Shamut, Wichita State upend Cincinnati on the road
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. — Dave Stallworth was running the show the last time Wichita State beat a Top 5 team on the road. Landry Shamut took the lead as the Shockers did it again 54 years later.
This one, too, will be a reference point, given all that was at stake.
Shamut scored 19 points, and No. 19 Wichita State ended the nation’s longest homecourt winning streak, beating No. 5 Cincinnati 76-72 on Sunday to leave the American Athletic Conference race wide open.
The Shockers (21-5, 11-3) beat a Top 5 team on the road for the first time since 1964. They led most of the way, building an 11-point lead midway through the second half and holding on. Shaquille Morris’ dunk with 5 seconds left finished it off.
The Bearcats (23-4, 12-2) had won their last 39 home games. In their first real home challenge of the season, they wound up playing catch-up and coming up short. Cincinnati hasn’t beaten a ranked team all season, falling to 0-3 with losses to Xavier and Florida.
Cincinnati and Wichita State were expected to contend for the title in the Shockers’ first season in the AAC. Wichita State gave itself a chance with a solid all-around game led by its point guard. Shamut had 16 points in the first half, when the Shockers shredded the nation’s second-ranked defense to take control.
Cincinnati coach Mick Cronin was bothered by his team’s “gross, mindboggling defensive breakdowns,” including allowing the Shockers to get open for those two late layups. Wichita State shot 53 percent from the field, getting open 3-pointers in the first half and layups in the second half.
Carsen Edwards scored 27 points to lead Purdue past Penn State in West Lafayette, Indiana. Dakota Mathias added 18 points and Isaac Haas had 12 points and six rebounds for the Boilermakers (24-5, 13-3 Big Ten), who snapped a season-worst three-game skid. Tony Carr had 19 points, five rebounds and five assists, Shep Garner had 17 points and Lamar Stevens had 13 points and six rebounds for the Nittany Lions (1910, 9-7). The loss ended a stretch of six wins in seven games. Ryan Cline’s 3-pointer with 5:31 remaining gave Purdue a 61-58 lead, and the Boilers never trailed the rest of the way.
Gary Trent Jr. hit three foul shots with 1:31 left to put the Blue Devils ahead for good and Duke, again playing without injured star Marvin Bagley III, beat the Tigers in Clemson, South Carolina. Duke (22-5, 10-4 ACC) won its third straight game without Bagley, its leading scorer and rebounder who’s sidelined because of a strained right knee. Grayson Allen had 19 points for Duke. Marcquise Reed and Elijah Thomas led Clemson (20-6, 9-5) with 13 points apiece.
Leron Black scored a career-high 28 points and snagged seven rebounds to help the Fighting Illini (13-15, 3-12 Big Ten) outlast the Cornhuskers (20-9, 11-5) in Champaign, Illinois. Isaac Copeland led the way for Nebraska with 17 points.
Women
Sophie Cunningham scored 12 of her 32 points in the fourth quarter and the Tigers held on to beat the Lady Vols in Columbia, Missouri. Missouri (22-5, 10-4 SEC) made 12 of 14 free throws in the fourth quarter but the two misses came in the final minute, giving Tennessee (21-6, 9-5) a chance. Jordan Frericks fouled Rennia Davis on a 3-point attempt with 1.4 seconds left. Davis missed the first free throw and made the second before deliberately missing the third. Missouri got the rebound and iced the game on two Cunningham free throws with less than a second remaining.
“We’re just not in a good place right now,” Cronin said. “I hadn’t slept much. We’re not in a good place for a lot of reasons.”
Kennedy ends tenure as coach at Ole Miss
Mississippi men’s coach Andy Kennedy said his resignation is now effective immediately, six days after saying he would depart at the end of the season.
Tony Madlock, an assistant on Kennedy’s staff, will serve as Ole Miss’ acting head coach for the rest of the season.