, who shot 54% overall and made eight 3‑pointers.

Texas Tech (23–4, 10–4) opened the second half with five straight points to cut the deficit to seven, but OSU answered with an 8–0 run to push the margin back to 44–29. The Lady Raiders trailed by double digits for most of the second half before a late push trimmed it to 66–60 with under three minutes left.

Bailey Maupin led the Lady Raiders with 19 points, and Snudda Collins added 18 off the bench. The Lady Raiders shot 4 of 21 from deep and were outrebounded 36–26. Texas Tech entered a half‑game out of first place in the Big 12 and is on the road for three of its next four games.

NO. 24 PRINCETON 59, CORNELL 38

ITHACA, N.Y. (AP) — Madison St. Rose led with 15 points and seven rebounds and Princeton rode a big second half to defeat Cornell.

The Tigers (20-3, 8-2 Ivy League) bounced back from a loss against Columbia on Friday to win their third game in their past four contests. It was the second-lowest scoring game of the season for Princeton after a 58-49 win over Brown on Jan. 24.

Skye Belker had 12 points, four rebounds, and two assists for the Tigers. Fadima Tall added 11 points and six rebounds.

Cornell closed the first half on a 7-0 run to lead 23-15 at halftime, but Princeton erupted for 23 points in the third quarter to turn an eight-point deficit into a ten-point lead.

Princeton controlled the game in the second half, surrendering just 15 second-half points on the way to a comfortable victory.

Clarke Jackson and Paige Engels led the Big Red (8-15, 3-7) with eight points each. Cornell was held to 31% shooting and 24% from beyond the arc.

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — JT Toppin scored eight of his 31 points in a dominant overtime performance and No. 16 Texas Tech sent No. 1 Arizona to its second straight loss, shocking the Wildcats 78-75 on Saturday.

Texas Tech (19-6, 9-3 Big 12) beat the No. 1 team for the third time in school history. The Wildcats (23-2, 10-2) were 23-0 before losing to No. 9 Kansas 82-78 on Monday.

Arizona had a 64-57 lead with 3:29 left in regulation, but Texas Tech responded with 9-0 run, capped by Donovan Atwell’s corner 3-pointer with 25 seconds left for a 66-64 lead. Arizona’s Ivan Kharchenkov tied it at 66 with two free throws and Christian Anderson couldn’t hit a contested jumper as time expired.

After the short break, Toppin went to work, scoring four baskets on an array of tip-ins and low-post moves. The preseason All-America selection shot 13 of 22 from the field and had 13 rebounds to finish with his 47th career double-double. Anderson added 19 points, hitting six 3-pointers.

Arizona’s Tobe Awaka had 16 points and 12 rebounds. Freshman Brayden Burries also scored 16.

NO. 2 MICHIGAN 86, UCLA 56

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Yaxel Lendeborg had 17 points and eight rebounds to lead Michigan to a victory over UCLA that puts the program in position to be ranked No. 1 in the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2013.

No. 1 Arizona lost its first game Monday night on the road against No. 9 Kansas, giving the Wolverines (24-1, 14-1 Big Ten) a path to the top spot in the poll with their 10th straight win.

The Bruins (17-8, 9-5) had won five of six games.

Michigan made nine straight shots — including Lendeborg’s two 3-pointers — early in the second half to turn what was a closely contested game into a rout.

Just two years after losing a school-record 24 games in Juwan Howard’s final season, coach Dusty May took advantage of the transfer portal to build a deep and talented roster that has won 24 of 25 games for the first time in school history.

NO. 3 HOUSTON 78, KANSAS STATE 64

HOUSTON (AP) — Emanuel Sharp had 23 points and six rebounds as Houston rallied from an early deficit to beat Kansas State for the Cougars’ sixth straight win.

Sharp scored 14 points on 4 of 10 shooting in the first half as Houston (23-2, 11-1 Big 12) built a 33-19 halftime lead.

Milos Uzan added 12 points and eight assists, and Kingston Flemings finished with 12 points and seven rebounds for the Cougars, which won their 18th straight at home.

P.J. Haggerty scored 23 points to lead Kansas State (10-15, 1-11). Haggerty surpassed 2,000 points in his collegiate career in the first half, becoming the fifth current Division I player to achieve the milestone.

Nate Johnson had 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Taj Manning added 10 points for Kansas State. The Wildcats shot 35% from the field, 8 of 26 (31%) from 3-point range, and made 16 of 25 (64%) from the free-throw line.

The Wildcats raced to a 15-6 lead about 8 ½ minutes into the game on a 3-pointer by Haggerty, but Houston responded to finish the half on a 27-4 run. Sharp had nine points and Uzan added seven points in the spurt. Kansas State shot 1 for 15 from the floor to end the half.

Kansas State got no closer than 10 points in the second half.

NO. 4 DUKE 67, NO. 20 CLEMSON 54

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Star freshman Cameron Boozer had 18 points and Duke held Clemson to 35% shooting in a win.

Isaiah Evans added 17 points for the Blue Devils (23-2, 12-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who made 11 of 16 shots after halftime and pushed a 31-26 edge past a 20-point margin midway through the second half.

This marked Duke’s 29th straight home win and eighth victory against an AP Top 25 opponent this year. The Blue Devils entered the weekend tied with No. 2 Michigan for the national lead with 10 Quadrant 1 wins to top a postseason resume.

The 6-foot-9, 250-pound Boozer, who began the day ranked fifth nationally in scoring by averaging 23.0 points, made 7 of 14 shots with a pair of 3-pointers to go with eight rebounds, four assists and two steals.

NO. 5 IOWA ST. 74, NO. 9 KANSAS 56

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Milan Momcilovic scored 18 points and Iowa State shook off a slow start to defeat Kansas, snapping the Jayhawks’ eight-game winning streak.

The Cyclones (22-3, 9-3 Big 12), coming off Tuesday’s 62-55 loss at TCU, began a five-game stretch in which they play four ranked teams by taking control of this game in the first half despite struggling to make shots in the opening minutes.

Iowa State led 37-27 at halftime, then went on a 20-7 run in the opening 5 1/2 minutes of the second half, a stretch in which the Cyclones made six consecutive 3-pointers.

Their defense held Kansas (19-6, 9-3) to 31.6% shooting from the field in the second half, including 1 of 8 in 3-pointers. The Jayhawks shot 37.3% for the game while committing 13 turnovers, 10 in the first half.

NO. 6 UCONN 79, GEORGETOWN 75

STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Solo Ball had 20 points and Alex Karaban scored 13 of his 18 points in the second half as UConn held off a second-half rally and beat Georgetown.

Silas Demary Jr. had 15 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists, and freshmen Braylon Mullins and Eric Reibe scored 10 points apiece for UConn (24-2, 14-1 Big East).

