No. 1 Baylor beats TCU for 18th consecutive victory
WACO, TEXAS >> MaCio Teague scored 19 points with five 3-pointers and No. 1 Baylor set a program record with its 18th win in a row, 68-52 over TCU on Saturday.
Teague made consecutive 3-pointers in a 36-second span to cap a 14-0 run in the first half that put the Bears (19-1, 8-0 Big 12) ahead to stay. He hit two more 3s early in the second half before TCU made a run.
Desmond Bane, the Big 12’s second-leading scorer at 16.5 points per game, scored all 14 of his points after halftime. During a 13-2 run by the Horned Frogs (13-8, 4-4), Bane scored six in a row before a dunk by PJ Fuller got them within six at 51-45 with 8 ½ minutes left. That was the closest they would get.
Baylor guard Jared Butler, who was the league’s fourth-leading scorer at 15.4 ppg, missed his first six shots and was scoreless before the break. He finished with 10 points on 3-of-12 shooting.
NO. 2 GONZAGA 83, SAN FRANCISCO 79 >> Corey Kispert’s three-point play with 1:33 left put his team ahead for good and he added a jumper with 34 seconds remaining, helping Gonzaga extend its winning streak to 15 games.
Khalil Shabaaz made a 3-pointer with six seconds left to make it a two-point game in a furious, backand-forth finish — and that described most of the second half. Admon Gilder made two free throws with 3.6 seconds left to seal the win.
Filip Petrusev had 23 points and 11 rebounds playing in foul trouble and Drew Timme scored 19 for the Zags (23-1, 9-0 WCC), who ran their West Coast Conference regular-season winning streak to 36 games for the longest such unbeaten run in the nation for a conference. USF (168, 5-4) had won its last two games.
NO. 3 KANSAS 78, TEXAS TECH 75 >> Devon Dotson scored 21 points and Marcus Garrett added 15 points for Kansas.
The Jayhawks (18-3, 7-1 Big 12) led 76-75 with 14 seconds to play before Ochai
Agbaji knocked down two free throws. The Red Raiders were unable to come away with a basket to complete the upset.
TJ Holyfield led Texas Tech (13-8, 4-4) with 19 points.
NO. 5 FLORIDA STATE 74, VIRGINIA TECH 63 >> Devin Vassell tied an ACC record by shooting 7 for 7 from 3-point range and scored 27 points to lift Florida State.
Vassell helped the Seminoles (18-3, 8-2) rebound from Tuesday night’s loss at Virginia that snapped a 10game winning streak. Florida State remained a game out of first place in the ACC standings.
Tyrece Radford paced the Hokies (14-8, 5-6) with 18 points. Virginia Tech lost its third consecutive game. NO. 6 LOUISVILLE 77, NORTH CAROLINA STATE 57 >> Ryan McMahon made seven 3-pointers and scored a season-high 23 points for Louisville.
Jordan Nwora added 14 points for the Cardinals, who maintained their hold on the Atlantic Coast Conference lead with their eighth straight win. Louisville (19-3, 10-1) led by 17 points late in the first half and responded to an N.C. State (14-8, 5-6) run midway through the second half by pushing the margin right back out to 15 points.
C.J. Bryce scored 15 points for the Wolfpack (148, 5-6).
NO. 7 DAYTON 70, FORDHAM 56>> Trey Landers matched his season high with 18 points, Obi Toppin also had 18 and Dayton got its 16th straight win over the Rams.
The Flyers (20-2, 9-0 Atlantic 10) had little problem extending their streak against the Rams (7-14, 1-8). Dayton hasn’t lost to Fordham since Jan. 4, 2005, a 66-56 Rams win at the Rose Hill Gym.
Jalen Cobb had 22 points for Fordham.
NO. 9 DUKE 97, SYRACUSE 88 >> Vernon Carey Jr. had 26 points and a season-high 17 rebounds for the 10th double-double of his freshman season and Duke beat Syracuse.
Cassius Stanley keyed an early second-half surge and the Blue Devils (18-3, 8-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) won their third straight after a two-game skid.
It was a crucial game for Syracuse (13-9, 6-5), which had a five-game winning streak snapped on the road at Clemson on Tuesday night and needed a signature win to bolster its resume for consideration for the NCAA Tournament. XAVIER 74, NO. 10 SETON HALL 62 >> Tyrique Jones had 19 points and 18 rebounds, and Xavier opened a big lead early and ended the Pirates’ 10-game winning streak.
Naji Marshall added 19 points and KyKy Tandy had 14 as the Musketeers (14-8, 3-6 Big East) beat the Pirates in every phase of the game.
Quincy McKnight led Seton Hall (16-5, 8-1) with 15 points before having to leave with an injury to his left knee with 6:02 to play. STANFORD 70, NO. 11 OREGON 60>> Oscar da Silva scored a career-high 27 points and had 15 rebounds, helping Stanford rally in the second half to beat Oregon.
Stanford (16-5, 5-3 Pac12) trailed 44-35 with 14 ½ minutes left, then held the Ducks without a basket for the next 10 minutes. Tyrell Terry hit a go-ahead 3-pointer and the Cardinal used a 15-1 burst to take a 59-50 lead.
Will Richardson scored 17 points for the Ducks (18-5, 7-3), who fell out of first place and had their four-game winning streak snapped.
