The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Providence ends No. 5 Xavier’s win streak
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Another layup bounced off the rim, Providence forward Rodney Bullock grabbed the defensive rebound with about 20 seconds left and Xavier coach Chris Mack stood in front of his bench with both hands in the air.
It was time to surrender. The best start in Musketeers history was over, along with the secondlongest winning streak in Mack’s tenure at the school.
“It certainly wasn’t our day,” Mack said Saturday after fifth-ranked Xavier lost to the Friars 81-72 to snap a 10-game winning streak. “We know who Providence is. We know what each of their strengths is. But being able to take it away, that’s different.”
Kyron Cartwright had 19 points, nine assists and four steals, and Bullock scored 17 with six rebounds and two blocked shots as the Friars beat a ranked team for the first time this season.
Kerem Kanter had 24 points and 12 rebounds — eight on the offensive boards — in 20 minutes for Xavier. Tyrique Jones, who had 12 points and seven rebounds, was the only other Musketeer to make more than half his shots. Trevon Bluiett, who leads Xavier with 19.8 points per game, had 12 points but was scoreless in the second half.
NO. 6 WEST VIRGINIA 89, NO. 7 OKLAHOMA 76: Teddy Allen scored 20 points off the bench and Sagaba Konate had 14 of his 16 points in the second half for West Virginia. Lamont West and Jevon Carter added 17 points apiece for the Mountaineers. Konate also had 13 rebounds.
Oklahoma freshman Trae Young, the nation’s scoring and assists leader, finished with 29 points on 8-of-22 shooting.
NO. 8 VIRGINIA 61, NO. 12 NORTH CAROLINA 49: Devon Hall scored 16 points and Virginia held North Carolina to its second-lowest point total of the season.
Hall had seven assists for Virginia, and De’Andre Hunter had 10 points and seven rebounds. The Cavaliers won their sixth in a row and sent the Tar Heels to consecutive losses for the first time since February 2016.
Joel Berry II led North Carolina with 17 points and Kenny Williams had 11.
LSU 69, NO. 11 TEXAS A&M 68: Tremont Waters scored 21 points, including an off-balance 3-pointer with 1 second remaining, to lift LSU.
The game was tied before the Aggies used an 8-3 run, capped by four points from Tyler Davis, to take a 68-63 lead. But Waters, who finished with five 3s, made a 3-pointer for LSU to get the Tigers within three with 12 seconds left. Davis missed two free throws on the other end before Waters launched his winner under heavy defensive pressure.
Davis led the Aggies with 19 points.
NO. 13 PURDUE 74, NEBRASKA 62: Vincent Edwards scored 21 points and Isaac Haas added 14 to give Purdue its 11th consecutive win. The Boilermakers extended their homecourt winning streak to 18 and won their 10th straight home game against a conference foe.
James Palmer Jr. finished with 22 points and Isaac Copeland had 16 to lead the Cornhuskers, whose fourgame winning streak ended.
COLORADO 80, NO. 14 ARIZONA 77: McKinley Wright IV scored 16 points to lead five Colorado players in double figures, and the Buffaloes ended the Wildcats’ nine-game winning streak.
Deandre Ayton scored 21 of his 26 points in the second half for Arizona. Arizona’s leading scorer, Allonzo Trier, was held to eight.
NO. 18 TEXAS TECH 74, KANSAS ST. 58: Keenan Evans scored 27 points and Texas Tech beat Kansas State to back up a big win at Kansas earlier in the week.
Barry Brown led Kansas State with 24 points and Dean Wade had 14. Cartier Diarra added 11 points.
All 10 Texas Tech players scored, and Zhaire Smith was the only other in double figures with 11 points.
NO. 21 SETON HALL 90, BUTLER 87: Khadeen Carrington scored 29 points, Angel Delgado had 28 points and 15 rebounds and the Pirates rallied from an 11-point deficit to win their fifth straight game.
Kelan Martin finished with 27 points for Butler. Kamar Baldwin scored 14 points for the Bulldogs, while Henry Baddley finished with 14 points.
AUBURN 88, NO. 22 ARKANSAS 77: Mustapha Heron scored 17 points and Auburn fended off a late comeback attempt.
Heron was one of five Auburn players in double figures along with Desean Murray (15), Jared Harper (14), Bryce Brown (13), and Chuma Okeke (10). Jaylen Barford scored 21 to lead the Razorbacks.
NO. 25 CLEMSON 74, LOUISVILLE 69 OT: Marcquise Reed scored 24 points and Elijah Thomas had 12 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks to lead Clemson.
Ray Spaulding led Louisville with 16 points and 14 rebounds while limited to 29 minutes with foul trouble. Deng Adel added 14 points and 11 rebounds.