Karaban set a program record with his 136th career start. He also became the winningest player in UConn men’s history as the Huskies improved to 116-24 when he is in uniform. He hit two foul shots with 10 seconds remaining to seal the win after Georgetown rallied from 14 points down and closed within two points with 11 seconds remaining.

KJ Lewis had 24 points, nine rebounds and four steals, Vincent Iwuchukwu added 16 points and Kayvaun Mulready scored all 15 points of his points in the second half for Georgetown (13-11, 5-9).

NO. 7 NEBRASKA 68, NORTHWESTERN 49

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Pryce Sandfort scored 29 points, Sam Hoiberg added 14 and Nebraska shook off a slow start to beat Northwestern.

The Cornhuskers (22-3, 11-3 Big Ten) overcame a season high-tying 18 turnovers and poor shooting in the first half to sweep the season series with the Wildcats (10-16, 2-13).

Nebraska was celebrating alumni weekend with more than 75 players on hand and came into the game off losses in three of their last four.

This one was a slog until the middle of the second half. Reserve guard Cale Jacobsen scored eight of his 10 points and blocked a shot during a 14-4 spurt that turned the Huskers’ 39-38 deficit into a 52-43 lead. The Wildcats managed just three field goals over the final 13 minutes.

Sandfort, who shot 6 of 11 on 3-pointers, had 25-plus points and six 3s in a game for the fourth time.

NO. 11 NORTH CAROLINA 79, PITTSBURGH 65

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Jarin Stevenson and Seth Trimble scored 19 points each to help North Carolina beat Pittsburgh and secure another 20-win season.

The short-handed Tar Heels played without star freshman forward Caleb Wilson (bone fracture in left hand) and center Henri Veesaar (illness/lower body injury), who had both started every game this season and are the team’s top two scorers and rebounders.

Stevenson’s total was a season-high for the Alabama transfer.

Luka Bogavac and Zayden High, who had a career-best game, each scored 15 points for North Carolina (20-5, 8-4 Atlantic Coast Conference).

NO. 12 GONZAGA 94, SANTA CLARA 86

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Graham Ike had 21 points and a season-high 15 rebounds as Gonzaga held off Santa Clara.

Graham shot 7 of 12 and had four assists to help the Bulldogs move a half-game ahead of the Broncos for first place in the West Coast Conference. It’s Graham’s seventh consecutive game with 20 points, matching a similar streak he had in 2024.

Gonzaga (25-2, 13-1) has won 25 games or more in 19 consecutive seasons under coach Mark Few. Few was recently named a finalist for the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame.

Adam Miller scored 20 points, Tyon Grant-Foster added 20. and Emmanuel Innocenti had 16 points and six rebounds for the Bulldogs.

As good as Graham was, the Bulldogs had to do without their star forward for three minutes late in the second half while he was in foul trouble.

Christian Hammond scored 16 points for Santa Clara (22-6, 13-2).

NO. 13 PURDUE 78, IOWA 57

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — C.J. Cox and Gicarri Harris each had 14 points to help Purdue beat Iowa.

The Boilermakers (20-5, 11-3 Big Ten), wrapping up a stretch of six of eight games on the road, extended their winning streak to four with an efficient offense that consistently found openings. Purdue, which leads the nation in assists per game, had 20 assists on 25 field goals, with Braden Smith having 12 of those.

Iowa (18-7, 8-6), which had won six of seven, lost for the second time this week. The Hawkeyes lost 77-70 at Maryland on Wednesday night, and were looking to bounce back in front of their first sellout home crowd of the season. Instead, they couldn’t make shots.

Trey Kaufman-Renn had 12 points and 12 rebounds for Purdue. Fletcher Loyer added 12 points.

Bennett Stirtz led Iowa with 19 points. The Hawkeyes shot 37.7% from the field, a percentage raised by a late stretch in which they made nine of their last 13 shots.

NO. 14 FLORIDA 92, NO. 25 KENTUCKY 83

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Xaivian Lee scored 22 points, Urban Klavzar added 19 and Florida beat Kentucky for its 10th victory in its last 11 outings.

Lee and Klavzar took advantage of Florida’s paint presence and hit a combined nine 3-pointers.

Thomas Haugh (17), Alex Condon (14) and Rueben Chinyelu (10) also scored in double figures for the Gators, who ended a six-game skid against the Wildcats at home.

Florida (19-6, 10-2 Southeastern Conference) had been 1-4 against Kentucky (17-8, 8-4) under coach Todd Golden. But the Gators led wire to wire in this one and finished with a 45-37 rebounding advantage. Condon and Chinyelu grabbed 11 boards each, both finishing with a double-double.

The matchup featured a unique subplot. Kentucky guard Denzel Aberdeen, who spent the last three years at Florida and helped the Gators win the national title last March, was “welcomed” back with a chorus of boos.

Aberdeen led the Wildcats with 19 points while getting taunted with chants of “Gator traitor” throughout. Collin Chandler added 18, and Otega Oweh chipped in 13.

NO. 15 VIRGINIA 70, OHIO STATE 66

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Malik Thomas and Sam Lewis each scored 13 points and Virginia beat Ohio State at Bridgestone Arena in the Nashville Hoops Showdown.

The Cavaliers (22-3) extended their winning streak to six.

Bruce Thornton scored 28 points for Ohio State (16-9). He also had an assist, the 500th of his career.

Amare Bynum had 15 points and six rebounds for the Buckeyes in their latest nonconference game in nearly 40 years.

It was tied at 37 at the half, with Virginia erasing an early Ohio State lead

Ohio State opened up a six-point lead with under 10 minutes remaining, but the Cavaliers had a 6-0 run to tie it.

With just over a minute remaining, Lewis forced a turnover and then went the length of the floor for a layup to give Virginia a 65-61 lead. He then hit a pair of free throws with 11 seconds left to put the game out of reach.

NO. 17 ST. JOHN'S 79, PROVIDENCE 69

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Dylan Darling had 23 points and eight rebounds and St. John’s scored eight straight points after a fracas that resulted in six ejections to take the lead and earn its 11th straight victory over Providence.

Bryce Hopkins had nine points and nine rebounds for the Red Storm (20-5, 13-1 Big East), and the ex-Friars star was in the middle of it all when he was taken down by a hard foul with 14:25 left and Providence (11-15, 4-11) up 40-39.

By the time things were sorted out, four St. John’s and two Providence players had been ejected, and the Red Storm were on their way to an 8-0 run to take a lead that was never threatened.

Hopkins, who was booed during introductions and cheered when he missed shots, started his career at Kentucky and spent two seasons as one of Providence’s top players before tearing his ACL in 2023-24 and transferring to St. John’s for his final year.

