Wisconsin upset gives Michigan fairy-tale ending
WASHINGTON — Michigan completed a magical run to its first Big Ten Tournament title, using a swarming defense and accurate shooting to beat No. 24 Wisconsin 7156 on Sunday for its fourth victory in four days.
The eighth-seeded Wolverines (24-11) began their journey with a scary skid off the airport runway in Michigan and ended it by overwhelming the second-seeded Badgers, who had won three straight — including the regular-season finale against Minnesota — by a total of 55 points.
Between the aborted flight and their final unexpected victory, the Wolverines beat Illinois, eliminated top-seed Purdue and sent home No. 4 seed Minnesota.
And so, the first Big Ten Tournament in the nation’s capital ended with a surprise champion cutting down the nets at Verizon Center.
Tournament MVP Derrick Walton Jr. scored 22 points, D.J. Wilson added 17 and Zak Irvin had 15 for Michigan, which had lost 17 of its previous 20 games against Wisconsin. The Wolverines shot 56 percent and were 10-for23 from beyond the arc.
Bronson Koenig scored 15 points, and Nigel Hayes and Ethan Happ had 14 apiece for Wisconsin (25-9), which shot 39 percent from the field and scored only 24 points after halftime.
SEC
De’Aaron Fox scored 18 points, and No. 8 Kentucky won its third straight conference tournament championship by beating Arkansas 82-65 in Nashville, Tenn.
The Wildcats (29-5) added their 30th tournament title all-time to their 48 regular-season championships in convincing fashion.
The Razorbacks (25-9) couldn’t string together points the way they usually do, not with Kentucky answering every big bucket with its own run. The big spurt came as Kentucky scored 13 straight points to end the first half and into the opening minute of the second that turned a three-point lead into a 46-30 edge.
AMERICAN ATHLETIC
Sterling Brown scored 18 points to help send No. 12 SMU streaking into the NCAA Tournament with a 71-56 victory over No. 15 Cincinnati in the conference championship game in Hartford, Conn.
Tournament MVP Simi Ojeleye added 14 points, Jarrey Foster had 13 and Ben Moore scored 12 for Mustangs (30-4), who won their 16th straight game and second AAC title in three years.
Jarron Cumberland had 14 points to lead Cincinnati (29-5), which has not won a conference title since capturing the Conference USA crown in 2004.
IVY LEAGUE
Myles Stephens had a career-high 23 points and eight rebounds as Princeton won its league’s inaugural tournament, beating Yale 71-59 in Philadelphia to clinch its first berth in the NCAA Tournament since 2011.
Princeton (23-6) won its 19th straight game and didn’t lose in Ivy play.
Steven Cook scored 15 points, and Devin Cannady added 13 for the topseeded Tigers, who pulled away from Yale (18-11) in the second half.
ATLANTIC 10
Jared Terrell finished with 20 points and E.C. Matthews added 19, including a decisive runner with 55 seconds to go as Rhode Island earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1999 with a 7063 victory over Virginia Commonwealth in the title game in Pittsburgh.
The third-seeded Rams (24-9) never trailed and withstood a late push by VCU (26-8) to capture their first conference tournament title in 18 years.
SUN BELT
Jordon Varnado had 18 points and 12 rebounds as Troy defeated Texas State 59-53 in the tournament championship game in New Orleans.
The sixth-seeded Trojans (22-14) advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2003.
The Bobcats (20-13) trailed wire-to-wire.