Men’s hoops poll will see reshuffling
Irish rally, edge No. 19
The USA TODAY/ESPN men’s basketball coaches poll should see some reshuffling. Kentucky likely will stay No. 1, but either No. 3 Ohio State, which beat Michigan 64-49 Sunday, or No. 4 Syracuse, which survived Saturday 63-61 vs. West Virginia, could replace Missouri at No. 2. The Tigers lost at Oklahoma State last week. The poll will be released this afternoon at ncaamen .usatoday.com and in Tuesday’s print edition. -Notre
Eric Atkins scored 13 points and Jerian Grant hit three late free throws as Notre Dame beat No. 19 Connecticut 50-48 Sunday in Hartford, the third win in a row for the Irish and third loss in a row for the Huskies.
Grant had 11 points and Scott Martin 10 for Notre Dame (14-8, 6-3 Big East), which controlled the tempo throughout.
Notre Dame trailed 24-21 at halftime but went on a 13-0 run to open the second half.
Jeremy Lamb had 16 points to lead the Huskies (14-6, 4-4) and had a chance to tie the score after missing his second free throw with 2.3 seconds left on purpose. He grabbed the rebound of the miss, but his offbalance follow bounced off the rim at the buzzer.
The win capped a good week for the Irish. They beat thenNo. 1 Syracuse on Jan. 21 before winning at Seton Hall. Notre Dame set team records in that game by holding the Pirates to 15 field goals and 42 points.
No. 3 Ohio State 64, No. 22 Michigan 49: Lenzelle Smith Jr. had 17 points and a career-high 12 rebounds as the Buckeyes (19-3, 7-2 Big Ten) ran their home winning streak to 38 and remained tied for the conference lead.
Jared Sullinger added 13 points and William Buford and Deshaun Thomas 12 each for Ohio State, which has topped its archrival six times in a row.
Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 15 points for the Wolverines (16-6, 6-3).
No. 8 North Carolina 93, Georgia Tech 81: Harrison Barnes scored 23, and North Carolina hit 10 three-pointers in a win that ended a four-game skid to the Yellow Jackets.
Tyler Zeller had 17 points for the Tar Heels (18-3, 5-1 Atlantic Coast).
No. 17 Indiana 103, Iowa 89: Freshman Cody Zeller scored a season-high 26 points to help Indiana (17-5, 5-5 Big Ten) roll to a home win.
Streak ends:
Towson ended a 41-game losing streak, longest in Division I men’s basketball history, with a 66-61 win at home Saturday against North Carolina-wilmington. Binghamton (0-21) is the only winless men’s team left in Division I.
Women’s games
Sixth-ranked Kentucky moved within a game of its best start in history by beating Alabama 82-68 at home behind 14 points from Keyla Snowden and 13 from A’dia Mathies. The Wildcats (20-2, 9-0 Southeastern) are chasing their first conference title in 30 years. ... Shenise Johnson scored 16 of her 22 points in the opening half to lead No. 8 Miami (Fla.) (19-3, 8-1 ACC) to an 88-57 rout at Boston College. . . . Rachel Banham had 20 points, helping host Minnesota (12-11, 4-5 Big Ten) take down No. 9 (tie) Ohio State 76-65, the Gophers’ first win against a ranked team in nearly three years. Samantha Prahalis had 19 of her 25 points in the second half for the Buckeyes (20-2, 7-2). . . . Shekinna Stricklen had 24 points, and No. 9 (tie) Tennessee (16-5, 7-1 SEC) beat No. 15 Georgia 67-50. Meredith Mitchell had 13 points for Georgia (16-6, 5-4). . . . Sydney Carter hit two free throws with 2.4 seconds left to lift No. 13 Texas A&M (14-5, 5-3 Big 12) to a 66-64 home win vs. Iowa State (11-8, 2-6). Adaora Elonu led the Aggies with 19 points and Chelsea Poppens had 22 points and nine rebounds for the Cyclones. . . . Elena Delle Donne scored 23 points and Lauren Carra added a season-high 22 as 16th-ranked Delaware rallied from seven points down in the second half to win at James Madison 72-65. ... No. 18 Georgetown (17-5, 6-3 Big East) held 12th-ranked Rutgers (17-4, 6-2) to its lowest point total this season in a 54-36 home victory. Tia Magee led the Hoyas with 21 points, while April Sykes topped the Scarlet Knights with 13. . . . Lindsey Moore’s 20 points led No. 21 Nebraska (18-3, 7-2 Big Ten) to a 67-47 victory at Illinois. The Cornhuskers forced 23 Illini (715, 1-8) turnovers. . . . Porsche Poole scored 32 as Michigan State (14-9, 6-4 Big Ten) upset No. 19 Penn State (16-6, 6-3) 83-77 in East Lansing, Mich. Maggie Lucas topped the Nittany Lions with 21 points. ... Tyaunna Marshall scored 17 and grabbed seven rebounds to lead No. 24 Georgia Tech (16-6, 6-3 ACC) to a 63-54 win at Clemson (5-14, 1-7), which was led by Nikki Dixon’s 18 points. ... Tierra Ruffin-pratt produced 19 of her 21 points in the second half to lift No. 25 North Carolina (16-5, 6-2 ACC) to a 75-71 win at Wake Forest (12-9, 2-6).