The game also marked the return of Red Storm coach Rick Pitino, who took Providence to the 1987 Final Four but saw his hopes of a return dashed here last March with a second-round NCAA Tournament loss to longtime nemesis John Calipari and his Arkansas Razorbacks.

NO. 19 VANDERBILT 82, TEXAS A&M 69

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tyler Nickel scored 25 points to lead Vanderbilt to a victory over Texas A&M.

AK Okereke added a season-high 23 points while Devin McGlockton had 17 for the Commodores (21-4, 8-4 Southeastern Conference), who have won five of six since a three-game losing skid in mid-January.

Marcus Hill had 20 points for the Aggies (17-8, 7-5 SEC).

Vanderbilt led 36-32 at the half, paced by Nickel and Devin McGlockton who both had 11 points. Marcus Hill had 12 points in the opening 20 minutes for the Aggies.

Nickel’s 25 points are the most he’s scored against an SEC opponent this season.

NO. 21 ARKANSAS 88, AUBURN 75

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Darius Acuff Jr. tied a career high with 31 points and Billy Richmond III scored a career-high 25 to lead Arkansas past Auburn.

Acuff, who shot 10 of 15 from the field and 7 of 10 from 3-point range, made three straight 3-pointers early in the second half as the Razorbacks (19-6, 9-3 Southeastern Conference) went on a 19-4 run before the first media timeout after leading by six at halftime.

The freshman guard has scored in double figures every game this season and has now scored 20 points or more in six straight games. Arkansas has gone 5-1 in that span.

Richmond made 12 of 15 field goals to break his previous personal high of 16 points. Arkansas, as a team, shot 57% from the floor.

Auburn (14-11, 5-7) played without leading scorer Keyshawn Hall, who is averaging 20.7 points per game. Coach Steven Pearl said Hall was out for disciplinary reasons. Tahaad Pettiford scored 29 points on 11-of-18 shooting and KeShawn Murphy added 22 points on 9-of-16 shooting. The rest of the Tigers roster shot 22%.

The Tigers pulled within eight points with 8:25 left, but Richmond scored the next five points and Acuff added another 3-pointer to build Arkansas’ lead back to double digits.

NO. 22 BYU 90, COLORADO 86, OT

PROVO, Utah (AP) — Rob Wright III scored a career-high 39 points and BYU beat Colorado in overtime.

It was Wright’s second straight 30-point-plus game after scoring 30 at Baylor on Tuesday night. AJ Dybantsa added 20 points, 13 rebounds, and eight assists to help the Cougars (19-6, 7-5 Big 12) win without second-leading scorer Richie Saunders.

Saunders exited 45 seconds into the game after suffering an apparent lower leg injury on BYU’s first possession and did not return.

Aleksej Kostic hit an open 3-pointer with 1:21 left in overtime to put BYU up 85-82. Colorado missed six straight shots and scored one basket over the final 3 1/2 minutes, allowing the Cougars to seal the win at the free-throw line.

Isaiah Johnson had 27 points to lead Colorado (14-12, 4-9). Barrington Hargress chipped in 20 and Bangot Dak added 15.

NO. 24 LOUISVILLE 82, BAYLOR 71

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Mikel Brown Jr. had a part of every point during Louisville’s go-ahead run early in the second half as the standout freshman followed up his historic game with 29 points and six assists in the Cardinals’ win over Baylor.

The Cardinals (19-6) went ahead to stay with an 11-3 run that started when Brown had the assist on J’Vonne Hadley’s basket with 18:20 left to snap a 39-all tie. Brown made three free throws less than a minute later after being fouled on a long shot, then had back-to-back steals and immediately followed with assists both times — on Sananda Fru’s dunk, then another jumper by Hadley. That run ended with Brown’s layup with 15:06 left that made it 50-42.

Hadley finished with 20 points and Ryan Conwell had 14 for the Cardinals, who shot 56% (28 of 50) from the field.

Brown was coming off 45 points in Louisville’s 118-77 win over North Carolina State on Monday night, when he matched the single-game school record and broke Cooper Flagg’s ACC freshman mark for a single game.

Isaac Williams had 20 points for the Bears (13-12), while freshman Tounde Yessoufou had 16. Yessoufou had 37 points in a 99-94 home loss to No. 22 BYU on Tuesday night.

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MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Nick Boyd scored 29 points and shot 5 of 7 from 3-point range as Wisconsin trounced No. 10 Michigan State 92-71 on Friday night, marking the second time in four nights that the Badgers have beaten a top-10 team.

Wisconsin (18-7, 10-4 Big Ten) is the first team to post three wins over top-10 squads this season. The Badgers won 91-88 at No. 2 Michigan on Jan. 10 and pulled out a 92-90 overtime victory at No. 8 Illinois on Tuesday.

The Badgers made their first five 3-point attempts in the opening 5 1/2 minutes and never looked back on their way to a surprisingly easy victory that ended with a court storming.

Wisconsin never trailed and led by as many as 24. The Badgers shot 15 of 35 from 3-point range, including 10 of 17 in the first half.

Boyd scored 20 of his 29 points in the first half, while John Blackwell had 19 of his 24 in the second half. Nolan Winter added 10 points and 11 rebounds for Wisconsin.

Coen Carr had 19 points to lead Michigan State (20-5, 10-4). Jeremy Fears Jr. had 14 points and 12 assists, but he shot just 3 of 12 from the floor.

NO. 18 SAINT LOUIS 86, LOYOLA OF CHICAGO 59

CHICAGO (AP) — Trey Green and Ishan Sharma each scored 14 points and Saint Louis won its 18th straight game, beating Loyola of Chicago.

Quentin Jones added 12 points, and Amari McCottry had 11 for the Billikens (24-1, 12-0 Atlantic 10). They matched the 2013-14 team for the best A10 start in school history.

Saint Louis made 10 of 12 shots to pull away midway through the second half.

Justin Moore scored 12 points for Loyola (6-20, 2-11), and Daniil Glazkov had a career-high 11. The Ramblers lost by 20 or more points for the seventh time this season.

Loyola was within three points late in the first half before Saint Louis had a 13-3 run that carried into the second half.

The Billikens then had a 10-2 run, keyed by two 3-pointers, an assist and a block by Sharma, followed by runs of 8-0 and 11-0.

NO. 23 MIAMI (OHIO) 90, OHIO 74

OXFORD, Ohio (AP) — Brant Byers scored 21 points, Peter Suder had 20 and Miami University beat Ohio to remain the lone unbeaten team in Division I.

Eian Elmer added 15 points for the RedHawks (25-0, 11-0 Mid-American Conference), who tied the single-season school record for victories set last season.

