Top 25: No. 6 Syracuse 70, No. 1 Louisville 68
Louisville’s reign at No. 1 is likely over after one week.
The Cardinals’ focus now is on reclaiming the top spot and holding on when it matters — through the season’s end in April — after falling to visiting Syracuse in a Big East showdown.
“That doesn’t bother me at all,” Cardinals senior guard Peyton Siva said of the team’s expected slip when the new poll is announced Monday.
“I’d rather have the No. 1 ranking at the end of the year. I really don’t mind having the No. 1 ranking at all. We’re going to work our way back up to that spot and hopefully get it at the end of the year.”
Siva’s cross-court pass was intercepted by Syracuse’s Michael Carter-Williams with 26 seconds left. Carter-Williams took the ball from the Cardinals’ free-throw line and slammed a contested dunk down 3 seconds later over Louisville center Gorgui Dieng for the go-ahead basket.
“I saw him at the last minute,” Siva said. “It was just a stupid pass on my part.”
The Cardinals had a chance to win or tie on their last possession, but another pass from Siva to Dieng landed near his knees before being stripped and was stolen to seal the win for Syracuse (17-1, 5-0). It was the Orange’s third consecutive win over the Cardinals.
Siva, who finished with three points going 1-of-9 from the field, was already dreading the film session to break down the loss.
Smith led Louisville with 25 points, the only Cardinal in double figures. Chane Behanan had nine points and 11 rebounds.
Syracuse gutted out the road win in front of a school-record crowd of 22,814, but Orange coach Jim Boeheim felt the Cardinals were still the team to beat in the Big East as well as the nation.
“They will be there at the end of the year, and the team to beat,” Boeheim said. “I think they will be the team to beat in the country when it all comes down to it in the end.”
Carter-Williams had 16 points, Jerami Grant and C.J. Fair both had 10 for the Orange, who won their seventh in a row.
Brandon Triche scored 23 points and Michael Carter-Williams scored nine of the Orange’s final 11 points as Syracuse won a Big East showdown.
No. 4 Kansas 64, Texas 59
Ben McLemore scored 16 points and visiting Kansas stormed back from a late double-digit deficit to beat Texas for its 15th win in a row. Jeff Withey added 14 points and nine rebounds for the Jayhawks (16-1, 4-0 Big 12), who trailed by 11 points in the second half before McLemore steered a rally that prevented the reeling Longhorns (8-9, 0-4) from a badly needed victory in this troubled season. Travis Releford added 12 points for Kansas. Sheldon McClennan led the Longhorns with 18 points. Texas has lost four in a row.
No. 7 Arizona 71, Arizona St. 54
Mark Lyons scored 24 points, Nick Johnson added 19 and host Arizona pulled away in the second half to beat rival Arizona State. Arizona (16-1, 4-1 Pac-12) was solid at both ends and went on the decisive run after Arizona State point guard Jahii Carson picked up his fourth foul midway through the second half. Solomon Hill added 13 points for the Wildcats, who scored 18 points off turnovers and outscored the Sun Devils by 14 inside. Arizona State (14-4, 3-2) never recovered after Arizona’s run.
No. 13 Butler 64, No. 8 Gonzaga 63
Roosevelt Jones hit a jumper with 0:01 left to play to lift host Butler, which had trailed by five points with 4:34 to play, to a dramatic come-from-behind win over Gonzaga in a nonconference game. Jones scored 20 points to lead Butler (16-2). Elias Harris led Gonzaga (17-2) with 20 points.
No. 10 Florida 83, No. 17 Missouri 52
Scottie Wilbekin had 13 points and 10 assists, his first career double-double, and host Florida thumped Missouri to give coach Billy Donovan his 400th win with the Gators, making him the third coach in Southeastern Conference history to accomplish that feat with the same school. He joined Kentucky’s Adolph Rupp and LSU’s Dale Brown in the 400-win club.
Florida, which won its sixth consecutive game, also made a statement about being the class of the Southeastern Conference.
And the Gators (14-2, 3-0 SEC) aren’t even fully healthy. Erik Murphy scored 15 points despite playing with a broken finger, and Kenny Boynton added 14 against the Tigers (13-4, 2-2).
Wichita State 67, No. 12 Creighton 64
Carl Hall had 17 points and 13 rebounds, Malcolm Armstead hit two key free throws in the closing seconds to help host Wichita State hold off Doug McDermott and Creighton and forge a tie atop the Missouri Valley. The Shockers (17-2, 6-1 MVC) pushed their home-court winning streak to 17 games. McDermott finished with 25 points for the Bluejays (17-2, 6-1).
Wyoming 58, No. 15 San Diego State 45
Leonard Washington had 14 points and 14 rebounds to help host Wyoming beat a cold-shooting San Diego State (14-4, 2-2 Mountain West). Revere graduate Larry Nance Jr. added 11 points and 12 rebounds, and Derrious Gilmore had 13 points for the Cowboys (15-2, 2-2). SDSU (14-4, 2-2) lost its second game in a row.
No. 16 Kansas St. 69, Oklahoma 60
Rodney McGruder scored 20 points and Will Spradling added 15 as host Kansas State (15-2, 4-0) defeated Oklahoma in a matchup of unbeaten Big 12 teams. The Sooners (12-4, 3-1) kept pace with the Wildcats most of the way thanks to snagging 36 rebounds to Kansas State’s 24.
