Oklahoma State hands Oklahoma damaging loss
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Cameron McGriff scored 18 points, Jeffrey Carroll added 13 points and 13 rebounds, and Oklahoma State pulled away from Oklahoma after squandering most of a 16-point lead for a 71-60 victory in the opening round of the Big 12 Tournament on Wednesday night.
Kendall Smith had 11 points for the eighth-seeded Cowboys (19-13), who led 58-53 with six minutes left before easing away down the stretch to set up a quarterfinal matchup with No. 1 seed Kansas.
Oklahoma State swept the ninth-ranked Jayhawks during the regular season.
Trae Young had 22 points on 7-for-21 shooting to lead the Sooners (18-13), who must now anxiously await their NCAA Tournament fate following their eighth loss in the past 10 games.
Jerome Robinson made a jumper with 17 seconds left to break a tie and then forced a turnover on an inbounds play moments later to help Boston College (19-14) upset North Carolina State (21-11) in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Brooklyn. Robinson, runner-up for ACC player of the year, scored 26 points for the 12th-seeded Eagles.
Theo Pinson had 16 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, and Kenny Williams scored 17 points to help North Carolina (23-9) beat Syracuse (20-13) in the ACC tournament.
Bonzie Colson banked in a go-ahead, three-point heave that barely beat the shot clock with two minutes left, and Notre Dame (20-13) rallied from 21 down in the second half to stun Virginia Tech (21-11) in the ACC tournament. Quentin Snider scored 19 points, Ray Spalding had 18 and Louisville (20-12) built a 26-point lead before knocking off Florida State (20-11) in an ACC tournament game with substantial NCAA implications.
McKinley Wright IV had 20 points and 11 assists, and Colorado (17-14) put a dent in the NCAA hopes of Arizona State (20-11) in the Pac-12 tournament in Las Vegas. The Buffaloes made 13 of 21 threepointers and took control with a 15-1 run midway through the second half.
Stephen Brown scored 22 points and reserve Nate Sestina added 16, and host Bucknell (25-9) won its second straight Patriot League tournament championship by routing Colgate (19-13). The Bison have won 18 of 19 entering the NCAA Tournament.
Dylan Osetkowski scored 20 points, and Matt Coleman knocked down a crucial jumper in the final minute to help Texas (1913) get past Iowa State (13-18) in the Big 12 tournament to boost its NCAA hopes. Harvard sophomore forward Seth Towns, a Northland grad, was voted Ivy League player of the year. Towns averaged 15.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per Tue-Wed / Dayton Each site feeds into regionals: S-South; W-West; E-East; MW-Midwest Thu-Sat / Los Angeles Thu-Sat / Atlanta Fri-Sun / Boston Fri-Sun / Omaha, Neb. Sat-Mon / San Antonio game in helping the Crimson win the conference championship and advance to the NCAA Tournament.
Kansas forward Udoka Azubuike sprained his left knee during a scrimmage this week, ruling him out of the Big 12 tournament and putting his availability for the NCAA Tournament in question. The 7-footer is averaging 13.7 points and 7.1 rebounds.