No. 13 Alabama rallies to beat No. 24 Florida in OT
Grant Nelson had 22 points, eight rebounds and six blocks to lead No. 13 Alabama past No. 24 Florida 98-93 in overtime Wednesday in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Aaron Estrada had 20 points, eight assists, eight rebounds and four steals for the Crimson Tide (19-7, 11-2 SEC), who scored the first seven points of overtime after erasing a 10-point deficit in the final nine minutes of regulation.
Walter Clayton Jr. had 27 points, eight rebounds and five assists for the Gators (18-8, 8-5), who entered the AP Top 25 on Monday for the first time since December 2021.
Mark Sears had 17 points and eight assists for Alabama, the SEC’S most prolific 3-point shooting team, which missed 16 of its first 17 shots from beyond the arc. The Crimson Tide ultimately missed 24 of 32 3-point tries in their 16th straight league home win.
Micah Handlogten blocked Sears’ layup attempt at the buzzer in regulation and totaled 13 rebounds and three blocks.
Clayton missed a potential tying 3-pointer with six seconds left in overtime. Sears collected the rebound, was fouled and made two free throws.
■ No. 7 Marquette 105, Depaul 71:
At Milwaukee, Tyler Kolek had a singlegame program-record 18 assists with two turnovers for the Golden Eagles (20-6, 11-4 Big East), who won for the ninth time in 10 games and dealt the Blue Demons (3-23, 0-15) their 15th straight loss. Depaul’s losses during its slide have been by an average of 24.1 points. Kam Jones scored 34 points for Marquette, which never trailed. Kolek and Jones sat out the final eight minutes.
■ No. 8 Duke 84, Miami 55: At Coral Gables, Fla., Jeremy Roach had 16 points to lead five double-figure scorers for the Blue Devils (21-5, 12-3 ACC), who shot 51.9 percent in their first win at the Watsco Center in four years. They hit 13 of 29 3-point tries. The Hurricanes (15-12, 6-10) shot 31.1 percent in their fifth straight loss.
■ Penn State 90, No. 12 Illinois 89: At State College, Pa., Zach Hicks made three free throws after being fouled on a 3-pointer with three seconds left and totaled 13 points for the Nittany Lions (13-14, 7-9 Big Ten), who overcame a 14-point second-half deficit. Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 19 of his 35 points after intermission for the Illini (19-7, 10-5), who led 48-41 at the half. Nick Kern Jr. had 22 points for Penn State, which had lost three in a row.
■ George Mason 71, No. 16 Dayton 67: At Fairfax, Va., Baraka Okojie scored all of his career-high 19 points after intermission for the Patriots (18-8, 7-6 Atlantic 10), who erased an 11-point second-half deficit in their first home win over a ranked foe. Daron Holmes II had 26 points for the Flyers
(21-5, 11-3), who shot 35.7 percent after halftime. George Mason, which took control with a 24-2 run, forced four-shot violations and converted 10 Dayton turnovers into 16 points. The Flyers last led at 56-55 with 5:56 left.
■ Louisiana State 75, No. 17 Kentucky 74: At Baton Rouge, La., Tyrell Ward hit a short floater as time expired and totaled 17 points for the Tigers (14-12, 6-7 SEC), who erased a 15-point second-half deficit. Antonio Reeves scored 25 points and Rob Dillingham 24 for the Wildcats (18-8, 8-5) in their fifth loss in nine games. Twenty-two of Dillingham’s points came after halftime.
Mountain West men
■ New Mexico 68, No. 22 Colorado State 66: At Albuquerque, N.M., Donovan Dent drove the length of the court to lay in the winning shot with 2.8 seconds left and totaled 16 points for the Lobos (21-6, 9-5) in their third home win over an AP Top 25 team this season — all from the Mountain West. Isaiah Stevens scored 11 of his 20 points in the final eight minutes for the Rams (20-7, 8-6).
Top 10 women
■ No. 5 Texas 77, Texas Tech 72: At Austin, Texas, Amina Muhammad had 16 points and 15 rebounds for the Longhorns (25-3, 12-3 Big 12), who didn’t trail in the fourth quarter and had a 42-30 edge in rebounds. Jasmine Shavers scored 27 points and Bailey Maupin 22 for the Red Raiders (16-12, 5-10)
■ No. 10 Kansas State 73, No. 22 West Virginia 64, OT: At Manhattan, Kan., Ayoka Lee scored 34 points for the Wildcats (234, 12-3 Big 12), who scored the first nine points of overtime after erasing a six-point second-half deficit in their 17th straight home win. Ja’na Quinerly had 23 points for the Mountaineers (22-4, 11-4), who scored 11 points off 10 K-state turnovers in the opening 10 minutes.