No. 20 Notre Dame 69, Rutgers 66
Jack Cooley had 19 points, 10 rebounds and blocked a shot with 2 seconds left to help host Notre Dame hang on to end a two-game losing streak. Rutgers used a 6-1 run late to close to 67-66 when Eli Carter scored on a layup with 7 seconds left then forced a held ball on Eric Atkins two seconds later. Carter drove inside for the layup, but Cooley blocked the shot. Atkins then made a pair of free throws for the Irish (15-3, 3-2 Big East). Myles Mack 3-point attempt at the buzzer missed as the Scarlet Knights (14-4, 3-3) lost for the ninth consecutive time at Notre Dame.
No. 21 Oregon 76, No. 24 UCLA 67
Tony Woods scored 18 points and visiting Oregon pulled away over the final 6½ minutes and improved to 5-0 in Pac-12 play for the first time in 39 years. Dominic Artis added 14 points, and Arsaian Kezemi had 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Ducks (16-2, 5-0), who snapped the Bruins’ 10-game winning streak. UCLA (15-4, 5-1) led by three points at halftime after shooting 55 percent. They led by five early in the second half and tied the score at 52-all before the Ducks’ defense stepped up.
No. 22 VCU 90, Duquesne 63
Rob Brandenberg scored 22 points and visiting Virginia Commonwealth dominated in winning its 13th consecutive game. The Rams’ Treveon Graham had 17 of his 20 points in the first half, when VCU (16-3, 4-0 Atlantic 10) used a 26-2 run to seize control. VCU coach Shaka Smart, a former assistant at Akron, became the second-youngest coach to reach 100 career victories. The 35-year-old needed 131 games.
Cincinnati 71, No. 25 Marquette 69
Sean Kilpatrick scored seven of his career-high 36 points in overtime, and Cincinnati blew a 16-point lead before rallying to end its streak of three consecutive home losses.
Cincinnati (16-3, 4-2 Big East) pulled it out without point guard Cashmere Wright. The Bearcats depended almost solely on Kilpatrick for points. His driving layup with 4.3 seconds left in overtime broke the final tie. Junior Cadougan missed a driving jumper before the buzzer.
Marquette (13-4, 4-1) managed only 13 points in the first half and never led until overtime.
BIG TEN: Nebraska 68, Penn State 64
Shavon Shields scored a career-high 29 points, Ray Gallegos had 15 points and Nebraska held off host Penn State. Penn State (8-10, 0-6) trailed by three points with 24 seconds left in the game before Nebraska’s Brandon Ubel was called for a flagrant foul on D.J. Newbill. The foul gave Penn State two extra free throws.
Newbill made 1-of-2 free throws and Ross Travis missed the next two from the line. Newbill failed to convert on two more free throws in the final 14 seconds, helping the Huskers (10-9, 1-5) escape with the victory.
Shields went 10-of-11 from the floor and made all eight of his free throws for Nebraska. As a team, the Huskers went 16-of-16 on free throws.
Purdue 79, West Virginia 52
D.J. Byrd scored 17 points to help host Purdue defeat West Virginia. Rapheal Davis added 16 points, Anthony Johnson 12 and Terone Johnson 11 for the Boilermakers (10-8), who won their third in a row.
Purdue shot 49 percent from the field and outrebounded the Mountaineers 44-34.
Eron Harris scored 10 points for West Virginia, which barely surpassed its season low of 50 points. Harris was the only Mountaineers player to reach double figures.
The Mountaineers (8-9) have lost three in row and four out of five. West Virginia shot just 29 percent from the field.
Iowa 70, Wisconsin 66
Aaron White scored 17 points and Iowa hung on to win and knock the visiting Badgers out of first place in the Big Ten. Devyn Marble added 13 for the Hawkeyes. Iowa (13-5, 2-3) jumped ahead by 20 points late in the first half and held off a late charge by the Badgers (13-5, 4-1).
MID-AMERICAN: Eastern Michigan 65, Miami 58
Derek Thompson scored 16 points to lead host Eastern Michigan. Glenn Bryant had 13 points for the Eagles (9-9, 2-2). Will Felder led the RedHawks (7-9, 2-2) with 12 points and nine rebounds.
Ohio 76, Toledo 67
Reggie Keely scored a career-high 24 points, making all nine of his shots, to lead host Ohio (13-5, 4-0) over Toledo (6-9, 2-2).
Central Michigan 71, Ball State 57
Kyle Randall scored 16 points, Olivier Mbaigoto and Blake Hibbitts added 12 apiece and host Central Michigan beat Ball State (9-8, 2-2). Majok Majok had 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Cards (7-9, 1-3).
Buffalo 68, Bowling Green 65
Host Buffalo erased an eight-point halftime deficit and rallied to defeat Bowling Green (6-11, 1-3) and snap a four-game losing streak. Javon McCrea led the Bulls (6-12, 1-3) with 21 points and a career-high 14 rebounds.
Western Michigan 71, Northern Illinois 34
Western Michigan’s (10-8, 2-2) defense held Northern Illinois (3-13, 1-3) to 20 percent shooting from the field and used a 40-14 second-half advantage to win going away.
