Miller has another big game as No. 2 Alabama tops Arkansas

TUSCALOOSA, ALA. >> Brandon Miller scored 24 points and Mark Sears made seven of eight free throws over the final 1:04 to help No. 2 Alabama top Arkansas 86-83 on Saturday.

Miller delivered his second straight huge game for the Crimson Tide (25-4, 15-1 Southeastern Conference) since police alleged in courtroom testimony that he brought a gun to former teammate Darius Miles, who is charged with capital murder in a fatal shooting.

The week’s details cast a different light on Miller’s regular pregame introduction, which is a Tide staffer giving him a pat down. Coach Nate Oats said after the game that intro for Miller is now over.

Fellow freshman Nick Smith Jr. of Arkansas (1910, 8-8), another potential NBA draft lottery pick who helped keep the Razorbacks in it with a late 3-pointer, scored 24 points. Davonte Davis added 21 points for Arkansas, Council scored 20, and the rest of the team combined for 18 points.

Jahvon Quinerly had 16 points and seven assists for the Tide, and Noah Clowney had 10 points and 13 rebounds.

Kansas 76, West Virginia 74

LAWRENCE, KAN. >> Dajuan Harris was one point shy of a career high, scoring 17 points to help lift Kansas over West Virginia.

The Jayhawks’ stifling defense kept West Virginia from attempting a shot in the final 20 seconds. The Mountaineers’ Joe Toussaint traveled on their final possession of the game. Baskets by K.J. Adams and Kevin McCullar extended the Jayhawks’ lead to 75-68 late as they grinded out the victory.

Harris led Kansas (245, 12-4 Big 12) with 7-of-9 shooting from the field and had six assists and six steals.

Erik Stevenson led West Virginia (16-13, 5-11) with 23 points. Tre Mitchell scored 20, Kedrian Johnson scored 15 and Emmitt Mathews Jr. had 13.

North Carolina 71, Virginia 63

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. >> Pete Nance scored 22 points to lead North Carolina past Virginia.

Nance shot 7 of 10 from the floor and was 4 of 4 from behind the arc, the most 3-pointers the fifthyear forward has made in ACC play. He added two assists and four blocks.

R.J. Davis notched the fourth double-double of his career with 16 points and 10 rebounds for North Carolina (18-11, 10-8 Atlantic Coast Conference), which got a much-needed boost to its NCAA Tournament resume with a Quadrant 1 win — the first of the season for the Tar Heels.

Jayden Gardner had 19 points and 12 rebounds to lead Virginia (21-6, 135), which lost its second in a row. Armaan Franklin

added 14 points. Arizona State 89, Arizona 88

TUCSON, ARIZ. >> Desmond Cambridge Jr. hit a 60-foot shot at the buzzer and Arizona State rallied from a 10-point deficit to beat Arizona.

The Wildcats (24-5, 13-5 Pac-12) built a 10-point lead midway through the second half before going more than six minutes without a field goal as Arizona State pulled ahead by one.

The Sun Devils (20-9, 117) went up 86-85 on Warren Washington’s layup with just a minute left, but Pelle Larsson put Arizona back up on a layup with 29 seconds left. Arizona State’s DJ Horne missed a jumper with 4 seconds left and the Sun Devils had a final shot after Oumar Ballo hit one of two free throws.

Catching the ball with 2.4 seconds left, Cambridge launched a shot from beyond half-court to finish with 19 points and give the Sun Devils a big boost in their bid to make the NCAA Tournament.

Baylor 81, Texas 72

WACO, TEXAS >> Jalen Bridges had 17 points for ninthranked Baylor, which overcame a huge deficit with an impressive run right after freshman standout Keyonte George left injured early and beat Big 12 co-leader Texas.

Adam Flagler had 14 points for the Bears (21-8, 10-6). Dale Bonner added 13 points, including seven in an quick spurt after halftime while Flo Thamba had 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Dylan Disu had a season-high 24 points for Texas (22-7, 11-5), which twice got even early in the second half but never could regain the lead.

Tennessee 85, South Carolina 45

KNOXVILLE, TENN. >> JosiahJordan James came back from missing four games with an injury to score 18 points to lead Tennessee to a rout of South Carolina.

James, who suffered an ankle injury against Vanderbilt on Feb. 8, shot 4 of 7 on 3-pointers for the Volunteers (21-8, 10-6 Southeastern Conference). Jahmai Mashack scored 14 points, Zakai Zeigler had 13 points and 11 assists, and Olivier Nkamhoua and Uros Plavsic scored 10 each.

Hayden Brown led the Gamecocks (10-19, 3-13) with 18 points.

Florida State 85, Miami 84

CORAL GABLES, FLA. >> Matthew Cleveland’s 3-pointer as time expired capped Florida State’s comeback from a 25-point secondhalf deficit and a win over Miami.

Jordan Miller had given Miami the lead on a 3-pointer with 4.9 seconds left. But Cleveland let fly from about 25 feet and the ball swished to give the Seminoles (9-20, 7-11 Atlantic Coast Conference) their best moment of the season.

Cleveland and Darin Green Jr. each had 20 points for Florida State, which also got 13 from Caleb Mills and 11 from Jalen Warley.

Miller led Miami (23-6, 14-5) with 21 points. Norchad Omier had 15, Isaiah Wong scored 14 and Bensley Joseph added 12 for the Hurricanes, whose sevengame winning streak and perfect home season were ended.

UConn 95, St. John’s 86

NEW YORK >> Jordan Hawkins scored 20 points, Adama Sanogo added 18 points and nine rebounds, and UConn beat St. John’s.

Andre Jackson Jr. had 15 points, Joey Calcaterra also scored 15 to lead a strong effort by Connecticut’s bench and the resurgent Huskies (22-7, 11-7 Big East) avenged an 11-point loss to St. John’s at home last month.

UConn won for the sixth time in seven games, closing in on a first-round bye in the Big East Tournament.

AJ Storr had 20 points and Posh Alexander added 18 for the Red Storm (17-13, 7-12), who had won three of four.

Kansas State 73, Oklahoma State 68

STILLWATER, OKLA. >> Markquis Nowell had 22 points, eight assists and four steals in Kansas State’s third straight win, beating Oklahoma State.

Keyontae Johnson added 17 points for the Wildcats (22-7, 10-6 Big 12), who swept the regular-season series.

Kalib Boone scored 14 of his 18 points in the second half on Senior Day for Oklahoma State. Caleb Asberry scored 13 points and JohnMichael Wright added 12 for the Cowboys (16-13, 7-9), who have lost four straight.

Villanova 79, Creighton 67

PHILADELPHIA >> Eric Dixon scored 18 of his careerhigh 31 points in the first half, Cam Whitmore added 17 and Villanova defeated Creighton.

Dixon also set a career high with six 3-pointers for Villanova (15-14, 9-9 Big East), which has won five of six.

Arthur Kaluma scored 19 points and Ryan Kalkbrenner had 18 for Creighton (18-11, 12-6). The Bluejays have lost three of four following an eight-game winning streak.

Oklahoma 61, Iowa State 50 AMES, Iowa >> Jacob Groves led Oklahoma with 16 points as the Sooners knocked off Iowa State.

The Sooners (14-15, 4-12 Big 12) had lost nine of their previous 11 games but erased an early 11-point deficit and seized control with a 17-2 run in the second half.

Groves shot 4 of 5 from the 3-point line. Tanner Groves added 9 points and grabbed 13 rebounds.