Jackson Paveletzke led Ohio (13-13, 7-6) with 22 points and Javan Simmons scored 12. The Bobcats struggled on 3-pointers, making only 5 of 21 while the RedHawks were 9 of 18 from beyond the arc and 21 of 28 on free throws.

Byers, Suder and Almar Atlason had six rebounds apiece as the RedHawks had a 38-29 advantage on the boards.

Miami had a 43-35 lead at halftime before steadily pulling away. It opened the second half on a 7-2 run, including five points by Byers, who finished 13 of 16 from the foul line.

EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — L.J. Cason scored 13 of his 18 points after halftime, helping No. 2 Michigan rally for an 87-75 victory over Nick Martinelli and Northwestern on Wednesday night.

Yaxel Lendeborg added 15 points and 12 rebounds as the Wolverines (23-1, 13-1 Big Ten) erased a 16-point deficit in the second half of their ninth consecutive victory. Morez Johnson Jr., Aday Mara and Trey McKenney each scored 12 points.

Michigan grabbed control with a 15-2 run. Lendeborg made a tiebreaking layup with 5:51 left, and Mara’s alley-oop jam off a pass from Cason gave the Wolverines a 75-69 lead with 4:43 remaining.

Michigan shot 55% (16 for 29) while outscoring Northwestern 52-31 in the second half of its 19th double-digit win this season.

Jayden Reid scored 20 points for the Wildcats in their fourth consecutive loss. Martinelli finished with 18 on 5-for-22 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds.

Northwestern used an 8-1 run to open a 58-42 lead with 14:22 left. Angelo Ciaravino capped the spurt with a jumper in the paint.

Michigan then got back in the game by scoring 16 of the next 18 points. Johnson’s alley-oop dunk trimmed Northwestern’s advantage to 60-58 with 9:38 to go, delighting a sizeable contingent of Michigan fans at Welsh-Ryan Arena.

NO. 6 UCONN 80, BUTLER 70

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Solo Ball scored 24 points and Tarris Reed Jr. finished with 16 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists as UConn held off Butler for a victory.

Ball was 6 of 12 from 3-point range while Huskies guard Braylon Mullins scored 13 of his 15 points in the first half as Indiana’s reigning Mr. Basketball returned to his home state for the first time as a college player. UConn (23-2, 13-1 Big East) rebounded from Friday night’s loss at St. John’s and moved a half-game ahead of the Red Storm atop the conference standings.

Butler was led by Drayton Jones with 15 points. Yohan Traore added 14 as the Bulldogs (13-12, 4-10) lost their fifth in a row.

It was an uncharacteristic game for coach Dan Hurley’s UConn squad.

Alex Karaban spent most of the first half on the bench after drawing two fouls in the first 7 1/2 minutes and finished with six points and five rebounds.

Karaban’s teammates had their own foul trouble in the second half as Butler played almost the final 9 1/2 minutes in the bonus. As a result, each time the Huskies looked as though they might take control, the Bulldogs answered — until UConn’s final flurry.

NO. 14 FLORIDA 86, GEORGIA 66

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Xaivian Lee scored 18 points and Florida finally found its touch from 3-point range, leading from the opening tip for a victory over Georgia.

The Gators (18-6, 9-2 Southeastern Conference) are hitting their stride with March just a few weeks away. The reigning national champions have won nine of 10 games — all but one of those victories by double-digit margins — and are all alone atop the league standings.

Georgia (17-7, 5-6) clearly missed top scorer Jeremiah Wilkinson, who sat out because of a shoulder injury. The Bulldogs simply didn’t have enough firepower without their sophomore guard, who is averaging 17.1 points.

Blue Cain led Georgia with 17 points.

NO. 16 TEXAS TECH 78, COLORADO 44

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Donovan Atwell scored 20 points with six 3-pointers and JT Toppin matched a career high with 18 rebounds in his 46th career double-double as Texas Tech blew out Colorado.

Toppin, the Big 12’s top rebounder at 10.9 per game, also had 16 points in his league-high 15th double-double this season and 34th in 56 games since arriving at Texas Tech from New Mexico before last season. Christian Anderson added 14 points and seven assists, and Jaylen Petty scored 12 for the Red Raiders (18-6, 8-3).

Isaiah Johnson had 13 points and Ian Inman added 12 for Colorado (14-11, 4-8). The Buffaloes shot a season-worst 29.1% (16 for 55) from the field, including 24% (6 of 25) on 3-pointers.

Colorado’s only lead came when Barrington Hargress made its first shot of the game for a 2-0 score. Atwell put the Red Raiders ahead to stay with his first 3, and they led 39-22 at halftime. Then they scored the first eight points after the break, maintaining at least a 20-point lead the rest of the way.

VIRGINIA TECH 76, NO. 20 CLEMSON 66

CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Jailen Bedford scored 23 points, Ben Hammond had 17 of his 19 points in the second half and Virginia Tech knocked Clemson out of a first-place Atlantic Coast Conference tie with No. 4 Duke, beating the Tigers.

Bedford was the first-half spark with Hammond taking over after halftime as the Hokies (17-8, 6-6) snapped a two-game losing streak with their first win at Clemson since coach Mike Young’s first season in 2019-20.

The Tigers (20-5, 10-2) moved into tie for the top after the Blue Devils’ drama-filled loss to rival North Carolina on Saturday night. But Virginia Tech used an 11-5 run, fueled by Bradford’s eight points, to close the first half up 40-33.

Clemson got to 40-38 early on in the second half, but gradually fell behind by 12 points, 52-40, on Hammond’s second 3-pointer. The Tigers closed to 69-64 on Carter Welling’s three-point play with 2:36 remaining. Bedford followed with his fourth 3-pointer to thwart Clemson’s comeback hopes.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Oscar Cluff’s layup put Purdue ahead with 3.9 seconds left in overtime after Nebraska had taken its first lead and Gicarri Harris’ two free throws sealed the No. 13 Boilermakers’ 80-77 victory over the No. 7 Cornhuskers on Tuesday night.

Purdue (20-4, 10-3 Big Ten) escaped after blowing a 22-point lead early in the second half. The Boilermakers recorded their second top-10 win of the season to start a difficult closing stretch that has them playing three top-10 teams over 16 days.

Nebraska (21-3, 10-3) lost for the third time in four games following a 20-0 start. All three losses were to ranked opponents.

Fletcher Loyer led Purdue with 18 points, Trey Kaufman-Renn had a career-high 19 rebounds and Braden Smith had 13 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.

Rienk Mast led the Huskers with 18 points, Jamarques Lawrence added 16 and Pryce Sandfort had all 15 of his points in the second half.

