Florida State turns back No. 2 Virginia
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — David Nichols scored 14 points as No. 12 Florida State knocked off secondranked Virginia 69-59 on Friday night to advance to the championship game of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.
The Seminoles advance to play Duke, which held off North Carolina 74-73 in the second semifinal, on Saturday night.
Phil Cofer had 11 points, and 7-3 center Christ Koumadje added nine points and nine rebounds for Florida State (27-6).
In the other semifinal game, Zion Williamson got the go-ahead tip-in on his own miss with 30.3 seconds left to help the fifthranked Blue Devils hold off the No. 3 Tar Heels.
Williamson had 31 points and 11 rebounds as Duke (28-5) survived a fight with their fierce rival in a classic that went down to the final play. Ultimately the Blue Devils hung on but needed a final stop. After RJ Barrett missed two free throws with 12.4 seconds left, the Tar Heels pushed downcourt for Coby White to get a contested long jumper.
The shot rattled around the rim and out as Nassir Little crashed the glass for a desperate tip attempt.
Cameron Johnson had 23 points for North Carolina (27-6).
SOUTHEASTERN
Andrew Nembhard hit a 3pointer with a second left, and Florida rallied from a 13-point deficit in the second half to upset ninth-ranked LSU 76-73 at Nashville, Tenn., in the Southeastern Conference tournament quarterfinals.
The SEC regular-season champs had one last chance as Will Reese threw the ball deep to Naz Reid, who couldn’t catch it while defended by a pair of Gators before the buzzer.
Eighth-seeded Florida (19-14) will play Auburn in the semifinals Saturday.
The Tigers (26-6) were 3½point favorites and had won five in a row without coach Will Wade, who remains suspended indefinitely despite asking Thursday to rejoin the team for the postseason. LSU quickly squashed that idea with a statement noting that Wade will remain suspended until he speaks to school officials about the reports of an FBI wiretap that led to his suspension March 8, noting Wade has yet to “deny any wrongdoing to us or publicly.”
In other games:
• Jared Harper scored 27 points to lead No. 22 Auburn past South Carolina 73-64. The fifth-seeded TIgers (24-9) won their sixth consecutive game, while the fourthseeded Gamecocks (16-16) wait to see if they receive an NIT bid.
• Tyler Herro scored 20 points as fourth-ranked Kentucky started its quest for a fifth consecutive tournament title by beating Alabama 73-55. The Wildcats (27-5) improved to 17-2 all-time at this tournament against the Crimson Tide and got a measure of revenge for opening SEC play with a 77-75 loss at Alabama on Jan. 5.
• Admiral Schofield scored 20 points to help send No. 8 Tennessee past Mississippi State 83-76. Kyle Alexander and Grant Williams each scored 16 points for the Volunteers (28-4).
BIG TEN
Jordan Murphy had 27 points and eight rebounds, and Amir Coffey added 21 points as Minnesota beat No. 13 Purdue 75-73 at Chicago to advance to the Big Ten tournament semifinals.
Murphy drove for a go-ahead three-point play and hit two free throws in the closing minutes, and the Golden Gophers (21-12) beat the Boilermakers (23-9) for the second time in 10 days when Carsen Edwards missed a 3pointer as time expired.
Daniel Oturu added 13 points and 10 rebounds, helping Minnesota advance to the semifinals for the second time in three years. The Golden Gophers will face Michigan on Saturday.
Purdue made just 6 of 24 3pointers, with Edwards missing seven of eight from beyond the arc. The Big Ten’s leading scorer finished with 11 points on 4-of-17 shooting.
In other games:
• Zavier Simpson sparked Michigan's balanced attack with 10 points on perfect shooting and 11 assists as the No. 10 Wolverines picked apart Iowa 74-53. Ignas Brazdeikis had 15 points, and Jon Teske had 12 points and 10 rebounds for the third-seeded Wolverines (27-5).
• Cassius Winston scored 18 points, and Foster Loyer provided a lift off the bench with a career-high 14 points as No. 6 Michigan State gave Hall of Fame coach Tom Izzo his 600th career victory, beating Ohio State 77-70. Seeking a sixth conference tournament title, the Spartans (26-6) pulled away in the second half for their third victory over the Buckeyes (19-14) this season. They will face No. 19 Wisconsin in the semifinals Saturday.
• Nate Reuvers and Khalil Iverson each scored 14 points, and D’Mitrik Trice hit a 3-pointer with 58 seconds left as Wisconsin beat Nebraska 66-62. The Badgers (23-9) won for the sixth time in seven games despite a shaky performance by Ethan Happ, who had a season-low four points and committed seven of the team’s 17 turnovers.
BIG EAST
Myles Powell sparked Seton Hall with 18 second-half points and Big East player of the year Markus Howard of Marquette came up short on a potential winning 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Pirates a chippy and foulfilled 81-79 victory over the No. 23 Golden Eagles in the Big East Tournament semifinals at New York.
Third-seeded Seton Hall (2012) will face top-seed and defending champion Villanova in the final Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in a rematch of the 2016 title game won by the Pirates.
In the other semifinal game, Phil Booth scored 28 points, and Jermaine Samuels hit a trio of critical 3-pointers as No. 25 Villanova rallied past Xavier 71-67 in overtime to reach its fifth consecutive championship game.
MID-AMERICAN
C.J. Massinburg dropped a spinning layup and made four free throws in the final 32 seconds to help No. 18 Buffalo advance to the championship game with an 85-81 victory over Central Michigan at Cleveland.
The top-seeded Bulls (30-3) will play Bowling Green, which defeated Northern Illinois 71-67, in Saturday’s title game for the MAC’s automatic NCAA bid.
Massinburg, the MAC Player of the Year and Buffalo’s senior leader, scored 21 points, and Davonta Jordan added 16 for the Bulls, the defending champions trying to win the school’s fourth tourney in five years. Massinburg scored Buffalo’s last nine points.