Kansas beats Texas Tech, clinches top spot in Big 12
LUBBOCK — No. 1 Kansas wrapped up its outright Big 12 regular-season title Saturday, beating Texas Tech 66-62 behind Udoka Azubuike’s 15 points and 11 rebounds.
Devon Dotson had 17 points and Ochai Agbaji had 12 for the Jayhawks (28-3, 17-1), the Big 12’s first champion in a decade with only one loss in league play. Kansas was 15-1 in 2009-10, two seasons before the Big 12 expanded to an 18-game schedule.
Texas Tech (18-13, 9-9 Big 12), last year’s national runner-up after sharing the Big 12 title with Kansas State, had a chance to tie the game with 2.8 seconds left. But Davide Moretti, who made a 3-pointer only seconds earlier, missed from long range. The Red Raiders guard fell to floor after contact with Marcus Garrett but no foul was called.
Moretti had 18 points, while TJ Hoyfield had 11 points for Texas Tech.
Azubuike put Kansas ahead to stay with his put-back dunk with 1:41 left that made it 59-57.
STEPHEN F. AUSTIN 68 SAM HOUSTON ST. 57
Gavin Kensmil scored 17 points with 10 rebounds as Stephen F. Austin won its 15th straight game and the Southland Conference regular-season championship in a road win over Sam Houston State.
Cameron Johnson and Roti Ware scored 13 apiece in the final game of the regular season for the Lumberjacks (28-3, 19-1 ).
Sam Houston State totaled 23 second-half points, a season low for the team.
Kai Mitchell scored 14 with eight rebounds and two blocks and Chad Bowie had 11 points for the Bearkats. Zach Nutall scored 10 points.
WEST VIRGINIA 76 BAYLOR 64
Emmitt Matthews scored a season-high 18 points and freshman Oscar Tshiebwe had 16 points and 12 rebounds as West Virginia used a big second-half run to deny visting No. 4 Baylor the chance to earn a tie for the Big 12 regular-season championship.
Baylor went more than eight minutes without a field goal midway through the second half to take themselves out of contention and hand the championship to top-ranked Kansas.
Miles McBride added 12 points for West Virginia and Sean McNeal scored 11. Butler led Baylor with 21 points and Mitchell added 15.
A&M-CORPUS CHRISTI 84 HOUSTON BAPTIST 78
Tony Lewis scored 12 points and a go-ahead jumper with 1:17 to play and host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi clinched a Southland Conference Tournament berth with a win over Houston Baptist in the regular-season finale for both teams.
Jordan Hairston made 4 of 6 3-pointers and scored 20 points and Myles Smith had 18 with five assists for the Islanders.
The Islanders forced a season-high 23 turnovers and scored a season-high 42 first-half points.
OKLAHOMA 78, TCU 76
Austin Reaves scored 41 points, including the gamewinning jumper with a half-second left, and Oklahoma beat TCU 78-76 on the road after trailing by as many as 19 points after halftime.
Reaves had 15 points in a 23-9 run by Oklahoma (19-12, 9-9 Big 12) over the last 5:02 of the game.
Kristian Doolittle, the only Oklahoma senior, had 15 points and 11 rebounds.
Desmond Bane scored 24 points on TCU’s senior day while becoming the school’s outright career leader in 3-pointers.
Jaire Grayer, another TCU senior, had 18 points, while Kevin Samuel and PJ Nembhard both had 12.
Bane had 10 points, including two 3s in the first 6:07 of the game, and 19 points by halftime in his last regular season home game.
SOUTH FLORIDA 61, SMU
Laquincy Rideau scored 12 points and his 3-pointer with eight seconds left was the game winner as South Florida stunned SMU.
Isiaha Mike made 1 of 2 foul shots with 42 seconds left and SMU led 60-53. From there, South Florida (14-17, 7-11 AAC) scored eight points in 24 seconds.
David Collins led South Florida with 15 points.
ALCORN ST. 90 TEXAS SOUTHERN 75
Troymain Crosby had 23 points as Alcorn St. defeated Texas Southern 90-75 in a regular season finale at home.
Dominic Brewton had 18 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for Alcorn St. Corey Tillery added 15 points. Maurice Howard had nine assists.
Eden Ewing scored a career-high 24 points and had seven rebounds for the Tigers (15-16, 12-6). Ja’Mare Redus scored a seasonhigh 20 points.
SOUTHERN 89 PRAIRIE VIEW A&M 80
Ahsante Shivers scored 22 points. half of them in overtime, and hosting Southern battled past Prairie View A&M to end the regular season with seven straight wins.
Andrus scored 20, Devonte Patterson added 16 points with five assists and Antione Lister scored 15.