BU rallies to stop Bucknell
Terriers to face Navy in tourney
Senior Max Mahoney had invested too much time and energy into the Boston University basketball program have the season finale end with a blowout loss to Bucknell.
Mahoney was the lynchpin of remarkable 29-10 Terriers’ run in the final nine minutes to pull out a 74-71 victory over the Bison on Saturday afternoon at Case Gym.
The 6-8 forward from Basking Ridge, N.J., scored a game high 23 points -- that included his 1,500th -- with 10 rebounds and three blocks, two of which occurred in the final minutes.
Mahoney registered his eighth double-double in the last 16 games while shooting guard Javonte McCoy netted 17 with three assist and three rebounds.
“It’s been a long four years but it also feels like it’s gone by really fast,” said Mahoney, who received Senior Day honors with guard Adam Mikula in a pregame ceremony.
“I think it was one of our statement games and a great show to come out in the second half and win this game from behind.”
BU finished 18-13 overall, tied with American for second in the Patriot League at 12-6 and the No. 3 seed in the upcoming conference tournament. American drew the second seed on a tiebreaker.
BU will host Navy (14-15, 9-10) in the Patriot League quarterfinals on Thursday night at 7 p.m. Bucknell, which entered game with recent wins over front runners Colgate and American, fell to 12-19 and 8-10.
“It’s a great feeling to get into March, that’s the best time of the year for everybody and there is always extra energy,” said BU coach Joe Jones.
“I think we are capable of beating anybody in the league and I think we have proven that. When we are playing at our best, we are a team that has proven we can win. But I’m more concerned about our team than the other teams in the league.”
The Bison opened the second half with a 15-7 run to take a 45-32 lead into the first media timeout. Sophomore guard Andrew Funk (15 points) did the bulk of the damage with a pair of treys and a pullup jumper on the baseline.
The Terriers’ cause appeared lost when the Bison took their biggest lead of the game, 61-45, on a follow by Jimmy Sotos (19 points) with 9:45 to play.
BU guard Ethan Brittain-Watts began the improbable rally on a baseline drive with 8:51 remaining. He extended the run with a pair of treys from the top of the key to cut the Bison lead to 68-61 with 5:48 to go.
“We don’t win that game without Ethan, no way we win that game without Ethan on the floor,” said Jones. “That’s what’s got to happen, it can’t be just Max and Javonte, other guys have to step up and make plays.”
BU closed the game with a 13-3 run. McCoy put BU ahead 72-71 on consecutive pull-up jumpers in the key with 26.7 seconds on the clock. Mahoney hit a free throw with 12 seconds remaining and the Terriers defense did not allow the Bison a last good look from the perimeter.
“I was just trying to stay aggressive the whole time we were feeding Max, he was killing them and he had the hot hand,” said McCoy.
“I knew whenever they doubled him, and they had to double, my teammates were telling me play aggressive and play my game. When the ball came back out, I was ready to make those shots and I like the pull-up game.”
No. 1 Kansas 62, Kansas St. 58 — In their first meeting since the Jayhawks and Wildcats took a brawl into the stands, Devon Dotson poured in 25 points to help Kansas absorb the loss of bruising center Udoka Azubuike for long stretches, and the Jayhawks held on down the stretch for a win that gave them sole possession of first place in the Big 12.
TCU 75, No. 2 Baylor 72 — Desmond Bane scored 23 points, with eight straight in TCU’s tiebreaking run as the Horned Frogs upended No. 2 Baylor.
Baylor lost for the second time in three games since winning a Big 12-record 23 games in a row. The Bears were the nation’s No. 1 team when they lost a week ago to nowNo. 1 Kansas.
Clemson 70, No. 6 Florida St. 69 — Freshman Al-Amir Dawes hit a twisting, driving bucket with a second left and Clemson toppled another highly ranked team, rallying past Florida State.
Virginia 52, No. 7 Duke 50 —
Mamadi Diakite made a short, goahead jumper with 37 seconds left and Jay Huff blocked Vernon Carey Jr.’s shot under the basket with 3.7 remaining as Virginia ended a three-game home losing streak against Duke with a victory.
No. 8 Kentucky 73, No. 15 Auburn 66 — Immanuel Quickley had 18 points and a career-high 12 rebounds, Kentucky used a big run in the first half before holding off Auburn and clinch the Southeastern Conference regular season championship.
Providence 58, No. 12 Villanova 54 — Luwane Pipkins scored 27 points to lead Providence to its fifth win over a Top 25 team this month. The Friars boosted their NCAA Tournament resume with a win in Philly where they led for the balance of the game. Providence already knocked off Butler, Creighton, Seton Hall and Marquette during their ranked-win streak in February. The Friars won their fourth straight game overall and have put behind a disastrous start to the season — which included losses to Long Beach State and College of Charleston — to aid their tournament chances.
No. 13 Seton Hall 88, Marquette 79 — Myles Powell scored 28 points and Sandro Mamukelashvili added 26 as No. 13 Seton Hall built a big second-half lead and then held off Marquette.
No. 18 Iowa 77, No. 16 Penn St. 68 —
Luka Garza scored 25 points and had 17 rebounds as Iowa pulled away in the second half.
Garza extended his streak of 20 or more points against Big Ten teams to 14 games, a new school record. It was Garza’s 14th doubledouble of the season.
No. 17 BYU 81, Pepperdine 64 —
Yoeli Childs scored a career-high 38 points and BYU completed a perfect February as it rallied for a victory over Pepperdine.
Oklahoma 73, No. 20 West Virginia 62 — Kristian Doolittle scored 19 points two days after undergoing surgery to repair a broken nose and Oklahoma boosted its NCAA Tournament hopes with a victory over West Virginia.
Texas 68, No. 22 Texas Tech 58 —
Andrew Jones had a career-high 22 points and Texas scored the game’s last eight points over the final minute, stretching its winning streak to four games with a victory at Texas Tech.