Small, Mountaineers upset No. 2 Iowa State 64-57

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Javon Small scored 12 of his 27 points in the final two minutes to lead West Virginia to a 64-57 win over No. 2 Iowa State on Saturday night, ending the Cyclones’ national-best 12-game winning streak.

Amani Hansberry added 12 points for the Mountaineers (13-4, 4-2 Big 12), who beat a ranked team for the fourth time this season.

West Virginia fans stormed the court and joined the players in singing John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” on a day in which the school celebrated the life of NBA great Jerry West, who died last June at age 86.

Curtis Jones scored 18 points to lead Iowa State (15-2, 5-1). Keshon Gilbert added 13 points and Josh Jefferson had 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Tamin Lipsey gave Iowa State its last lead, 43-41, on a layup with 7:35 left. The Cyclones were limited to 14 points the rest of the game.

The Cyclones committed 14 turnovers, attempted just seven free throws and appeared to be outhustled for loose balls all over the court.

The Mountaineers maintained a physical defensive intensity throughout the game and held the Cyclones to their lowest point total of the season and 28 points below their average.

Small, the Big 12’s leading scorer, took over down the stretch. After Joseph Yesufu hit a layup with 2:02 left to give West Virginia the lead for good, 51-49, Small made a three-point play and hit two more free throws 20 seconds apart for a seven-point lead. His 3-pointer with 41 seconds left put West Virginia ahead 59-51.

On Tuesday night, Iowa State hosts UCF while West Virginia hosts Arizona State.

No. 1 AUBURN 70, No. 23 GEORGIA 68

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Tahaad Pettiford hit 5 of 7 shots from 3-point range, scoring 24 off the bench to help No. 1 Auburn escape No. 23 Georgia with a 70-68 win on Saturday.

Auburn (17-1, 5-0 SEC) has won 10 in a row and a second straight game without star Johni Broome, who injured his ankle in a Jan. 11 win over South Carolina.

Georgia (14-4, 2-3) struggled with free throws, making 9 of 20 from the line.

The Tigers earned a Top 25 win without leading scorer Broome (17.9 points per game).

The Bulldogs suffered their first home loss of the season (11-1). The loss snapped a 13-game winning streak at Stegeman Coliseum — the fourth longest home winning streak in program history.

Down 70-67 with nine seconds to play in regulation, Georgia had a chance to tie the game at 70 after a Miles Kelly turnover led to Dakota Leffew getting a look from 3 with seven seconds to go. His shot was too strong. Asa Newell had a chance to tie it at the buzzer, but missed.

No. 4 ALABAMA 102, No. 8 KENTUCKY 97

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Grant Nelson had 25 points and 11 rebounds, and No. 4 Alabama beat No. 8 Kentucky 102-97 on Saturday in a matchup of two of the top offensive teams in the country.

Nelson was 7 for 13 from the field and 9 for 10 at the line. He scored a total of 21 points in his previous three games.

Mark Sears scored 16 of his 24 points in the second half for Alabama (15-3, 4-1 SEC), which had five players score in double figures.

Kentucky (14-4, 3-2) had won two in a row since an 82-69 loss at Georgia. Otega Oweh had 21 points for the Wildcats, and Lamont Butler finished with 17 points and eight assists.

Kentucky grabbed a 56-52 lead on Brandon Garrison’s dunk with 16:13 left. But Alabama responded with a 14-2 run.

Sears started the big sequence with a jumper. He also picked up an assist when Aden Holloway’s 3-pointer made it 66-58 with 12:33 remaining.

The Tide went 29 for 34 at the line, helping the team hold on down the stretch.

The Wildcats struggled to come up with a defensive stop at key moments throughout the game.

No. 5 FLORIDA 84, TEXAS 60

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Alijah Martin scored 22 points, Walter Clayton Jr. added 19 and No. 5 Florida beat Texas 84-60 Saturday to start a new home-winning streak.

Four days after having their 16-game winning streak in Gainesville snapped by Missouri, the Gators (16-2, 3-2 Southeastern Conference) bounced back with more effort and energy despite dealing with more turmoil.

Assistant coach Taurean Green was on the bench two days after being publicly accused of sexual assault. ESPN reported Thursday that a formal complaint was filed with the school’s Title IX office accusing Green of kissing an athletic department employee and trying to put his hand down her pants in March 2024.

It came while the university is still investigating a Sept. 27 Title IX complaint against head coach Todd Golden that includes allegations of sexual exploitation, sexual harassment and stalking, according to copies of the complaint.

None of it seemed to affect Florida with Texas (12-6, 1-4) visiting the O’Connell Center for the first time since 1996. The Gators made eight 3-pointers and outrebounded the Longhorns by eight.

The SEC’s leading scorer, Tre Johnson, led Texas with 16 points on 6-of-15 shooting.

XAVIER 59, No. 7 MARQUETTE 57

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Zach Freemantle had 14 points and 10 rebounds and Xavier hung on in the final seconds to beat No. 7 Marquette 59-57 to earn its third straight victory while snapping the Golden Eagles’ six-game winning streak Saturday.

