Saint Mary’s loses battle in Maui Invitational final
Johnny Davis scored 20 points, Tyler Wahl added 18 and a key block, and Wisconsin outlasted Saint Mary’s 61-55 Wednesday to win the Maui Invitational in Las Vegas.
The Badgers (5-1) had reached the Maui title game once in four previous tries, losing to North Carolina in 2016. They had a fight on their hands against the Gaels, battling through a physical second half filled with collisions and tumbling players.
Wisconsin delivered the final blows, the biggest Wahl’s jumper and two free throws after blocking Dan Fotu’s shot with 30 seconds left.
Saint Mary’s (6-1) nearly made its first Maui Invitational appearance a memorable one, keeping the Badgers within reach into the final minute. Not being able to finish it off hurts, but the Gaels appear to be back after being relegated to the NIT last season.
Alex Ducas led Saint Mary’s with 13 points.
The Maui Invitational was forced to shift east for the second straight year due to the pandemic.
The Badgers and Gaels played a tight title game by going to their strengths: Wisconsin pounding it inside, Saint Mary’s flowing and cutting.
The Badgers scored 10 of their 25 first-half points in the paint, but the Gaels made more shots — 13 of 25 — to lead by six.
The second half turned into a wrestling match as
both teams turned up the defensive pressure, neither able to gain any separation.
Players repeatedly hit the floor after collisions and Wisconsin’s Lorne Bowman II had to come out after being bloodied over the right eye. NO. 21 SETON HALL 62, CAL 59 >> Jared Rhoden scored 21 points as the Pirates beat the Golden Bears in the third-place game at the Fort Myers Tip-Off in Florida.
Kadary Richmond added 12 points for Seton Hall (4-1).
Seton Hall made its first appearance in the AP Top 25 this week since the end of the 2019-20 season after beating then-No. 4 Michigan 67-65 on Nov. 16. However, the Pirates lost their first game at the Fort Myers event, 79-76 to Ohio State.
Andre Kelly had 23 points and 11 rebounds, and Grant Anticevich scored 15
points for Cal (2-4). Kelly went 7 for 8 from the floor and made all nine three throws.
NO. 12 HOUSTON 78, OREGON 49>> Fabian White Jr. scored 15 points, Marcus Sasser added 14 and the Cougars overpowered the Ducks in the Maui Invitational thirdplace game.
Houston (5-1) smothered Oregon with defensive pressure and pushed the Ducks around inside to lead by 34 early in the second half. The Cougars had a 40-22 advantage in the paint and snagged 11 offensive rebounds.
The Ducks (3-3) had another disjointed day on offense, unable to get out in transition or solve Houston’s swarming half-court defense. Oregon shot poorly early to fall into a big hole and had 19 turnovers that led to 29 Houston points.
NO. 22 UCONN 115, NO. 19 AUBURN 109, 2 OT >>
Tyler Polley scored 24 points and hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 2:58 left in the second overtime to help the Huskies beat the Tigers in the first round of the Battle 4 Atlantis in Paradise Island, Bahamas.
Adama Sanogo finished with a career-best 30 points for the Huskies (5-0), who blew a 15-point lead in regulation and squandered a lead late in the first overtime in a wild game. But Sanogo and Polley didn’t let the Huskies stumble in the second overtime, scoring 14 points as UConn finally pushed ahead for good.
K.D. Johnson scored 23 of his career-high 27 points after halftime for the Tigers (4-1).