Sexton lifts Alabama over No. 16 Auburn
Auburn’s offense was flowing at the end of the first half. Desean Murray hit his third 3-pointer and ripped off five straight points to put the Tigers up 41-31 over the Crimson Tide at halftime.
Then, the Collin Sexton show started.
Sexton scored 31 points and Alabama used a strong second half to defeat No. 16 Auburn 81-63 Friday in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament in St. Louis.
The Crimson Tide started the second half on a 28-3 run keyed by three consecutive 3s by Sexton. Alabama’s surge put the Tigers away early in the half, and the Crimson Tide (19-14) outscored Auburn 50-22 after the break.
Mustapha Heron led Auburn (25-7) with 18 points, 11 of which came in the first half. Desean Murray scored 15 points, all in the first half. The Tigers moved the ball well on offense and drilled seven 3s in the first half.
By the time halftime arrived, it was all Sexton. The freshman scored 21 second-half points. The performance came after he scored 27 points and hit the winning shot against Texas A&M on Thursday.
Kentucky 62, Georgia 49: PJ Washington scored 18 points to help send the Wildcats (22-10) to the semifinals of the SEC Tournament.
Tyree Crump led the No. 12 seed Bulldogs (18-15) with 17 points, while SEC player of the year Yante Maten was held to nine points on 2-of10 shooting.
No. 13 Tennessee 62, Mississippi State 59: Lamonte Turner scored 15 points, and Volunteers (24-7) locked down on defense to beat the Bulldogs (22-11) in SEC Tournament quarterfinals.
No. 1 Virginia 64, No. 19 Clemson 58: Kyle Guy scored 15 points as the Cavaliers (302) advanced to the ACC championship game by holding off the Tigers (23-9) in New York.
Shelton Mitchell had 18 points and Elijah Thomas added 15 for Clemson.
No. 9 Kansas 83, Kansas State 67: Malik Newman scored 22 points, Silvio De Sousa filled in admirably for ailing big man Udoka Azubuike, and the Jayhawks (26-7) topped the Wildcats (2310) to reach the Big 12 Tournament title game in Kansas City, Mo.
Kansas State learned Friday morning it would be without All-Big 12 forward Dean Wade, who hurt his foot in their quarterfinal win over TCU. Then the Wildcats lost starting guard Barry Brown early against the Jayhawks when he was accidentally poked in the eye.
Makol Mawien scored a career-high 29 points for Kansas State.
Providence 75, No. 3 Xavier 72 (OT): Alpha Diallo hit a go-ahead jumper with 2:22 left in overtime, and the fifth-seeded Friars (2112) rallied from a 17-point second-half deficit to stun the top-seeded Musketeers (285) in the Big East Tournament semifinals in New York.
No. 8 Cincinnati 61, SMU 51: Kyle Washington scored 15 points and Gary Clark added 12 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Bearcats (28-4) past the Mustangs (17-16) in the quarterfinals of the American Athletic Conference Tournament in Orlando.
No. 11 Wichita State 89, Temple 81: Landry Shamet scored 24 points, Rashard Kelly had 16, and the Shockers (25-6) topped the Owls (17-14) in the American Athletic Conference Tournament.
No. 25 Rhode Island 76, VCU 67: Jeff Dowtin scored 18 points and Jared Terrell added 16 points as Rhode Island (24-6) survived a challenge from VCU (18-15) in the Atlantic 10 Tournament quarterfinals in Washington, D.C.
Noteworthy
Arkansas-Little Rock: Coach Wes Flanigan was fired after his team lost a school-record 25 games. The Red Wolves ended the season with a 29-point loss to Appalachian State in the Sun Belt Tournament on Wednesday.
Thursday’s Games Friday’s Games
(At) Blue Jackets 3, Red Wings 2: Seth Jones scored twice in the second period and Sergei Bobrovsky returned from an illness to make 22 saves for Columbus.
Flames 2, (at) Senators 1: Sam Bennett and Matt Stajan scored and David Rittich made 29 saves to lead the Calgary. Ducks at Stars: Late
Wild at Canucks: Late
NHL notes
Sabres: Forward Kyle Okposo is out indefinitely after being diagnosed with his second concussion in less than a year. Okposo was hurt when he and Senators forward Bobby Ryan collided in the second period of Buffalo’s win Thursday.
Stars: Center Martin Hanzal was set for back surgery that will end his injury-plagued season. General manager Jim Nill said the expected recovery time is six to seven months.
Capitals: General manager Brian MacLellan received a contract extension, but no details were announced. MacLellan is in the fourth year of his original four-year deal.
League fines: The NHL fined Boston winger Brad March and Arizona forward Nick Cousins for embellishment. Each player was docked $2,000 under the program designed to discourage diving and embellishment. A player is first warned and then is fined for a second violation in a season.