Pearl gets $50M deal from Auburn
Top-ranked Tigers beat Sooners; unranked Tide stun No. 4 Baylor
Auburn coach Bruce Pearl stands to make more than $50 million under a new eight-year contract.
Athletic director Allen Greene announced terms of the deal Saturday, hours before the top-ranked Tigers beat visiting Oklahoma, 86-68.
Pearl’s pay will start at $5.4 million with a $250,000 annual increase that would allow him to make $7.15 million in the final year. He led Auburn to the Final Four in 2019, and the Tigers received their first-ever No. 1 ranking this pastd week.
Jabari Smith led Auburn (20-1) with 23 points and 12 rebounds against the Sooners (13-8) in the Big 12/ SEC Challenge.
Other games
Arizona 67, Arizona State 56: Bennedict Mathurin and Oumar Ballo scored 14 points each as host No. 3 Arizona (17-2, 7-1 Pac-12) turned up the defensive pressure to beat Arizona State (6-12, 2-6) in the second half despite some woeful shooting.
Alabama 87, Baylor 78: Jaden Shackelford scored 19 points and had nine rebounds for host Alabama (14-7) to key the upset over the No. 4 Bears (18-3) in the Big 12/ SEC Challenge.
Kentucky 80, Kansas 62: Keion Brooks scored 27 points as visiting No. 12 Kentucky (17-4) manhandled the No. 5 Jayhawks (17-3) in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.
Houston 63, Central Florida 49: Kyler Edwards scored 13 of his 17 points in the first half and Josh Carlton added 13 points and 14 rebounds as No. 7 Houston (18-2, 7-0 American Athletic Conference) beat UCF (12-7, 4-5) for its 10th consecutive victory.
Duke 74, Louisville 65: AJ Griffin scored 22 points, including consecutive 3-pointers during a late 12-0 run to help No. 9 Duke (17-3, 7-2 ACC) escape against the host Cardinals (11-10, 5-6).
Michigan State 83, Michigan 67: Max Christie scored 14 of his 16 points as host No. 10 Michigan State (16-4, 7-2 Big Ten) held off the instate rival Wolverines (10-8, 4-4).
Texas Tech 76, Mississippi State 50: Adonis Arms had 16 points and seven assists as No. 13 Texas Tech (16-5) beat visiting Mississippi State (13-7) in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.
Villanova 73, St. John’s 62: Collin Gillespie scored 17 points as No. 14 host Villanova (16-5, 9-2 Big East) used a 3-point-happy first half to cruise past the Red Storm (11-8, 3-5).
Southern California 79, California 72: Isaiah Mobley scored a career-high 24 points and Boogie Ellis added a season-high 21 for host No. 15 Southern California (18-3, 8-3 Pac-12). The Golden Bears (9-12, 2-8) were 28 of 56 from the field, the second team to shoot 50% or better against USC.
Texas 52, Tennessee 51: Josiah-Jordan James missed a 3-pointer with a second remaining in the game and the host Longhorns (16-5) upset the No. 18 Volunteers (14-6) in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.
TCU 77, LSU 68: Chuck O’Bannon scored 16 of his career-high 19 points after halftime, and host TCU (14-4) beat slumping No. 19 LSU (16-5) in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.
Connecticut: 57, DePaul 50: R.J. Cole scored 25 points as visiting No. 20 Connecticut won its fifth in a row. The Blue Demons (10-10, 19) have lost nine of their past 10.
Xavier 74, Creighton 64: Jack Nunge and Paul Scruggs fueled a dramatic turnaround that saw No. 21 Xavier (15-5, 5-4 Big East) score 29 of the first 31 points in the second half to wipe out a 17-point deficit against host Creighton (12-7, 4-4).
Iowa State 67, Missouri 50: Izaiah Brockington scored 15 points and Tyrese Hunter added 14 as host No. 23 Iowa State (16-5) won in the Big 12/SEC Challenge. DaJuan Gordon led Missouri (8-12) with 15 points.
Illinois 59, Northwestern 56: Kofi Cockburn returned from a concussion and scored 22 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead No. 24 Illinois (15-5, 8-2 Big Ten) past the host Wildcats (9-10, 2-8).
Davidson 77, La Salle 69: Luka Brajkovic scored 22 points for host No. 25 Davidson (17-3, 7-1 Atlantic 10 Conference) in Bob McKillop’s 1,000th game as coach. Jack Clark had 18 points for La Salle (6-12, 17).