Sandfort’s layup with 1:31 left in overtime gave Nebraska its first lead, 77-75. Cluff had a chance to tie it when he got fouled pulling down an offensive rebound, but he made only one of two free throws. Cluff’s putback on the next possession put the Boilermakers up by a point in the final seconds. Lawrence fumbled Sam Hoiberg’s inbound pass, and Harris picked up the ball and got fouled. After Harris made his free throws, Cluff intercepted the Huskers’ length-of-the-court pass just ahead of the buzzer.

NO. 3 HOUSTON 66, UTAH 52

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Emanuel Sharp set the school record for career 3-pointers and finished with 27 points to lift Houston over Utah.

Sharp made a career-high eight 3s on 8-of-13 shooting from beyond the arc to give him 277, surpassing Marcus Sasser (276 in 2019-23) for the school mark. The record-breaking 3 was a 30-foot jumper with 15:06 to play.

Joseph Tugler and Milos Uzan each scored 9 points for the Cougars (22-2, 10-1 Big 12), who have won five straight and 16 of their last 17.

Keanu Dawes scored 15 points and Seydou Traore added 12 to pace the Utes (9-15, 1-10 Big 12) in the first meeting between Houston and Utah in Salt Lake City.

Houston led 40-25 after Tugler scored two inside baskets and the Cougars forced three straight turnovers to start the second half on an 8-0 run. The lead grew to 22 points on Chris Cenac’s dunk to make it 55-33 with 8:28 remaining.

NO. 4 DUKE 70, PITTSBURGH 54

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Isiah Evans scored 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting, including 5 for 6 on 3-pointers, and Duke pulled away in the second half to defeat Pittsburgh.

Cameron Boozer added 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Blue Devils, and Caleb Foster had 14 points and eight boards.

Duke (22-2, 11-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) bounced back from a buzzer-beating loss to archrival North Carolina on Saturday that ended the Blue Devils’ 10-game winning streak. Duke blew a 15-point lead in the second half of that one and allowed the last nine points.

There were six lead changes and five ties in the first half before Duke scored seven straight points to take a 35-29 halftime lead. The Blue Devils then scored the first five points of the second period to make it a 12-0 run and extend their advantage to 40-29.

Pitt (9-16, 2-10) lost for the 10th time in 12 games. Roman Siulepa led the Panthers with 19 points and Barry Dunning Jr. scored 17, including 13 in the first half.

WISCONSIN 92, NO. 8 ILLINOIS 90, OT

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — Nick Boyd scored 25 points and John Blackwell had 24 to lead Wisconsin to an overtime victory over Illinois.

The pair combined for nine of the Badgers’ 11 points in overtime, handing the Illini their second straight overtime loss. Illinois lost Saturday at No. 10 Michigan State.

Wisconsin (17-7, 9-4 Big Ten) trailed by 12 points with 8:10 to go in regulation but sent the game into overtime at 81-all thanks to two 3-pointers by Austin Rapp in the final two minutes. Rapp finished with 18 points.

The Badgers’ Nolan Winter scored four points after a career-high 26 in an overtime loss Saturday at Indiana, but he had 11 rebounds.

Keaton Wagler scored 34 points for Illinois (20-5, 11-3), which played without injured starters Kylan Boswell (hand) and Andrej Stojakovic (ankle).

Tomislav Ivisic had 19 points and 11 rebounds, David Mirkovic had 12 points, Jake Davis had 11 and Ben Humrichous had 10 for the Illini.

MIAMI 75, NO. 11 NORTH CAROLINA 66

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) — Malik Reneau scored 16 points, Ernest Udeh Jr. had 15 points and 10 rebounds and Miami never trailed while beating North Carolina for the Hurricanes’ first victory over a Top 25 opponent in two years.

Tre Donaldson finished with 14 points, six rebounds and five assists, and Shelton Henderson added 12 points for the Hurricanes (19-5, 8-3 Atlantic Coast Conference).

Udeh made a free throw with 2:11 remaining, then rebounded his missed second attempt and scored on a layup to put Miami ahead 66-60.

After Donaldson’s layup with 1:20 left made it 69-62, Jarin Stevenson’s layup 5 seconds later got the Tar Heels (19-5, 7-4) within five. Despite finishing 14 of 23 from the foul line, Miami clinched the win with six free throws in the final minute.

As soon as the horn sounded, Hurricanes fans stormed the court, celebrating their first win over a Top 25 team since beating No. 16 Clemson 95-82 Jan. 3, 2024.

Stevenson scored 13 points, Caleb Wilson had 12 and Henri Veesar added 11 for the Tar Heels.

NO. 15 VIRGINIA 61, FLORIDA STATE 58

TALAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Jacari White scored 19 points off the bench, including a go-ahead dunk with 1:12 remaining, and Virginia closed on an 11-0 run to rally past Florida State.

White shot 5 of 9 from 3-point range as the Orlando native returned to the Sunshine State and helped the Cavaliers (21-3, 10-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) extend their winning streak to five games. He played 21 minutes and scored more points than he had in any ACC game this season.

Lajae Jones had 21 points and a season-high 13 rebounds for Florida State (11-13, 3-7), which had won three straight. Robert McCray V finished with 20 points.

A short jumper by Thijs De Ridder gave Virginia a 61-58 advantage with 25 seconds remaining. Jones and McCray each missed a 3-pointer that could have tied it, and the Seminoles went scoreless over the final 4:54.

De Ridder had nine points and nine rebounds, helping Virginia outrebound Florida State 47-37.

Led by White, Virginia’s bench outscored Florida State’s reserves 32-10.

NO. 19 VANDERBILT 84, AUBURN 76

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Tyler Tanner scored 25 points, Jalen Washington added 22, and Vanderbilt outlasted Auburn.

Washington hit 7 of 8 shots and knocked down both of his 3-point attempts as a 25% shooter beyond the arc. Devin McGlockton had 12 points and seven rebounds.

Tanner, the Commodores’ leading scorer, drilled a 3-pointer late in the clock to stop a second-half run by the Tigers.

Tahaad Pettiford led Auburn with 21 points. Keyshawn Hall had 13 points and KeShawn Murphy added 12 points.

Vanderbilt (20-4, 7-4 Southeastern Conference) assisted on 14 of its 25 made shots. Auburn had just nine assists.

Vanderbilt went into halftime with a 42-31 lead after closing out the final 6:03 on a 16-5 run. McGlockton scored 12 of the 16 points to spark the Commodores’ stretch.

Auburn (14-10, 5-6) shot just 32.1% from the field in the first half but made 5 of 10 3-pointers — including a deep 3-pointer from Pettiford to slow down Vanderbilt’s attack — and held an 18-12 rebounding advantage.

Auburn threatened late with a 12-2 run to bring the game to within four points but could not get closer.

