Utah rally stuns UCLA as Bruins blow 22-point lead
Senior guard Parker Van Dyke hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer as visiting Utah overcame a 22-point second-half deficit Saturday to earn an improbable 93-92 Pac-12 victory over UCLA.
Van Dyke scored 15 points for the Utes (13-10, 7-4 Pac-12), who made up 22 points over the final 12:10 of the game and outscored UCLA 12-5 over the final 28 seconds.
UCLA’s David Singleton missed one of two free throws with five seconds remaining to open the window for Van Dyke to win it.
Sophomore guard Jaylen Hands scored a career-high 27 points plus seven assists for the Bruins (12-12, 5-6), while sophomore guard Kris Wilkes scored 17. UCLA shot 70 percent in the first half while taking a 49-32 lead. UCLA played without 7-foot-1 center Moses Brown, who was benched for reportedly arriving late to a team shootaround. GONZAGA ROUTS SAINT MARY’S >> Fourth-ranked Gonzaga (232, 10-0 WCC) suffocated Saint Mary’s, holding the visiting Gaels 15-10, 6-4) to 25.9 percent shooting in the 94-46 rout. Brandon Clarke led the Zags with 24 points and three blocked shots as they rolled to their 14th consecutive victory.
Saint Mary’s Jordan Ford, the leading scorer in the WCC, was held to eight points. Gonzaga scored the first 11 points of the game.
CAL REMAINS WINLESS IN PAC12 >> Oregon State held off a late Cal rally as the Beavers (15-8, 7-4 Pac-12) prevailed 79-71, handing the visiting Bears (5-18, 0-11) their 12th consecutive loss. Cal remained winless on the road this season.
The Bears got within 66-65 with 5:57 remaining on a 3-pointer by Connor Vanover. But Cal committed a turnover and missed a shot on its next two possessions, after which Ethan Thompson scored five consecutive points for Oregon State.
SPARTANS STRUGGLE AT BOISE STATE >> San Jose State suffered its worst loss of the season, falling 105-57 at Boise State. The Spartans (3-19, 0-10 in the Mountain West) had lost by 39 points on Jan. 9 at Nevada. They had lost by 38 points on Jan. 19 at NevadaLas Vegas.
Boise State (11-13, 6-5) shot 62.5 percent from the field and was 15 for 30 on 3-pointers. Derick Alston led the BSU with 33 points. Michael Steadman had 16 for SJSU.
NEVADA EARNS REVENGE >> Caleb Martin and Trey Porter each scored 20 points, and Jordan Caroline added 13 points and 13 rebounds as sixth-ranked Nevada jumped out to a 29-point firsthalf lead and cruised to its ninth straight victory, 91-62 over visiting New Mexico.
Cody Martin finished with 13 points, seven assists, three steals and two blocks for the Wolf Pack (23-1, 10-1 MW), which shot 50 percent and avenged their only loss of the season to the Lobos on Jan. 5 in Albuquerque. New Mexico (10-13, 4-7) lost for the seventh time in nine games since its upset of the Wolf Pack.
WSU ROUTS ARIZONA >> Washington State’s Robert Franks followed up his career-high 34-point effort at Arizona State with another 34 points in a 69-55 win over Arizona in Tucson. In the Cougars’ (10-14, 3-8 Pac-12) sweep over ASU and Arizona, Franks made 23 of 36 from the field. Arizona (14-10, 5-6) has lost five consecutive games.
NO. 1 TENNESSEE CRUISES >> Senior forward Grant Williams led four scorers in double figures with 16 points, lifting top-ranked Tennessee (22-1, 10-0 SEC) to a 73-61 home win over Florida, its 18th straight win.
DUKE PREVAILS OVER VIRGINIA AGAIN >> In the second matchup between the top-5 teams in less than a month, No. 2 Duke prevailed again over No. 3 Virginia (20-2, 8-2 ACC) 81-71. Duke (21-2, 9-1) freshman R.J. Barrett led all scorers with 26 points on 6-for10 shooting from beyond the arc. NORTH CAROLINA SLIPS PAST MIAMI >> Freshman guard Coby White scored 33 points, and No. 8 North Carolina pulled off an 8885 overtime victory against visiting Miami (10-13, 2-9 ACC). The Tar Heels scrambled to pull even in regulation, and Luke Maye made a 3-point basket to force overtime. Maye had 20 points for North Carolina (19-4, 9-1). HOWARD LEADS MARQUETTE PAST
VILLANOVA >> High-scoring guard Markus Howard poured in 38 points and got just enough help from forward Sacar Amin as No. 10 Marquette withstood a feverish Villanova comeback attempt to beat the No. 14 Wildcats 66-65 in Milwaukee.
The win allowed the Golden Eagles (20-4, 9-2 Big East) to pull to within one game of the Wildcats (19-5, 10-1).
WARD HELPS MICHIGAN STATE GET ON TRACK >> Nick Ward scored 22 points as No. 9 Michigan State (19-5, 10-3 Big Ten) snapped a three-game losing streak with a 79-55 Big Ten victory over visiting Minnesota (16-8, 6-7). Ward added nine rebounds. KENTUCKY HOLDS OFF MISSISSIPPI STATE >> P.J. Washington scored 23 points and No. 5 Kentucky extended its winning streak to 10 games by defeating host Mississippi State 71-67. The Wildcats (20-3, 9-1 SEC) led by 15 at halftime, but the Bulldogs (16-7, 4-6) cut it to one in the second half before Kentucky held on. MICHIGAN TAKES DOWN WISCONSIN >> Senior swingman Charles Matthews had 18 points, and junior center Jon Teske tied career highs with 17 points and 12 rebounds as No. 7 Michigan (22-2, 11-2 Big Ten) retained sole possession of first place in the Big Ten by cooling off No. 19 Wisconsin (177, 9-4) 61-52.