Final Score: (1) Illinois 78, Northwestern 66
Evanston, IL (Basketball News) - Luther Head scored 17 of his season-high 26 points in the second half, and top-ranked Illinois held off Northwestern, 78-66, in Big Ten action at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Roger Powell added 15 points and Dee Brown 12 for the Illini (18-0, 4-0 Big Ten), who eclipsed the best season start in school history. They have won 14 straight conference games. Vedran Vukusic scored 20 points to lead the Wildcats (8-8, 1-3), who have dropped three straight. Davor Duvancic added 13 points in defeat, and T.J. Parker had 12.
Final Score: (2) Kansas 76, Colorado 61
Boulder, CO (Basketball News) - Wayne Simien scored 23 points and ripped down 17 rebounds to lead the second-ranked Kansas Jayhawks to a 76-61 win over Big 12 Conference rival Colorado. Simien shot 8-of-16 for the Jayhawks (13-0, 3-0), who trailed just once, 2-1, in the early stages of the game. Keith Langford had 14 points in the win, while J.R. Giddens chipped in with 11. Chris Copeland led the Buffaloes (8-6, 0-3) with 22 points on 6-of-18 shooting. He also grabbed 11 boards. Richard Roby finished with 14 points in a losing effort. Glean Eddy led Colorado with 12 rebounds.
Final Score: (4) Wake Forest 95, (3) North Carolina 82
Winston-Salem, NC (Basketball News) - Chris Paul racked up 26 points and Wake Forest shot 32-of-32 from the free-throw line as the fourth-ranked Demon Deacons posted an impressive 95-82 victory over No. 3 North Carolina in a battle between two Atlantic Coast Conference powers at Lawrence Joel Coliseum. Paul added eight assists, six rebounds and five steals while super-sub Taron Downey delivered 18 points to lead Wake Forest (15-1, 4-0 ACC) to its 10th consecutive win and an early claim as the top dog in the ultra-competitive ACC. Rashad McCants, saddled by foul trouble throughout, poured in 19 points in 20 minutes for the Tar Heels (14-2, 3-1), who had won 14 straight following a season-opening upset to Santa Clara in November. Raymond Felton and Marvin Williams finished with 16 and 15 points, respectively, in the loss.
Final Score: (6) Oklahoma State 83, Iowa State 73
Stillwater, OK (Basketball News) - Joey Graham and Ivan McFarlin poured in 20 points apiece as the sixth-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys defeated the Iowa State Cyclones, 83-73, at Gallagher-Iba Arena. The win catapulted coach Eddie Sutton past mentor Henry Iba for seventh place in career coaching wins. John Lucas chipped in with 17 points and seven assists, while Steven Graham netted 11 points for the Cowboys (13-1, 3-0 Big 12), who have won three straight after losing to Gonzaga back on December 28. Curtis Stinson led the Cyclones (8-6, 0-3) with 20 points and six assists, while Will Blalock added 15 points in the loss.
Final Score: (7) Syracuse 75, Providence 71
Providence, RI (Basketball News) - Hakim Warrick scored 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, leading seventh-ranked Syracuse to a hard-fought 75-71 victory over Providence at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center. Josh Pace chipped in 14 points and hit two key baskets in the closing minutes to help the Orange (17-1, 4-0 Big East) win their 10th straight game. Craig Forth added 11 points and Gerry McNamara finished with 10, including three clutch free throws in the final seconds. Dwight Brewington scored 21 points and Ryan Gomes contributed 14 for Providence (9-7, 0-3), which has lost three close conference games. The Friars dropped a nine-point decision at Boston College last week, then lost an overtime matchup with Villanova before watching this game go down to the wire.
Final Score: (9) Kentucky 76, Georgia 55
Athens, GA (Basketball News) - Patrick Sparks scored 15 points and Chuck Hayes added 13 with 11 rebounds to lead No. 9 Kentucky to a 76-55 victory over the Georgia Bulldogs at Stegeman Coliseum. Ramel Bradley contributed 14 points for Kentucky (12-2, 3-0 Southeastern Conference), which posted its second straight double-digit win since losing to No. 2 Kansas last weekend. Levi Stukes led Georgia (6-8, 0-4) with a game-high 18 points. Toney Channing had 12 points for the Bulldogs, who have lost five straight games.
Final Score: (10) Texas 63, Nebraska 53
Lincoln, NE (Basketball News) - Daniel Gibson scored all 12 of his points in the second half as 10th-ranked Texas pulled away to beat Nebraska, 63-53, in a Big 12 tussle at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. Sydmill Harris added 11 points for the Longhorns. Freshman LaMarcus Aldridge chipped in 10 points with eight rebounds for Texas (13-3, 2-1), which has won six of seven. The Longhorns rebounded from a 74-63 road loss to Texas A&M on Wednesday, but their shooting woes continued. Texas shot just 40.8 percent from the floor after a season-low 32.3 percent against the Aggies. Joe McCray paced Nebraska with 21 points and 11 rebounds. He ended 7-of-19 shooting, including 5-of-12 from beyond the arc. John Turek added 13 and Marcus Neal Jr. collected 12 points for the Cornhuskers (8-5, 2-1), who had their four-game winning streak come to and end.
