Hou’ hate to see it
No. 1-ranked Cougars lose star Sasser in win
Jamal Shead had 16 points and nine assists as top-ranked Houston advanced to its fifth American Athletic Conference championship game in a row with a 69-48 win over Cincinnati on Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas, even after losing star guard Marcus Sasser to an injury.
The Cougars (31-2) led throughout, getting two secondchance layups from J’Wan Roberts in the opening minute of a game between two teams that are moving to the Big 12 next season. Roberts finished with 16 points and eight rebounds.
Sasser, the AAC player of the year who scored 30 points in Houston’s quarterfinals win on Friday, crumpled with an apparent groin injury with about 6 ¹/₂ minutes left in the first half. The senior guard never returned after the non-contact injury, finishing with four points in nine minutes.
Landers Nolley II had 14 points for Cincinnati (21-12).
Houston will face Memphis — who overwhelmed Tulane, 94-54, in the other semifinal — in the AAC title game on Sunday.
Pac-12 Arizona 61, UCLA 59
In Las Vegas, Courtney Ramey made a 3-pointer with 16.7 seconds left to put Arizona in front and the eighth-ranked Wildcats beat No. 2 UCLA in the Pac-12 championship game.
The Wildcats (28-6) boosted their case for a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. UCLA (29-5) still hopes to land the No. 1 seed in the West and return to Las Vegas in two weeks for the regional.
Big 12 Texas 76, Kansas 56
In Kansas City, Mo., Dylan Disu overcame early foul trouble to score 18 points, Marcus Carr and Sir’Jabari Rice added 17 apiece, and seventh-ranked Texas silenced a heavily pro-Kansas crowd with a romp over the third-ranked Jayhawks in the Big 12 Tournament title game.
After going more than two decades without a Big 12 tourney championship, the Longhorns (26-8) have won two of the past three.
Kansas (27-7) was once again without Hall of Fame coach Bill Self, who went to the emergency room on the eve of its quarterfinal for an undisclosed medical procedure.
SEC Alabama 72, Missouri 61
In Nashville, Tenn., freshman Brandon Miller scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as fourth-ranked the Crimson Tide (28-5) advanced to the championship game with a win over the
No. 25 Tigers (24-9).
Alabama will play in its 15th tournament championship game, facing No. 18 Texas A&M — who took out Vanderbilt, 87-75 — on Sunday and looking for an eighth title to add to its regular-season trophy.
Big Ten Purdue 80, Ohio St. 66
In Chicago, Zach Edey had 32 points and 14 rebounds, and the No. 5 Boilermakers (28-5) beat the Buckeyes (16-19).
Purdue, which will meet Penn State on Sunday in the championship game, started to take control late in the first half and cruised into the conference final for the second straight year.
Purdue is seeking its second tournament title to go with the one it captured in 2009. It will try to become the first No. 1 seed to win since 2019.
Penn St. 77, Indiana 73
In Chicago, Jalen Pickett scored 28 points, Seth Lundy had 16 and the 10thseeded Nittany Lions (22-12) beat the No. 19 Hoosiers (22-11) in the other semifinal.
Andrew Funk added nine points as Penn State won for the eighth time in nine games. The Nittany Lions went 8-for-23 from 3-point range, compared to 2-for-14 for the Hoosiers.
The deep Big Ten run has Penn State in position for its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2011.
ACC Duke 59, Virginia 49
In Greensboro, N.C., the No. 21 Blue Devils stayed hot, winning their ninth straight by ousting 13th-ranked Virginia in the ACC Tournament final. The Cavaliers were the last team to beat Duke, on Feb. 12 in Charlottesville, Va.