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NO. 1 BaYLOR 70, NO. 14 W VIRGINIa 59
WACO, Texas — Jared Butler scored 16 of his 21 points in the first half, and top-ranked Baylor never trailed while tying the longest winning streak in Big 12 history at 22 games with a victory over No. 14 West Virginia on Saturday. The Bears (23-1, 12-0 Big 12) cruised without second-leading scorer MaCio Teague, a junior whose streak of 90 consecutive games ended because of a right wrist injury. Baylor led by 19 in the first half and answered a scoreless stretch of nearly four minutes before halftime by starting the second half on a 20-3 run for its biggest lead at 53-25. Taz Sherman scored a season-high 20 points for the Mountaineers (18-7, 6-6), who had 11 of their season high-tying 22 turnovers in the first 12 minutes and shot 35% in a third consecutive loss.
CLEMSON 77, NO. 5 LOUISVILLE 62
CLEMSON, S.C. — Johnny Newman III had a career-high 23 points and Clemson used a strong defensive first half to send No. 5 Louisville to its second straight defeat. The Tigers (13-12, 7-8 Atlantic Coast Conference) held the Cardinals to their lowest first-half output this season as they led 31-14 at the break and limited the ACC’s leading scorer Jordan Nwora to five points. After Louisville cut a 21-point lead to 44-34 on Dwayne Sutton’s jumper with 9:49 left, Clemson took off on an 11-2 run to put the Cardinals in a hole they could not climb out of. Tevin Mack’s basket started Clemson’s clinching surge, then Aamir Simms, Newman and Alex Hemenway added 3s to restore the large lead. Louisville (21-5, 12-3) could not rally, losing consecutive games for just the second time this season.
NO. 7 DUKE 94, NOTRE DAME 60
DURHAM, N.C. — Vernon Carey Jr. scored 21 points, Tre Jones added 19 and No. 7 Duke used its high-intensity man-to-man defense to beat Notre Dame. With No. 5 Louisville losing to Clemson, the win vaulted the Blue Devils (22-3, 12-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) into sole possession of first place in the ACC standings, one-half game ahead of the Cardinals. Duke’s relentless defensive pressure rattled an opponent that’s usually steady on offense, leading to the lopsided score.
NO. 9 MARYLAND 67, MICHIGAN STATE 60
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Anthony Cowan scored 11 of his 24 points in the final two-plus minutes, helping No. 9 Maryland beat Michigan State with a strong finish. The Terrapins (21-4, 11-3 Big Ten) scored the final 14 points of the game after trailing by seven with 3:24 left. Cowman had the last 11 points on three 3-pointers and two free throws. The Spartans (17-9, 9-6) trailed by as much as 15 points in the first half and by eight early in the second half before making a surge to take the lead. Michigan State’s Xavier Tillman had 18 points and 11 rebounds, but he gave Jalen Smith enough space to make a 3-pointer with 3:08 remaining to start Maryland’s game-closing run.
PROVIDENCE 74, NO. 10 SETON HALL 71
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Alpha Diallo scored a career-high 35 points to lead Providence past No. 10 Seton Hall. Luwane Pipkins added 13 points for the Friars, who avenged a 73-64 loss to Seton Hall last month. The Pirates (18-7, 11-2 Big East) got 27 points from Myles Powell, while Quincy McKnight added 14 points, though he was just 1 for 8 from the field. Seton Hall, in first place in the conference, has dropped back-to-back games for the second time this season. The Friars (14-12, 7-6) stormed to a 20-2 lead and led by as many as 25 points in the first half. The Pirates regrouped behind a 12-2 run to pull within 41-27 at halftime.
GEORGETOWN 73, NO. 19 BUTLER 66
INDIANAPOLIS — Terrell Allen tied a career high with 22 points, including key baskets on back-to-back possessions late, and short-handed Georgetown endured on the road without its top two scorers to knock off No. 19 Butler. The Hoyas (15-10, 5-7 Big East) were missing injured starters Mac McClung and Omer Yurtseven, but Allen hit the game’s first shot and stayed hot to keep the visitors ahead for much of the game. He hit 9 of 14 field goal attempts, including all four 3-point attempts, as Georgetown improved to 6-1 lifetime at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Butler (19-7, 7-6) struggled without injured point guard Aaron Thompson but gradually erased an early nine-point deficit and pulled to within 61-60 with 3:46 remaining. That’s when Allen stepped up again with a pull-up jumper in the paint, then his final 3-pointer, from the left wing, gave Georgetown a 66-60 lead with 1:28 remaining.
