AUSTIN, Texas - Jonathan Holmes scored 23 points and Cam Ridley had 16 points and 11 rebounds to lead Texas to an 86-76 victory over No. 8 Iowa State on Saturday, sending the Cyclones to their third consecutive loss.
The Longhorns (14-4, 3-2) got their biggest victory of the season with their third in a row in the Big 12.
Javan Felix scored 17 for Texas, including a big three-pointer in the momentum-changing run in the second half and a layup in the final minute that helped the Longhorns protect their lead.
Georges Niang scored 18 to lead Iowa State, which started the season 14-0. The Cyclones (14-3, 2-3) hadn’t lost three in a row since the 2010-2011 season and haven’t won in Austin since 2005.
Melvin Ejim scored 17 for the Cyclones, who went 11 of 32 on three-pointers.
After their first losing season in 15 years last season, the Longhorns started conference play 0-2 and now they’ve won three in a row. The latest, against a Top 10 team that looked like a conference title contender two weeks ago, should be a tremendous confidence boost.
They’ll need it considering what comes next: a three-game stretch against Kansas State, Baylor and Kansas.
Just the opposite appears to be happening to the Cyclones who are crumbling after a 14-0 start. Against Texas, the Cyclones struggled to find scoring when three-pointers misfired and couldn’t match the physical presence of Holmes and Ridley in the second half.
In other Big 12 games Saturday, Shane Southwell and Thomas Gipson scored 20 points apiece and Marcus Foster added 15 as Kansas State beat West Virginia 78-56. … Buddy Hield scored all 19 of his points after halftime and No. 25 Oklahoma stormed from behind with a big run on the way to a 66-64 victory at No. 12 Baylor. … Naadir Tharpe scored 21 points for Kansas, and Frank Mason stripped Oklahoma State’s Le’Bryan Nash as the final buzzer sounded to preserve the 15th-ranked Jayhawks’ 80-78 victory over the ninth-ranked Cowboys. … Dusty Hannahs (Pulaski Academy) scored 13 points, Dejan Kravic had 12 points and 10 rebounds and Texas Tech won consecutive Big 12 games for the first time in almost three years with a 60-49 victory against cold-shooting TCU.
PACIFIC-12
Utah surprises UCLA
SALT LAKE CITY - Jordan Loveridge scored 17 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead a balanced attack as Utah held off a late rally to surprise No. 25 UCLA 74-69.
Delon Wright, Brandon Taylor and Kenneth Ogbe each scored 12 points to help the Utes (14-4, 3-3) earn their first victory over the Bruins since the 1983 NCAA tournament.
Kyle Anderson had 28 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for UCLA, and Zach LaVine added 15 off the bench for the Bruins. UCLA (14-4, 3-2) stormed back froma 17-point deficit to get within two in the final minute, but could not overcome a costly turnover by Anderson in the final seconds.
In other Pac-12 games Saturday, Josh Scott scored 20 points, Askia Booker had 13 and No. 21 Colorado, shaken by the loss of star guard Spencer Dinwiddie to a season-ending knee injury, rebounded from its first home defeat to rout Southern Cal 83-62. … Richard Solomon had 12 points and nine rebounds, Justin Cobbs added 16 points with seven assists and California remained unbeaten in conference play with a 76-55 victory over Washington State.
MOUNTAIN WEST Run helps San Diego St.
SAN DIEGO - Xavier Thames scored 18 points for No. 10 San Diego State, which used a 19-2 first-half run to beat UNLV 63-52 on Saturday for its 15th consecutive victory.
Josh Davis added 14 points and 14 rebounds for SDSU (16-1, 5-0), which hasn’t lost since its second game, a 69-60 home defeat against Arizona, which is now ranked No. 1.
Bryce Dejean-Jones scored15 points, Deville Smith had 13 and Roscoe Smith 11 for UNLV (11-7, 2-3) which had won eight of its previous 10 games.
In other Mountain West games Saturday, Larry Nance Jr. scored 18 points and had 13 rebounds along with five blocked shots to lead Wyoming over San Jose State 67-56. … Daniel Bejarano drilled back-to-back three-pointers to give Colorado State the lead and push the Rams to a 74-68 victory over rival Air Force. ... Cameron Bairstow scored 22 points and New Mexico bounced back from a rare home-court loss to UNLV by knocking off Fresno State 89-78 on the road. … Derrick Marks scored 16 of his 19 points in the second half and scored the decisive basket with 23.6 seconds left as Boise State recorded a 78-74 victory over Utah State.
Sports, Pages 25 on 01/19/2014