NO. 21 ARKANSAS 91, LSU 62

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Darius Acuff Jr. scored 28 points — the freshman’s fifth straight game scoring 21 or more — and Arkansas routed reeling LSU.

Fellow freshman Meleek Thomas added 20 points, Trevon Brazile had 14 points and 12 rebounds, and Billy Richmond III scored 13 points for the Razorbacks (18-6, 8-3 Southeastern Conference), who led throughout and by as many as 36 points en route to their fifth victory in six games.

Marquel Sutton scored 18 points and Pablo Tamba added 11 points for LSU (14-10, 2-9), which shot 31% (21 of 68) while losing for the fifth time in six games.

The Tigers outrebounded Arkansas 43-36 and grabbed 21 rebounds on the offensive end, but managed just 13 second-chance points.

Arkansas had lost its previous three visits to LSU’s Pete Maravich Assembly Center, but the Razorbacks, who shot 56% (35 of 62), quickly put themselves in position to end that streak.

NO. 22 BYU 99, BAYLOR 94

WACO, Texas (AP) — AJ Dybantsa scored 36 points, Robert Wright III added a career-high 30 while getting booed nearly every time he touched the ball and BYU ended a four-game losing streak with a victory over Baylor.

Wright backed out on an agreement to return to the Bears after spending his freshman season with them, and the Foster Pavilion fans let him know how they felt. Loud boos rang out during his pregame introduction, and Baylor students chanted “traitor” several times during the game.

BYU (18-6, 6-5 Big 12) rallied from an early 12-point deficit, led by Dybantsa and Wright but with some key plays from Richie Saunders as the Cougars avoided matching their longest skid since losing the final five games of the 2004-05 season.

Freshman guard Tounde Yessoufou scored a season-high 37 points and Cameron Carr added 24 for the Bears (13-11, 3-9), who trimmed a 17-point deficit with less than five minutes remaining to four but still dropped to 1-5 at home in Big 12 play.

Dybantsa was 14 of 20 from the field and had seven assists in the fifth 30-point game of a freshman season that figures to lead to a top-five pick in this summer’s NBA draft.

The Associated Press national player of the week in women’s basketball for Week 14 of the season:

Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt

The sophomore guard scored 37 points to go with four steals and four assists to help Vanderbilt edge then-No. 16 Kentucky 84-83. It was her second straight 30-plus point game and the NCAA-leading seventh time she's had over 30 points this season. She shot 52% from the field and hit six 3-pointers.

Runner-up

Shay Ciezki, Indiana. The senior guard averaged 30 points, 10.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists to go along with three steals in wins over Wisconsin and Purdue. She shot 63.2% in the win over the Badgers with three 3-pointers. In the win over Purdue, she led Indiana with 29 points and 12 rebounds for her second double-double of the season. Her team-high eight assists left her just shy of a triple-double.

Honorable mention

Toby Fournier, No. 11 Duke; Azzi Fudd, No. 1 UConn; Kiki Rice, No. 2 UCLA.

Keep an eye on

Davidson senior forward Charlise Dunn averaged 24.5 points, 1.5 steals and 1.5 blocks to go along with eight rebounds in two games last week. Dunn got the Wildcats back into the win column with a 31-point performance at home against George Washington. She also led the team at St. Bonaventure with 17 points and 10 rebounds.

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The Associated Press national player of the week in men’s college basketball for Week 14 of the season:

Zuby Ejiofor, No. 17 St. John's

The 6-foot-9, 245-pound senior came up huge in a marquee matchup with then-No. 3 UConn and flirted with a triple-double. Ejiofor finished with 21 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, three blocks and two steals in Friday's 81-72 victory over UConn at New York's Madison Square Garden, ending the Huskies' 18-game winning streak. Earlier in the week, he had 16 points, nine rebounds, four assists and one block in a win at DePaul. Those performances helped St. John's enter this week with a nine-game winning streak.

Runner-up

Quadir Copeland, N.C. State. The 6-6 senior began last week with seven points, 10 rebounds and 16 assists with zero turnovers in 33 minutes of a road win at SMU. That marked the first time an Atlantic Coast Conference player had 16 assists with zero turnovers since 1997 and the first in Division I since 2019. He followed with a season-high 21 points, 10 assists and five steals in a weekend home win against Virginia Tech. Copeland entered the week ranked eighth in Division I in assists (7.0).

Honorable mention

Otega Oweh, No. 25 Kentucky; Ebuka Okorie, Stanford.

Keep an eye on

Dylan Andrews, Boise State. The 6-3 senior erupted with two big outputs in high-scoring wins to be named Mountain West Conference player of the week. Andrews had 25 points and six assists in a 91-87 overtime win against Nevada. He followed with 33 points and four assists in Saturday's win at New Mexico. Andrews made 16 of 26 shots (.615), 7 of 15 3-pointers (.467) and 19 of 20 free throws (.950) for the two games while committing just three turnovers in 70 minutes of game action. Andrews is averaging 12.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists.

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AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Justice Carlton scored 17 points and No. 4 Texas overcame poor second-half offense to defeat No. 18 Kentucky 64-53 on Monday night.

The Longhorns (23-2, 8-2 SEC) improved to 9-2 against AP Top 25 teams while winning their 40th straight home game, the longest streak in the nation. But this one was in doubt until the final few minutes.

Kentucky (18-7, 5-6) trailed by 14 before the midway point in the third quarter, but found itself down by just one point after a basket by Clara Strack with 6:23 remaining in the game. Texas responded with four free throws by Kyla Oldacre and a 3-pointer by Carlton with 3:54 left for a 56-50 lead after Madison Booker grabbed the rebound of a missed 3 by Jordan Lee.

Texas made six straight free throws in the final 1:25 to secure the win. Lee scored 13, the only Longhorns player other than Carlton in double figures.

Asia Boone led Kentucky with 16 points and Strack added 14. The Wildcats shot just 39% from the field and committed a season-high 23 turnovers.

NO. 5 VANDERBILT 102, NO. 10 OKLAHOMA 86

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Mikayla Blakes scored 34 points as Vanderbilt beat Oklahoma.

After getting outscored in the first half of their last four games, the Commodores (23-2, 9-2 Southeastern) scored 59 points on their way to a 19-point halftime lead.

Oklahoma (17-6, 5-5) took its only lead when Payton Verhulst hit a 3-pointer just eight seconds into the game. Justine Pissott answered with a 3 that sparked a 12-2 run and Vanderbilt never again trailed. The Commodore took their biggest lead at 51-25 when Blakes converted a three-point play with 6:17 left in the second quarter.

Aubrey Galvan had a career high 30 points, 17 in the first half. Her previous high was 20 in Vanderbilt’s 72-69 win over No. 7 Michigan on Jan. 19.

