San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
MILLER COMES UP BIG FOR ’BAMA AGAIN
Brandon Miller and No. 2 Alabama eked out another close win in a week that has proved challenging on and off the court.
Miller scored 24 points and Mark Sears made 7 of 8 free throws over the final 1:04 to help No. 2 Alabama secure an 86-83 victory over Arkansas on Saturday, following an overtime win at South Carolina on Wednesday.
Miller delivered his second straight huge game since police alleged in courtroom testimony that Miller brought a gun to former teammate Darius Miles, who is charged with capital murder in a fatal shooting.
Miller received a warmer reception at home than in South Carolina, where he heard chants of “lock him up” and “guilty” a day after testimony about the gun, which was allegedly used by another man in the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Jamea Harris on Jan. 15.
No. 1 Houston 76, East Carolina 57: Marcus Sasser scored 22 points to help visiting Houston (27-2, 15-1) clinch outright possession of the American Athletic Conference regular-season title with a win over East Carolina (1414, 5-10).
No. 3 Kansas 76, West Virginia 74: Dajuan Harris was one point shy of a career high, scoring 17 points to help lift Kansas (24-5, 12-4 Big 12) over West Virginia (16-13, 511). The Jayhawks’ stifling defense kept West Virginia from attempting a shot in the final 20 seconds.
No. 17 Indiana 79, No. 5 Purdue 71: Jalen Hoodschifino scored a career-high 35 points and Trey Galloway added 10 of his 13 in the second half to lead Indiana (20-9, 11-7 Big Ten) over host Purdue (24-5, 13-5).
North Carolina 71, No. 6 Virginia 63: Pete Nance scored 22 points to lead North Carolina (18-11, 10-8 ACC) past visiting Virginia (21-6, 13-5).
No. 9 Baylor 81, No. 8 Texas 72: Jalen Bridges had 17 points for host Baylor (21-8, 10-6), which overcame a huge deficit with an impressive run right after freshman standout Keyonte George left injured early and beat Big 12 coleader Texas (22-7, 11-5).
No. 10 Marquette 90, Depaul 84: Kam Jones and Tyler Kolek each scored 22 points while helping host Marquette (23-6, 15-3) clinch a share of its first Big East regular-season championship in a decade.
No. 11 Tennessee 85, South Carolina 45: Josiahjordan James came back from missing four games with an injury to score 18 points to lead host Tennessee (21-8, 10-6 SEC) to a rout of South Carolina (10-19, 3-13).
No. 12 Gonzaga 77, No. 15 Saint Mary’s 68: Drew Timme scored 19 points and Gonzaga clinched a share of the West Coast Conference regular-season title.
Anton Watson had 17 points and Malachi Smith added 13 off the bench for the Bulldogs, who have won or shared the conference title in 11 straight seasons. Gonzaga (25-5, 14-2) also reached the 25-win mark for the 16th season in a row — and avenged a loss to the Gaels earlier this month in Moraga.
Logan Johnson led the Gaels (25-6, 14-2) with 27 points after a 29-point performance against Pacific in the team’s last game.
Florida State 85, No. 13 Miami 84: Matthew Cleveland’s 3-pointer as time expired capped Florida State’s (9-20, 7-11 ACC) comeback from a 25-point second-half deficit and a win at Miami (23-6, 14-5).
No. 14 Kansas State 73, Oklahoma State 68: Markquis Nowell had 22 points, eight assists and four steals in visiting Kansas State’s (22-7, 10-6 Big 12) third straight win, beating Oklahoma
State (16-13, 7-9).
No. 18 Uconn 95, St. John’s 86: Jordan Hawkins scored 20 points, Adama Sanogo added 18 points and nine rebounds, and Uconn (22-7, 11-7 Big East) beat St. John’s (17-13, 7-12).
Villanova 79, No. 19 Creighton 67: Eric Dixon scored 18 of his career-high 31 points in the first half, Cam Whitmore added 17 and host Villanova (15-14, 9-9 Big East) defeated Creighton (18-11, 12-6).
Oklahoma 61, No. 23 Iowa State 50: Jacob Groves led Oklahoma (14-15, 4-12 Big 12) with 16 points as the visiting Sooners knocked off Iowa State (17-11, 8-8).
No. 24 TCU 83, Texas Tech 82: Jakobe Coles made two free throws with 4.3 seconds remaining, and TCU (19-10, 8-8 Big 12) won at Texas Tech (16-13, 5-11) despite blowing a 12-point lead in the final eight minutes.
Mississippi State 69, No. 25 Texas A&M 62: Tolu Smith had 17 points as Mississippi State (19-10, 7-9 SEC) knocked off visiting Texas A&M (21-9, 13-3).