Xavier (12-7, 4-4 Big East) never trailed and led by as many as 19 but needed to make a stop in the final seconds to preserve the victory. Xavier’s Dailyn Swain appeared to knock the ball away as Marquette’s Stevie Mitchell was driving to the basket before a potential tying shot could be attempted.

Marquette (15-3, 6-1) had won its last five meetings in this series, including a 72-70 triumph at Xavier on Dec. 21. Freemantle didn’t play against Marquette last month because of a lower-body injury.

David Joplin had 17 points to lead Marquette.

The Musketeers got the signature win they needed to boost their NCAA Tournament credentials. Xavier earned its first win over a top-10 team since beating then-No. 2 UConn 83-73 at home on Dec. 31, 2022.

The Golden Eagles went scoreless for a stretch of nearly five minutes early in the second half as Xavier extended its lead to 45-26. They had come from behind to beat Georgetown and DePaul in their last two games, but they dug themselves too big a hole this time.

No. 9 KANSAS 84, KANSAS STATE 74

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Hunter Dickinson had 25 points and Zeke Mayo scored 24 to lead No. 9 Kansas over Kansas State 84-74 on Saturday.

Kansas (13-4, 4-2 Big 12) built a big lead to start the game and then kept K-State at arm’s length. The Wildcats (7-10, 1-5) never got closer than six points.

Mayo had 14 points in the first half. Dajuan Harris Jr. had nine in the first half and six in the second.

With a chance to cut the Wildcats’ deficit to five, Max Jones missed a corner 3-pointer with 2:32 remaining.

Coleman Hawkins led the Wildcats with 15 points and 10 assists.

The Wildcats need to avoid big runs. A 14-0 run to start the game made it an up-hill climb all day. The Jayhawks’ biggest lead was 16 points.

The Jayhawks need KJ Adams Jr. to heal quickly. Adams suffered a partially separated right shoulder against Iowa State on Wednesday and is expected to miss several games. The Jayhawks got little production outside of Dickinson from their inside players.

No. 10 HOUSTON 69, UCF 68

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — J’Wan Roberts made a go-ahead layup with 1.1 seconds left to lift No. 10 Houston to a 69-68 win over UCF on Saturday.

Roberts powered his way to the basket off an inbounds pass, beating UCF’s shot blockers to the rim. The Knights were unable to get off a final shot attempt.

Roberts scored 17 of his 21 points in the second half. He went 10 for 17 from the field for the game, and also grabbed nine rebounds.

Ja’Vier Francis added 16 points and 10 boards for Houston (14-3, 6-0 Big 12), which trailed 38-30 at halftime.

UCF’s Moustapha Thiam, a 7-foot-2 center, had 18 points, five rebounds and three blocks. Jordan Ivy-Curry scored 14 points for the Knights (12-5, 3-3), and Darius Johnson finished with 13.

UCF took the lead with nine seconds left when Keyshawn Hall took the ball to the basket and finished over two defenders. Hall, who scored 40 points in the Knights’ win over Arizona State on Tuesday night, had six points on 2-for-12 shooting.

The Cougars allied in the second half for their 10th consecutive win. They remain undefeated in the Big 12.

The Knights are still on the NCAA Tournament bubble but looking for a resume-boosting win.

No. 17 PURDUE 65,

No. 13 OREGON 58

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Trey Kaufman-Renn had 23 points and 11 rebounds to help lead No. 17 Purdue past No. 13 Oregon 65-58 on Saturday.

Kaufman-Renn missed his first six shots from the field, but finished 7 for 20 while making all nine of his free throws. Braden Smith added 15 points and seven rebounds as the Boilermakers (15-4, 7-1 Big Ten) won their seventh straight game.

Nate Bittle led Oregon (15-3, 4-3) with 18 points, while Jackson Shelstad added 15 points and five rebounds as the Ducks shot 36% from the field, including going 7 of 29 on 3-pointers.

After Bittle opened the second half with a basket to put the Ducks ahead 33-30, Purdue scored 11 straight points while holding Oregon scoreless for more than eight minutes.

Oregon closed within 42-41 on a 3-pointer by Shelstad, but Kaufman-Renn scored the next six points. When Shelstad scored again to get Oregon within 52-48, Kaufman-Renn answered with two free throws before Smith scored the next four points to push Purdue ahead 58-48 with 2:33 left to play.

Shelstad scored eight points in the opening half as Oregon took a 31-30 lead while holding Purdue to 31.3 percent shooting from the field.

CREIGHTON 68,

No. 14 UCONN 63

STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Jamiya Neal had a career-high 24 points to help Creighton snap UConn’s 28-game home winning streak with a 68-63 victory on Saturday.

The 14th-ranked Huskies hadn’t lost at home since an 82-79 loss on Jan. 25, 2023, to then-No. 13 Xavier.

Ryan Kalkbrenner had 16 points and Steven Ashworth scored 12 for the Bluejays (12-6, 5-2 Big East).

Hassan Diarra and Solo Ball each had 15 points for UConn (13-5, 5-2).