Virginia Tech takes down another Top 20 opponent
Chris Clarke tipped in a missed shot with 4 seconds remaining Monday night, and Virginia Tech stunned No. 5 Duke 64-63.
The Hokies (21-9, 10-7 Atlantic Coast Conference) had trailed almost the entire game before Nickeil Alexander-Walker’s jumper sailed over the rim and Clarke grabbed it and laid it in.
Alexander-Walker led the Hokies with 17 points, Justin Bibbs had 14 on his Senior Night and Kerry Blackshear Jr. added 13.
Grayson Allen led Duke (24-6, 12-5) with 22 points, but his 3-point try before the buzzer missed. Wendell Carter Jr. grabbed the rebound, but the clock ran out before his layup went through.
When officials signaled that the basket didn’t count, fans streamed out of the stands onto the Cassell Coliseum floor, celebrating another marquee victory that boosts the Hokies’ NCAA Tournament prospects.
They also have a road victory at No. 1 Virginia and a home victory against No. 18 Clemson. COLORADO STATE >> Larry Eustachy has agreed to step down as head coach at Colorado State, ending a “climate assessment” of the program led by athletic director Joe Parker.
Eustachy agreed to resign and amend his contract, which will now pay him $750,000 in three installments over the next two years.
Eustachy was in his sixth season at Colorado State, which first looked into his behavior in 201314 when Jack Graham was athletic director. That investigation determined Eustachy emotionally and verbally abused his players and created an atmosphere of fear and intimidation, but he retained his job.
In a statement Monday, Eustachy said he was honored and thankful to serve as the Rams’ coach but added, “At the end of the day, it is time for me to step aside and allow Colorado State to open a new chapter of Rams basketball. Likewise, this also gives me a chance to hit the reset button and then put all my energy into future opportunities.”
Eustachy was 122-79 at CSU and is 524-337 in 27 seasons at Colorado State, Southern Mississippi, Iowa State, Utah State and Idaho.
AP POLL >> A second blowout loss to Villanova didn’t stop Xavier from notching the program’s highest AP Top 25 ranking a week ago. The Musketeers are rising again, passing the Wildcats to reach yet another program high at No. 3.
The Wildcats dropped just one spot, to No. 4.
Virginia firmed up its hold on the No. 1 ranking, receiving 48 votes from a media panel in the poll, up six from a week ago. No. 2 Michigan State received 17 first-place votes and Duke rounded out the top five.
• Saint Mary’s remained at No. 22.
• Kansas and Gonzaga both won conference titles this past weekend. The Jayhawks’ Big 12 title was enough to move them ahead of the Zags in this week’s poll. Kansas moved up two spots to No. 6 while the Bulldogs dropped a spot to No. 7.
SAN DIEGO >> Coach Lamont Smith was placed on indefinite administrative leave a day after he was arrested at the Oakland airport on Sunday on suspicion of domestic violence.
The school said in a statement that it made the move because of the “serious nature of the charges.”
Smith was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence, assault with force likely to commit great bodily injury and false imprisonment following an incident in San Francisco on Saturday night following the team’s win at USF.
Assistant coach Sam Scholl has been appointed acting coach for the postseason.
NO. 6 KANSAS 80, TEXAS 70 >> Svi Mykhailiuk had 17 points s the Jayhawks (246, 13-4 Big 12) secured the outright conference title.
The Longhorns were without star freshman Mo Bamba, who missed the game with a toe injury.
Women
NO. 1 UCONN, 82, NO. 20 SOUTH FLORIDA 63 >> The Huskies (29-0, 16-0 American) completed an undefeated regular season for the third straight year and the 10th time in program history.
Connecticut will head into the weekend’s conference tournament 98-0 in games against American Athletic Conference opponents. They are 86-0 in the regular season and have won all four conference tournaments.
AP POLL >> Mercer, riding a 24-game winning streak, entered AP Top 25 poll at No. 25. It’s the first time the team has been in the poll since Dec. 9, 1980. The Bears are tied with No. 3 Baylor for the third-longest winning streak in the country behind No. 2. Mississippi State and top-ranked UConn.
The Huskies were once again the unanimous No. 1 choice.
The top five remained unchanged with Louisville and Notre Dame following UConn, Mississippi State and Baylor.
Oregon moved up two spots to sixth. Texas, South Carolina, UCLA and Oregon State round out the first 10 teams in the poll.
Stanford remained at No. 16.