MORAGA, Calif. (AP) — Corey Kispert had 17 points and five rebounds and No. 1 Gonzaga overcame a slow start with a surge to end the first half, pulling away late to beat rival Saint Mary’s 73-59 on Saturday night for its 18th straight victory spanning the past two seasons.
A 4.5-magnitude earthquake in the South Bay shook the gym early in the second half. Play continued with no disruption at what typically would be an imposing visiting arena at McKeon Pavilion but had a far different feel devoid of fans.
Joel Ayayi scored 16 points for the Bulldogs (14-0, 5-0 West Coast Conference). They used a 21-5 run over the final 11:17 of the first half to build a 32-25 advantage — and the Gaels made just one of their last 16 shots to close the half.
Saint Mary’s pulled to 56-48 on Dan Fotu’s layup with 9:01 to play before another decisive Gonzaga burst, this time 8-0. The Zags shot 53.8%.
Fotu scored 15 points and Logan Johnson added 12 for the cold-shooting Gaels (9-5, 0-3). They shot 34.9%.
No. 2 BAYLOR 68, NO. 15 TEXAS TECH 60
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Davion Mitchell had 17 points and Jared Butler finally scored late and Baylor overcame to stay undefeated after its closest game this season.
Butler, the preseason AP All-American coming off a season-high 28 points in the last game, was 0-for-9 shooting with six turnovers before hitting consecutive 3-pointers for the Bears (12-0, 5-0 Big 12) in the final five minutes.
Mitchell hit a 3-pointer with 5:38 left to stretch Baylor’s lead to 49-45 after the Red Raiders failed to score on a possession when they missed three consecutive putback chances. Butler scored all seven of his points after that.
Adam Flagler had 15 points and MaCio Teague 14 for the Bears, who had won each of their first 11 games by double digits — the closest had been an 11-point win at Iowa State on Jan. 2. It ended their school-record streak of 11 consecutive wins by at least 10 points.
Mac McClung had 24 points for Texas Tech (11-4, 4-3), which was coming off a 79-77 win at No. 4 Texas on Wednesday night. Kevin McCullar had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Red Raiders.
No. 4 TEXAS 82, KANSAS STATE 67
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Kamaka Hepa scored 15 points in a rare appearance as Texas rebounded from its first Big 12 loss of the season by beating Kansas State.
Hepa, who hadn’t started yet this season and had played in only three games, started in place of freshman forward Greg Brown, who was one of three Longhorns (11-2, 5-1) held out for reasons not immediately disclosed. Given his chance, Hepa made five of Texas’ 12 3-pointers in the blowout.
The Longhorns broke the game open with an 18-0 run midway through the first half keyed by a burst of 3-pointers and a defensive press that rattled the Wildcats.
Davion Bradford led Kansas State (5-9, 1-5) with 14 points.
BUTLER 70, No. 8 CREIGHTON 66
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Aaron Thompson scored 17 points and found Bryce Nze for the go-ahead layup with 1:08 left in overtime to complete Butler’s remarkable second-half comeback against Creighton.
Creighton scored the first two baskets in overtime, but Butler took over from there, scoring eight straight points over the final 3:07. Nze, who made it 67-66 with his layup, finished with 15 points and nine rebounds.
The Bulldogs also overcame a 71-58 deficit over the final 7 1/2 minutes of regulation. Butler (4-7, 3-5 Big East) has won four straight home games against the Bluejays.
Denzel Mahoney scored 23 of his season-high 29 points in the second half to lead Creighton (10-3, 6-2), which had a six-game winning streak snapped.
No. 23 MINNESOTA 75, No. 7 MICHIGAN 57
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Liam Robbins had 22 points and eight rebounds in 22 minutes for Minnesota to hand Michigan its first loss.
Marcus Carr scored 17 points and Gabe Kalscheur added 10 points for the Gophers (11-4, 4-4 Big Ten), who played their seventh straight game against an opponent ranked in the Associated Press poll. Minnesota never trailed, holding the best shooting team in the conference to a season-low score and a season-high 20 turnovers.
Chaundee Brown Jr. scored 14 points and Isaiah Livers added 11 points for the Wolverines (11-1, 6-1), who played without senior guard Eli Brooks due to a foot injury suffered in a recent practice.
No. 10 TENNESSEE 81, VANDERBILT 61
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Keon Johnson scored 10 of his 16 points in the second half, leading Tennessee over Vanderbilt.
Johnson was one of three double-digit scorers for the Volunteers (10-1, 3-1 SEC). John Fulkerson had 15 points, and Victor Bailey scored 11.
Vanderbilt (4-6, 0-4) was led by Dylan Disu’s 19 points. Scotty Pippen, Jr. scored 18.
No. 18 VIRGINIA 85, No. 12 CLEMSON 50
CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Sam Hauser and Tomas Woldetensae had 14 points and four 3-pointers each as Virginia won its 11th straight over Clemson to stay perfect in Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Cavaliers (9-2) improved to 5-0 in the league, their best start since opening the conference 12-0 in the 2017-18 season. They figured to have to work to penetrate Clemson’s league-leading defense, but instead took control from the start with their accurate shooting and own defensive grit.
Clemson (9-2, 3-2 ACC) hadn’t played since topping North Carolina State 74-70 in overtime on Jan. 5. A few days later, the team paused activities and postponed games at North Carolina and Syracuse due to the novel coronavirus.
MIAMI 78, No. 16 LOUISVILLE 72
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) — Isaiah Wong had 30 points, seven rebounds and six assists, and Miami beat Louisville to end an 18-game skid against ranked opponents.
Matt Cross scored 16 points and Elijah Olaniyi had 15 points and 10 rebounds for Miami. The previous time the Hurricanes (6-6, 2-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) topped a ranked foe was at No. 9 North Carolina in February of 2018.
Louisville (9-2, 4-1) rallied from a 12-point halftime deficit and got within 68-64 on Matt Slazinski’s three free throws with 2:21 remaining. Cross’ 3-pointer with 1:29 left gave Miami another seven-point margin.
Carlik Jones scored 25 points and Jae’Lyn Withers finished with 18 points for the Cardinals.
No. 21 OHIO STATE 87, No. 14 ILLINOIS 81
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — E.J. Liddell scored 26 points and Ohio State beat Illinois in a brutal Big Ten matchup.
The game was especially physical in the second half. One technical was called, on Ohio State’s Duane Washington Jr., and the officials had to step in many times to avoid fights.
Washington, Justin Ahrens and Seth Towns each added 11 for Ohio State (11-3, 5-3). The Buckeyes were missing injured guards C.J. Walker and Jimmy Sotos.
Ayo Dosunmu led Illinois (9-5, 5-3) with 22 points. Kofi Cockburn scored 15 and freshman Adam Miller added 14 points for the Illini.
No. 17 MISSOURI 68, TEXAS A&M 52
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) — Dru Smith scored 15 points and Missouri shook off rust from an 11-day layoff due to COVID-19 protocols to beat Texas A&M.
Jeremiah Tilmon added 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Tigers (8-2, 2-2 SEC).
Andre Gordon paced the Aggies (7-5, 2-4) with 19 points.
The Tigers led 27-24 at the half and used a 21-5 run midway through the second half to take control of the game.
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