SMU 73, NO. 20 HOUSTON 72, OT
DALLAS — Emmanuel Bandoumel hit an off-balance 3-point shot with 30 seconds remaining in overtime to give SMU the upset. Bandoumel scored seven points in the game and had missed his first two 3-point attempts. Houston freshman Marcus Sasser made three free throws with three seconds left to send the game to overtime, and he gave the Cougars a 72-70 lead with 1:05 remaining in the extra period. Sasser reached a career-high 26 points to lead all scorers. He scored half of them in the second half to rally Houston (20-6, 10-3 American Athletic Conference) from an 11-point halftime deficit. His last-minute free throws tied the game for the first time since it was 2-2. The lead changed hands only once in regulation play, and then four times in overtime. Tyson Jolly led SMU (18-6, 8-4) with 20 points. Isiaha Mike and Feron Hunt scored 15 each, and Kendric Davis had 10.
RUTGERS 72, NO. 22 ILLINOIS 57
PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Ron Harper Jr. hit all five of his 3-pointers and scored 27 points and Rutgers remained unbeaten at home, sending the No. 22 Illini to their fourth straight loss. Gio Baker and Akwasi Yeboah added 12 points apiece and Myles Johnson had 11 rebounds as the Scarlet Knights (18-8, 9-6 Big Ten) improved to a nation’s-best 17-0 at home. Indiana was the last Big Ten program to start 17-0 at home, doing it 2015-16. Alan Griffin had 14 points to lead the Illini. Kofi Cockburn added 10 points and 10 rebounds, and Andres Feliz added 10 points for the Illini (16-9, 8-6). Illinois played without leading scorer Ayo Dosunmu (15.8 points), who hurt his left knee at the final buzzer in a loss against Michigan State on Tuesday night.
NO. 23 CREIGHTON 93, DEPAUL 64
OMAHA, Neb. — Ty-Shon Alexander matched his season high with 24 points in one of his best all-around games, and No. 23 Creighton blew out DePaul. Creighton (20-6, 9-4 Big East) won its 12th straight in the series and has beaten DePaul in 15 of 16 meetings since joining the Big East. All but one of those Creighton wins have been by double digits. The Bluejays are 7-1 in their last eight games and reached 20 wins for the 20th time in 22 years. The Blue Demons (13-12, 1-11) lost their seventh straight, a skid that started with Creighton’s 83-68 win in Chicago last month.
OKLAHOMA STATE 73, NO. 24 TEXAS TECH 70
STILLWATER, Okla. — Jonathan Laurent and Kalib Boone each scored 16 points as Oklahoma State registered its first win over a ranked opponent this season. Isaac Likekele added 14 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals for the Cowboys (13-12, 3-9 Big 12), who have won three of four after dropping their first eight conference games. Kevin McCullar and Davide Moretti each scored 15 points and Jahmiús Ramsey added 14 for Texas Tech (16-9, 7-5), which had won its previous three games.
WOMEN
NO. 2 BaYLOR 69, OKLahOma STaTE 42
STILLWATER, Okla. — Te’a Cooper scored 15 points to help lead No. 2 Baylor to a dominant victory over Oklahoma State. It was the 16th straight triumph for Baylor (23-1, 12-0 Big 12) and its 53rd consecutive Big 12 regular season win, as well as the 599th of coach Kim Mulkey’s career. Juicy Landrum added 12 points and five assists while Queen Egbo contributed 10 points and five rebounds off the bench for the Bears.
NO. 15 GONZAGA 53, SANTA CLARA 46
SPOKANE, Wash. — Jenn Wirth scored 11 points and grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds as Gonzaga clinched a tie for its 16th West Coast Conference title with a 53-46 win over Santa Clara. Nine players played and scored and eight played at least 14 minutes for the Bulldogs (25-2, 14-1), who have a three-game lead with three games to play and have 16 straight home wins.
NO. 21 SOUTH DAKOTA 77, TULSA 73
TULSA — Chloe Lamb scored a career-high 24 points and South Dakota jumped to a big early lead and held on. The Coyotes (25-2, 14-0 Summit League) won their 14th straight and had their first league game decided by single figures as the Golden Eagles (12-14, 7-5) used a 26-14 advantage in the second quarter to close within 35-31. South Dakota had a 21-5 lead after one quarter. Oral Roberts, which lost the first matchup 76-56, tied the game at 44 on Keni Jo Lippe’s 3-pointer midway through the third quarter, but Taylor Frederick hit a layup and a 3 as the Coyotes regained the lead.
NO. 24 MISSOURI STATE 88, SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 57
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Elle Ruffridge had 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting, including four 3-pointers, and Missouri State got revenge for its only Missouri Valley Conference loss. Alexa Willard added 13 points and Jasmine Franklin earned her ninth double-double with 10 points and a career-high-matching 14 rebounds for the Bears (21-3, 11-1).