Pissott had 16 points and Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda had 13 points and nine rebounds for Vanderbilt.

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Flory Bidunga had a double-double and No. 9 Kansas defeated top-ranked and previously unbeaten Arizona 82-78 on Monday night.

Arizona (23-1, 10-1 Big 12) entered Allen Fieldhouse with the second-longest winning streak in Division I men’s basketball.

Kansas (19-5, 9-2) played without freshman guard Darryn Peterson, who was a late scratch with flu-like symptoms. Peterson has missed 11 games with a combination of hamstring, calf and ankle issues.

Arizona held a three-point lead at halftime and led by as many as 11 before Kansas took its first lead of the game at the 9:32 mark in the second half.

Bidunga put the Jayhawks ahead with a layup, which capped a personal seven-point run. He finished with 23 points on 8-for-11 shooting and added 10 rebounds.

Arizona closed within one point with 34 seconds left in the game, but senior guard Melvin Council Jr. shot 3 of 4 from the line in the final minute and 10 of 11 in the game to help seal the victory for Kansas. He finished with 23 points. Tre White also added a pair of late free throws.

Four Kansas players scored double digits. Bryson Tiller finished with 18 points and Jamari McDowell added 10.

Freshman guard Brayden Burries led Arizona with 25 points. Motiejus Krivas scored 14 and Ivan Kharchenkov 13.

NO. 7 ST. JOHN'S 87, XAVIER 82, OT

NEW YORK (AP) — Zuby Ejiofor scored six of his 25 points in overtime and St. John’s outlasted pesky Xavier at Madison Square Garden for its 10th consecutive victory.

With his 904th career win on the court, Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino passed Roy Williams for third place in Division I history behind Mike Krzyzewski (1,202) and Jim Boeheim (1,116).

It was Pitino’s second victory in 17 days over his son, Richard, the first-year coach of the Musketeers. In the previous meeting, the elder Pitino earned his 900th win when the Johnnies rallied from a 16-point deficit in the second half for an 88-83 victory at Xavier.

Bryce Hopkins added 19 points and nine rebounds for the Red Storm (19-5, 12-1 Big East), who won for the 15th time in 17 games and tied No. 6 UConn atop the conference standings.

St. John’s was coming off a rousing win Friday night at The Garden over the rival Huskies.

Dylan Darling had 16 points, five rebounds and four assists off the bench for the Johnnies. Ejiofor provided seven rebounds, five assists and two steals.

St. John’s went 28 for 41 (68%) at the free-throw line, its most foul shots since taking 44 against Lehigh in November 2011.

Tre Carroll, the Big East’s leading scorer, had 21 points and eight rebounds for the Musketeers (12-12, 4-9), who have lost five of six and eight of 11.

NO. 24 LOUISVILE 118, NC STATE 77

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Mikel Brown Jr. had 10 3-pointers and scored an Atlantic Coast Conference freshman single-game record 45 points as Louisville routed N.C. State.

Ryan Conwell added 31 and the Cardinals (18-6, 8-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) shot 60% for the game.

Brown eclipsed the previous ACC freshman record of 42 points, set last season by Duke’s Cooper Flagg. The 45 points also tied Hall of Famer Wes Unseld’s single-game Louisville scoring mark, set on Dec. 1, 1967, against Georgetown College.

After up-and-down scoring outputs in five games since returning from a lower back injury, the heralded freshman guard had 21 points with five 3s by halftime before erasing LaBradford Smith’s school freshman mark of 32 midway through the second.

Brown’s record-tying 3 came with 2:09 remaining, bringing a huge cheer from a white-clad crowd of 14,389 eager to see if he’d approach Unseld’s school mark.

He finished 14 of 23 from the field with a career-best 10 of 16 from beyond the arc, topping his previous best of 29 points against rival Kentucky in December. That had ranked fourth-best all time among Louisville freshmen coming in.

Louisville started off hot and didn’t cool off much, shooting 58% in the first half and finishing 39 of 65 overall. The Cardinals’ total included 18 3-pointers on 30 attempts, tying their second-highest output this season.

Ven-Allen Lubin had 20 points and Tre Holloman 19 for N.C. State (18-7, 9-3), which had won six in a row and entered 6-0 in ACC road games. The Wolfpack shot 41% and made just 18% from deep.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Lauren Betts had 16 points, 16 rebounds, five assists and three blocks to help No. 2 UCLA hold off No. 8 Michigan for a 69-66 win on Sunday.

The Wolverines trailed by 11 points with less than two minutes left and with a chance to tie the game, Syla Swords shot an airball on a 3-pointer with 2.2 seconds left.

UCLA (23-1, 13-0 Big Ten) took a two-game lead over Michigan (20-4, 11-2) in the conference with its 17th straight victory since losing to No. 4 Texas in November.

The Bruins outscored Michigan by 14 over the second and third quarters, leading by as much as 13 points, and finished with their NCAA -high ninth win over an AP Top 25 team.

The Wolverines’ school-record, nine-game winning streak in Big Ten games was snapped by a big and experienced team that plays stifling defense and is led by a 6-foot-7 preseason All-America center that does it all.

NO. 3 SOUTH CAROLINA 93, TENNESSEE 50

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Ta’Niya Latson scored 21 points, Joyce Edwards added 20 and South Carolina ran past Tennessee for its ninth straight victory over the Lady Vols.

The Gamecocks (24-2, 10-1 Southeastern Conference) pulled away midway through the second quarter and never let up after that, finishing with a single-game program SEC shooting mark of 69% (36-52).

Tennessee has struggled, like most other SEC teams, against South Carolina the past few years, although the Lady Vols’ previous three games — all Gamecock wins — were decided by single digits.

And the Lady Vols matched the Gamecocks energy early on as things were tied at 16 last in the first quarter. That’s when South Carolina took control with a 9-2 run as Latson had five points and Edwards four.

Tennessee faltered again right before half, missing six of its final seven shots. Meanwhile, the Gamecocks were on fire, hitting six of their last eight to lead 47-32 at the break.

Things only got worse the rest of the way as the Lady Vols were outscored 46-18. Tennessee was held 28 points below its season average. The 43-point defeat was the worst in program history, surpassing a 31-point loss to Texas in 1984.

NO. 5 LSU 77, AUBURN 44

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — ZaKiyah Johnson scored 16 points, Mikaylah Williams added 12 and LSU bounced back from a midweek loss to rout Auburn.

LSU’s defense proved to be the key, holding Auburn to 25% shooting from the field and 14.3% from 3-point range.

Flau’jae Johnson, LSU’s leading scorer, finished with 10 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Amiya Joyner notched a double-double, finishing with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

LSU (22-3, 8-3 Southeastern Conference) jumped out to an early lead after holding Auburn (13-12, 2-9) to just six points in the first quarter and took a 36-13 lead into the half. Auburn made 5 of 30 shots from the field and missed all 14 from behind the arc in the first half.

