Sooners say ‘later’ to No. 2 Alabama
Oklahoma emphatically ends three-game slide
Grant Sherfield scored a seasonhigh 30 points Saturday as Oklahoma beat No. 2 Alabama 93-69 in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. Jalen Hill added a career-high 26 points for the host Sooners (12-9) on 9-for11 shooting, helping second-year Oklahoma coach Porter Moser to his biggest win with the program.
Tanner Groves had 14 points and 12 rebounds. The Sooners had lost three straight.
Rylan Griffen led Alabama (18-3) with 15 points and seven rebounds. Freshman Brandon Miller finished with 11 on 4-for-14 shooting.
More Top 25 men
No. 3 Houston 75, Cincinnati 69:
Jarace Walker had a career-high 25 points and seven rebounds for the host Cougars (12-2, 8-1 American), who rallied from an 11-point second-half deficit to defeat the Bearcats (14-8, 5-4). Former Virginia Tech and Memphis player Landers Nolley II had 24 points for Cincinnati, including six 3-pointers.
Mississippi State 81, No. 11 TCU 74, OT:
Tolu Smith had 27 points, 13 rebounds and five assists to lead the host Bulldogs (13-8) over the Horned Frogs (16-5). Dashawn Davis added 16 points to help MSU snap a five-game losing streak. Damion Baugh led TCU with 19 points.
Missouri 78, No. 12 Iowa State 61:
Kobe Brown scored 20 points and D’Moi Hodge 17 for the host Tigers (16-5) against the Cyclones (15-5) in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. Brown scored 14 in the first half and led Missouri with 12 rebounds. Jaren Holmes led Iowa State with 19 points.
Creighton 84, No. 13 Xavier 67:
Arthur Kamula scored 20 points, Creighton’s four other starters finished in double figures and the Bluejays (13-8, 7-3) toppled conference-leading Xavier (17-5, 9-2) in Omaha, Nebraska, for their fourth straight Big East win. Creighton made 34 of its 60 field-goal attempts before a sold-out crowd. Ryan Kalkbrenner scored 17 for the Bluejays, who avenged a 90-87 loss at Xavier on Jan. 11. Zach Freemantle led Xavier with 18 points.
West Virginia 80, No. 15 Auburn 77:
Erik Stevenson scored a careerhigh 31 points and West Virginia (13-8) withstood a furious late rally by the visiting Tigers (16-5) in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. The Mountaineers have won two straight for the first time in a month and now head into the teeth of the Big 12 schedule that will determine whether they’ll gain an NCAA Tournament berth.
With Charles Barkley cheering on his alma mater from a courtside seat, Auburn couldn’t overcome another slow start and has lost two straight, something it hadn’t done in two years. Jaylin Williams led Auburn with 18 points, but Wendell Green Jr.’s 3-point try to tie missed at the buzzer.
No. 16 Marquette 89, DePaul 69: David Joplin went 8 for 11 from 3-point range for a career-high 28
points, Tyler Kolek had 24 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds and the Golden Eagles (17-5, 9-2 Big East) beat the host Blue Demons (9-13, 3-8). Umoja Gibson scored 25 for DePaul.
No. 17 Baylor 67, Arkansas 64:
Keyonte George scored 24 points for the host Bears (16-5), who never trailed again after Flo Thamba made two free throws for a 55-53 lead with 3:37 left. True freshman George then scored seven points in a row. Ricky Council IV scored 25 points for the Razorbacks (14-7).
Hofstra 85, No. 18 College of Charleston 81: Aaron Estrada scored 25 points and Darlinstone Dubar added 18 as the visiting Pride (15-8, 8-2 CAA) ended a 20-game win streak by the Cougars (21-2, 9-1).
The Cougars had not lost since their defeat at North Carolina on Nov. 11. Charleston cut a seven-point lead to 81-79 with two minutes left, but the Cougars missed four 3s down the stretch.
No. 21 Florida Atlantic 70, Western Kentucky 63:
Brandon Weatherspoon scored 14 points as the Owls (21-1, 11-0 Conference USA) remained undefeated at home. The victory extended FAU’s winning streak to a program-record 20 games, which is now the nation’s longest. WKU (11-11, 3-8) has lost five straight. Jordan Rawls led all scorers with 17 for the Hilltoppers.
ACC
Pittsburgh 71, No. 20 Miami 68:
Blake Hinson tipped in a Jamarius Burton miss with 31 seconds remaining for the host Panthers (15-7, 8-3 ACC), who held the Hurricanes (16-5, 7-4) scoreless over the final 2:26 while closing on an 11-0 run to beat an AP Top 25 team for the third time this season.
Hinson finished with 21 points for Pitt. Jordan Miller led Miami with 18 points. Isaiah Wong added 14, but the Hurricanes committed three of their 12 turnovers in the final 35 seconds.
No. 24 Clemson 82, Florida State 81:
Chase Hunter scored a layup, drew a foul and hit the go-ahead free throw with 4 seconds left as the first-place Tigers (18-4, 10-1 ACC) won a thriller in Tallahassee. Hunter Tyson scored 27 and Hunter 25 for Clemson, while Matthew Cleveland netted 18 for the Seminoles (7-15, 5-6).
N.C. State 79, Wake Forest 77:
D.J. Burns Jr. scored a career-high 31 points and Jarkel Joiner scored 17 for the Wolfpack (17-5, 7-4 ACC), which rallied down the stretch against the Demon Deacons (14-8, 6-5) in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Wake has lost three games in a row.
Damari Monsanto, who had 22 points, tied the game at 73 with a basket with 1:35 left. Burns, though he finished just 3 of 8 from the free-throw line, sank a pair after Monsanto fouled him with 1:22 remaining. Down 77-74 with 29 seconds left, Monsanto and Tyree Appleby missed 3-pointers on the same possession. Joiner made two free throws with 11 seconds to go to virtually clinch it.
Duke 86, Georgia Tech 43: Kyle Filipowski scored 18 points, Jeremy Roach scored 12, and the Blue Devils (15-6, 6-4 ACC) took control just before intermission and outscored Georgia Tech 56-20 in the final 24 minutes in Atlanta. Reserve Tristan Maxwell scored 10 points for the Yellow Jackets (8-13, 1-10), which has lost seven games in a row.
Notre Dame 76, Louisville 62: Freshman J.J. Starling scored a season-high 22 points, Nate Laszewski added 17 and the Irish (10-12, 2-9 ACC) won at home, ending a four-game slide, despite seeing a 30-point second-half lead cut to 14. The Cardinals (2-19, 0-10) have lost 10 consecutive games.
Starling made 7 of 8 shots and scored 16 points to lead Notre Dame to a 46-24 halftime advantage. Louisville went on a 21-5 run, closing the gap to 64-50 with 8:19 remaining, but the Cardinals never got closer than 14 points.
Armed forces
Army 66, Holy Cross 55: Ethan Roberts’ 16 points and three steals helped the Black Knights (12-11, 6-4 Patriot League) end a threegame slide. Jalen Rucker scored 13 points and added nine rebounds for Army. Joseph Octave finished with 17 points for the Crusaders (7-16, 4-6).
American 73, Navy 69: Matt Rogers scored 18 points on 9-of-9 shooting as the Eagles (14-7, 6-4 Patriot League) ended a threegame winning streak of the Midshipmen (11-11, 4-6). Sean Yoder finished with 19 points and six rebounds for Navy.