NO. 12 WEST VIRGINIA 66, KANSAS STATE 57 >> Derek Culver had 19 points and 14 rebounds to give coach Bob Huggins another milestone win. Huggins earned his 877th career win to move past Kentucky’s Adolph Rupp into seventh place in Division I.
The Mountaineers (17-4, 5-3 Big 12) bounced back from a loss at Texas Tech on Wednesday, improved to 11-0 at home and ended a three-game losing streak to Kansas State.
David Sloan scored 13 points and Xavier Sneed added 11 for Kansas State (9-12, 2-6).
NO. 17 AUBURN 75, NO. 13 KENTUCKY 66 >> Samir Doughty scored 23 points while making 14 of 15 free throws and Auburn finished strong in an NCAA Tournament rematch.
Isaac Okoro made a key 3-pointer and scored 14 points for the Tigers (19-2, 6-2 Southeastern Conference), who dominated the final four minutes.
It wasn’t nearly as big as their 77-71 overtime victory over the Wildcats (16-5, 6-2) that vaulted Auburn to its first Final Four last season, but it moved the Tigers into a tie for second place in the SEC.
WISCONSIN 64, NO. 14 MICHIGAN STATE 63 >> Nate Reuvers scored 15 points, D’Mitrik Trice had 14 and Aleem Ford added 13 to help Wisconsin edge Michigan State.
Wisconsin earned the victory despite missing guard Brad Davison because of a suspension. The Badgers (13-9, 6-5 Big Ten) also lost Kobe King, the team’s second-leading scorer, when he announced this week that he intended to transfer.
Cassius Winston scored 23 points and Rocket Watts had 16 for Michigan State (16-6, 8-3), which has lost three of its last four Big Ten road games. PROVIDENCE 65, NO. 16 BUTLER 61 >> Luwane Pipkins scored 22 points and made six consecutive free throws in the final minute for Providence.
The Friars (12-10, 5-4 Big East) snapped a threegame losing streak by beating a ranked team for the first time since March 19, 2018. It was also their first road win over a team in the AP Top 25 since Feb. 22, 2017.
Kamar Baldwin finished with 14 points and Justin Tucker had 12 points and eight rebounds to lead the Bulldogs (17-5, 5-4). Butler has lost two of its last three home games.
NO. 20 COLORADO 78, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 57 >> Tyler Bey scored 16 points and Colorado routed Southern California.
The Buffaloes (17-5, 6-3 Pac-12) lost by four points at UCLA on Thursday. Against the Trojans, they took command with 8 ½ minutes to go in the first half and kept the pressure on.
McKinley Wright IV, D’Shawn Schwartz and Lucas Siewert added 11 points each. Schwartz helped key a 17-4 run that opened the second half.
Isaiah Mobley led the Trojans with 12 points off the bench. Jonah Mathews and Onyeka Okongwu added 11 points each
USC (17-5, 6-3) shot just 38% from the floor, made 5 of 16 3-pointers, and got outrebounded 33-27. CINCINNATI 64, NO. 21 HOUSTON 62 >> Keith Williams scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half and Cincinnati rallied from a 15-point deficit in the second half.
Williams scored on a floater with 2:02 left, giving Cincinnati (14-7, 7-2 American Athletic Conference) its first lead, 61-59, since the Bearcats led 8-5. Williams followed with two free throws, generating roars from the sellout crowd of 12,189.
Houston (17-5, 7-2) already was struggling from the field in the last part of the second half when point guard Dejon Jarreau drew a technical foul and was ejected when the referees ruled that he bit Cincinnati’s Mamoudou Diarra with 6:16 left in the game. TULSA 54, NO. 23 WICHITA STATE 51 >> Elijah Joiner caught an inbound pass with 3.3 seconds left and raced from one key to the next, connecting on a 3-pointer as time expired to give Tulsa a victory over Wichita State.
Hundreds of fans in the near-sellout crowd of 8,089 stormed the court in a wild celebration after Tulsa toppled another ranked visitor. In its previous home game, the Hurricane routed thenNo. 20 Memphis 80-40.
Joiner shot 5-for-6 on 3s and scored 22 points for
Tulsa (15-6, 7-1 AAC), which won its sixth in a row. Jaime Enchinique scored 15 for Wichita State (17-4, 5-3), but only two in the second half. NO. 24 PENN STATE 76, NEBRASKA 64 >> Myles Dread scored 14 points, Lamar Stevens and Myreon Jones had 13 apiece, and Penn State pulled away early in the second half.
Stevens became the third 2,000-point scorer in Penn State (16-5, 6-4 Big Ten) program history, and Mike Watkins had 11 points and a season-high 17 rebounds to pass John Amaechi as the Nittany Lions’ career rebounds leader in Big Ten play.
The Cornhuskers (7-15, 2-9) lost their seventh in a row as season scoring leader Cam Mack was held without a point for the first time this season. MICHIGAN 69, NO. 25 RUTGERS 63 >> Brandon Johns Jr. scored a career-high 20 points and Michigan won at Madison Square Garden for the 10th straight time.
Jon Teske added 14 points as the Wolverines (13-8, 4-6 Big Ten) improved to 12-0 against Rutgers, including a victory in the 1976 Final Four.
Michigan used a 20-5 run over a 10-minute span in the first half to take a 2717 lead. Montez Mathis hit 3-pointers on back-to back possessions as Rutgers (166, 7-4) chipped away, pulling within 37-34 at the break.