LSU built its advantage with a 10-0 run that lasted nearly eight minutes during the first half, then closed out the half with an 8-0 spurt.

Once again, size proved to be an issue for Auburn. The Tigers were outrebounded 54-30, and LSU held a 34-24 advantage in points in the paint.

NO. 6 LOUISVILLE 84, SYRACUSE 65

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — Laura Ziegler scored 22 points and Louisville raced out to a quick lead it never gave up in a win over Syracuse.

The Cardinals (22-4, 12-1 ACC) were coming off a one-point loss to Duke that snapped the team’s 14-game winning streak. They scored the first 12 points against Syracuse, holding the Orange without a field goal in the first quarter. Louisville built the lead to 28-6 over the Orange (19-5, 9-4) as Syracuse missed all 13 of its field goal attempts in the first 10 minutes.

Syracuse didn’t score its first basket until a jumper by Dominique Darius with 10 seconds gone in the second quarter, but the Cardinals went on to build a 36-14 lead.

The Orange stormed back, closing the first half on a 22-6 run to narrow the margin to 44-36 at the break. Darius fueled the comeback, scoring all her 16 first-half points in the quarter and going 6-of-6 from the field, including two 3s.

Syracuse closed to within five at 59-54 on a layup by Burrows off a Louisville turnover with two minutes to go in the third, but that’s the closest Syracuse would get. The Cardinals closed the game on a 25-11 run.

NO. 9 OHIO STATE 80, OREGON 64

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Elsa Lemmila scored a career-high 23 points to help Ohio State beat Oregon.

Kennedy Cambridge added 20 points, hitting five 3-pointers, for the Buckeyes (22-3, 11-2 Big Ten), who won their fourth straight game and 11th in 12 games. Jaloni Cambridge scored 19 points to surpass 1,000 points in her career.

The Buckeyes shot 52% from the field and made 17 of its 19 free throws. Senior guard Chance Gray, who played her first two years at Oregon before transferring to Ohio State, had eight points and five rebounds in her return game.

Ari Long made four 3-pointers while scoring 16 points to lead the Ducks (18-8, 6-7), who had a four-game winning streak snapped. Oregon is 2-4 vs. Top 25 teams this year, but 0-3 against those opponents at home.

Sarah Rambus added 13 points for Oregon, which committed 23 turnovers that led to 17 points for Ohio State. Mia Jacobs had 13 points and five rebounds for the Ducks, who shot 37% from the field.

COLORADO 80, NO. 14 TCU 79

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Jade Masogayo’s three-point play with two seconds remaining lifted Colorado to a stunning victory over TCU, denying the Horned Frogs a spot at the top of the Big 12 Conference.

After Donovyn Hunter’s driving layup gave TCU a 79-77 lead with five seconds remaining, Masogayo took a sideline inbounds pass, drove the right side of the lane and made a short bank shot to tie the score. Kennedy Basham was called for a foul on the play and Masogayo sank the and-1 for the win.

TCU led 76-70 after a layup by Olivia Miles with about three minutes remaining. Colorado scored the next five points, then Miles made a free throw for a 77-75 lead with 50 seconds left. Masagayo made two tying free throws with 24 seconds left.

Masaqayo scored a career-high 23 points on 7-of-11 shooting plus 9 of 10 free throws. Desiree Wooten added 19 points, Logyn Greer 17 and Zyanna Walker 15 for the Buffaloes (16-8, 7-5 Big 12). Masagayo topped her previous best of 22 points against TCU last season.

Miles matched her season high with 31 points. Marta Suarez scored 20 and Hunter 17 for TCU (21-4, 9-3). With a win, TCU would have shared first place with 15th-ranked Baylor, which is 10-2 in the conference.

NO. 17 DUKE 95, SMU 36

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Freshman center Arianna Roberson had career highs of 22 points and 16 rebounds off the bench, Toby Fournier added 26 points and Duke routed SMU for the Blue Devils’ 15th straight win.

Duke’s 13th straight ACC victory extends the Blue Devils’ best conference start under head coach Kara Lawson. The 15 consecutive wins are also the most under Lawson, who is in her fifth full season leading the Blue Devils (18-6, 13-0).

Delaney Thomas had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Ashlon Jackson was Duke’s third player with a double-double in the game, scoring 11 points to go with 10 assists.

Fournier and Jackson scored eight points each and the Blue Devils raced out to a 24-6 lead at the end of the first quarter. They led 5-2 before going on a 19-3 run.

Roberson and Fournier scored eight points each in the second quarter and the Blue Devils continued to dominate, ending the half with a 46-16 lead. The Blue Devils shot 56% in the first half, compared to 22% for SMU.

NO. 24 WASHINGTON 91, WISCONSIN 86, OT

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Avery Howell had a career-high 34 points and 14 rebounds — the 6-foot sophomore’s sixth double-double this season — and Sayvia Sellers scored 23 points to help Washington beat Wisconsin in overtime.

Howell scored eight points in OT, including two of her career-high tying six 3-pointers. Elle Ladine finished with 16 points for Washington (18-6, 8-5 Big Ten). The Huskies had lost back-to-back games for just the second time this season.

Destiny Howell hit five 3-pointers and finished with 28 points for the Badgers. Gift Uchenna had 24 points, 12 rebounds, three steals and three blocks. Laci Steele added 10 points and Ronnie Porter tied her season high with 10 assists to go with eight points and six steals.

Destiny Howell made a 3-pointer and, after Brynn McGaughy hit two free throws on the other end, was fouled as she hit another and the and-1 free throw gave the Badgers a one-point lead with 1:09 to play. Avery Howell answered with a putback off a miss by McGaughy that made it 87-86 with 43 seconds left.

NO. 25 NORTH CAROLINA 84, WAKE FOREST 56

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Nyla Brooks scored 21 points, Nyla Harris added 19 and North Carolina rolled past Wake Forest.

North Carolina (20-5, 9-3 ACC) has won seven straight and reached 20 wins for the 34th time in program history.

Wake Forest led 9-6 through the first five minutes before North Carolina hit four 3-pointers — two each from Brooks and Lanie Grant — in a 16-0 run. The Tar Heels led 22-11 heading to the second quarter. Two more 3s from Brooks helped push the lead to 14 points before the Tar Heels settled for a 39-29 advantage at halftime.

Harris scored 11 points in the third quarter and the Tar Heels extended their lead to 65-42 entering the fourth. Carolina’s lead first reached 30 points at 78-48 on a short jumper by Blanca Thomas with about 3 1/2 minutes to go.