No. 1 Virginia wraps up ACC regular-season title
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) Ty Jerome scored 18 points and top-ranked Virginia held off depleted Georgia Tech 65-54 on Wednesday night, clinching the regular season title and top seed next month in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament.
Virginia (25-2, 14-1) won its eighth regular-season title and third in five years.
The Cavaliers also got nine points each from De'Andre Hunter and Mamadi Diakite. They led just 31-30 at halftime and didn't open a double-digit lead until just 5:14 remained.
Ben Lammers scored 22 points to lead the Yellow Jackets (11-17, 4-11). They lost their sixth in a row and 10th in the last 11 games.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Mikal Bridges scored 27 points and Phil Booth added 14 in his return to the lineup to lead Villanova past DePaul on Wednesday night.
Booth played 16 minutes, going 4 for 6 from the field and 2 for 4 from the arc in his comeback from a broken right hand that sidelined him seven games.
Eric Paschall had 16 points, and Jalen Brunson added 11 points and seven assists to help the Wildcats (25-3, 12-3 Big East) beat DePaul for the 16th straight time.
Max Strus scored 21 points for the Blue Demons (10-17, 3-12).
No. 4 XAVIER 89, GEORGETOWN 77
WASHINGTON (AP) - Naji Marshall scored a career-high 21 points and Xavier beat Georgetown, bouncing back from its loss to No. 3 Villanova.
J.P. Macura added 20 points, including four 3-pointers, and Quentin Goodin had 19 points to help the Musketeers (25-4, 13-3 Big East) swept the season series with Georgetown for the second straight season.
Jamorko Pickett tied a career high with 21 points for Georgetown (15-11, 5-10).
No. 5 DUKE 82, LOUISVILLE 56
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) - Grayson Allen scored 28 points and Duke routed Louisville.
Freshman big man Wendell Carter Jr. finished with 18 points and a season-high five assists, and Gary Trent Jr. had 11 points to help the Blue Devils (23-5, 11-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) win their fourth straight game - all coming with star freshman Marvin Bagley III out with a sprained knee.
Ray Spalding scored 17 points, and V.J. King and Deng Adel had 10 apiece for Louisville (18-10, 8-7), playing for the first time since an NCAA panel upheld sanctions against the program in the wake of its sex scandal - which cost the school about $600,000 in tournament revenue, 123 victories and its most recent national championship.
OKLAHOMA STATE 79, No. 6 TEXAS TECH
STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) - Kendall Smith scored 21 points to help Oklahoma State stun Texas Tech.
Lindy Waters added a career-high 18 points, and Jeffrey Carroll had 14 points. The Cowboys (16-12, 6-9 Big 12) got a huge boost to their hopes of gaining an NCAA Tournament bid.
Zhaire Smith scored 18 points, and Jarrett Culver added 15 for Tech (22-6, 10-5), which needed a win to tie Kansas for the Big 12 lead. The Red Raiders lost their second straight.
Tech's Keenan Evans, the Big 12's No. 2 scorer, finished with two points on 1-for-7 shooting.
No. 10 NORTH CAROLINA 78, SYRACUSE 74
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) - Theo Pinson scored a career-high 23 points, Joel Berry II added 18, including the tiebreaking layup with 1:36 left, and North Carolina held off Syracuse.
North Carolina (22-7, 11-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) has won six straight, but this was the most difficult against a team fighting for its postseason life. Syracuse (18-10, 7-8) was coming off an important road victory over Miami and was teetering on the NCAA Tournament bubble entering the game.
Tyus Battle scored 26 points, and Frank Howard had 23 for Syracuse.
AUBURN, Ala. (AP) - Jared Harper scored 21 points, Chuma Okeke had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Auburn beat rival Alabama even without ailing star Mustapha Heron.
Down to seven scholarship players, the Tigers (24-4, 12-3 Southeastern Conference) turned a five-point halftime lead into a blowout thanks largely to big performances from Okeke and Malik Dunbar off the bench.
Auburn responded with Heron out with a stomach ailment a game after center Anfernee McLemore was lost for the rest of the season to an ankle injury.
Collin Sexton scored 25 points for the Crimson Tide (17-11, 8-7).
No. 13 WICHITA STATE 93, TULANE 86
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) - Shaquille Morris had 25 points and nine rebounds to help No. 13 Wichita State outlast Tulane.
Conner Frankamp scored six of his 18 points in the final four minutes, Markis McDuffie had 15 points and C.J. Keyser added 11 for the Shockers (22-5, 12-3 American Athletic Conference).
Melvin Frazier scored 16 of his 22 points in the second half for Tulane (13-14, 4-11). He also had 11 rebounds.
VIRGINIA TECH 65, No. 15 CLEMSON 58
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) - Justin Robinson and Kerry Blackshear Jr. had 14 points each for Virginia Tech.
The Hokies (20-8, 9-6 Atlantic Coast Conference) have won six of their last eight games to move into a tie for fifth place in the conference standings. Marcquise Reed led Clmeson (20-7, 9-6) with 23 points.
No. 17 MICHIGAN 72, PENN STATE 63
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) - Duncan Robinson scored 19 points and Moritz Wagner added 18 for Michigan.
Jordan Poole had 13 for the Wolverines (23-7, 12-5 Big Ten) who won their fourth straight.
Tony Carr scored 21 points, and Lamar Stevens added 19 for the Nittany Lions (19-11, 9-8).
No. 19 TENNESSEE 62, FLORIDA 57
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Grant Williams bounced back from one of his worst performances of the season to score 23 points for Tennessee.
Williams had a season-low five points Saturday in a 73-62 loss at Georgia. The Tennessee scoring leader responded Wednesday by shooting 8 of 13 from the floor and 7 of 8 from the foul line.
Admiral Schofield added 16 points and eight rebounds for Tennessee (20-7, 10-5 Southeastern Conference). Jalen Hudson had 13 points for Florida (17-11, 8-7).
No. 20 NEVADA 80, SAN JOSE STATE 67
RENO, Nev. (AP) - Kendall Stephens scored a career-high 30 points and Nevada hit 14 3-pointers.
Jordan Caroline and Hallice Cooke had 15 points apiece for the Wolf Pack (24-5, 13-2 Mountain West). Cooke scored all his points on 3-pointers in the first half as the Wolf Pack opened a double-digit lead.
Ryan Wellage had 22 points and nine rebounds for San Jose State (3-23, 0-15).