Final Score: (11) Mississippi State 80, Arkansas 55
Starkville, MS (Basketball News) - Lawrence Roberts poured in 17 points and ripped down 10 rebounds as No. 11 Mississippi State routed the Arkansas Razorbacks, 80-55, in Starkville. Marcus Campbell scored 15 points while Ontario Harper chipped in with 12 points for the Bulldogs (15-3, 3-1 SEC), who have now won nine of their last 10 games. Jonathan Modica led the Razorbacks (13-4, 1-3), with 14 points on 4-of-11 shooting from the field. Ronnie Brewer struggled from the field (3-of-10) and only finished with nine points and a game-high four assists for Arkansas, which dropped its third straight game.
Final Score: (12) Connecticut 78, Rutgers 64
Hartford, CT (Basketball News) - Josh Boone scored 20 points and pulled down 12 rebounds to lead No. 12 Connecticut over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, 78-64, at the Hartford Civic Center. Charlie Villanueva added 14 points with 14 boards for the Huskies (10-3, 2-1 Big East), who rebounded from a loss at No. 25 Oklahoma on Monday. Rudy Gay contributed 14 points for the Huskies. Marquis Webb scored 16 points for Rutgers (6-7, 0-3), which has lost four straight.
Final Score: (14) Washington 108, Oregon State 68
Seattle, WA (Basketball News) - Tre Simmons scored 17 of his game-high 26 points in the second half, as the 14th-ranked Washington Huskies routed the Oregon State Beavers, 108-68, in a Pac-10 contest. Simmons finished 8-of-14 from the floor, including 6-of-7 from three-point range, as the Huskies (15-2, 5-1 Pac-10), won for the 11th time in 12 tries. Jamaal Williams netted 24 in the win, while Nate Robinson contributed 15 for Washington, all of which came in the final half. Nick DeWitz’s 17 points led all scorers for the Beavers (10-6, 2-3), who lost their third straight Pac-10 contest.
Final Score: (16) Gonzaga 86, Pepperdine 62
Spokane, WA (Basketball News) - Adam Morrison scored 26 points to lead 16th- ranked Gonzaga to a 86-62 rout of Pepperdine at McCarthey Athletic Center. Ronny Turiaf added 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Bulldogs (13-3, 3-1 West Coast Conference), who have won two straight. David Pendergraft tallied 14 points, as Gonzaga has won 10 straight against the Waves. Morrison, Turiaf and Pendergraft combined to shoot 22-of-32 from the field, as the Bulldogs shot 60 percent overall (30-of-50). The trio also went 6-of-10 from beyond the arc. Pepperdine, meanwhile, shot only 21-of-62 for 34 percent as a team, going 5-of-25 from three. Glen McGowan had 15 points and eight rebounds to lead Pepperdine (12-7, 2-2), which has dropped two straight after winning four in a row. Alex Acker added 13 points for the Waves, who have lost six straight on the road.
Final Score: (17) Arizona 76, UCLA 73
Tucson, AZ (Basketball News) - Salim Stoudamire, who scored 24 of his game-high 32 points in the second half, hit a three-pointer with 2.5 seconds left to lift No. 17 Arizona to a hard-fought 76-73 victory over UCLA in a Pac-10 battle at the McKale Center. Channing Frye scored all 15 of his points in the first half for the Wildcats (14-3, 4-1 Pac-10), who have won two in a row after a January 8 loss at Stanford. Dijon Thompson scored 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Bruins (10-4, 4-2), who saw their win streak halted at four games.
Final Score: (19) Louisville 69, (18) Cincinnati 66
Cincinnati, OH (Basketball News) - Taquan Dean scored 25 points as 19th-ranked Louisville rallied to beat 18th-ranked Cincinnati, 69-66, in a wild C-USA encounter at Fifth Third Arena. Dean ended 9-of-16 from the floor, including 7-of-13 from three-point land, for Louisville. Larry O’Bannon added 18 points for the Cardinals (14-3, 3-1 C-USA), who rallied from 17 points down early to steal this one. The Cardinals finished 10-of-25 from beyond the arc in the win. Nick Williams paced the Bearcats with 18 points. James White added 15 for Cincinnati (14-2, 3-1), which suffered its first conference loss of the season. Jason Maxiell chipped in 11 in the setback.
Final Score: (20) Pittsburgh 67, Seton Hall 63
Pittsburgh, PA (Basketball News) - Chevon Troutman scored 23 points and was a one-man show down the stretch, as 20th-ranked Pittsburgh blew a big lead before rallying to capture a 67-63 victory over Seton Hall at the Petersen Events Center. Chris Taft chipped in 14 points and Carl Krauser added nine points, eight rebounds and six assists for the Panthers (12-2, 2-1 Big East), who have won two straight close games after losing two in a row. Last week, Pittsburgh needed overtime to win at Rutgers and on Saturday watched a 14-point lead dissipate before coming back from seven down to pull this one out.
Final Score: Massachusetts 76, (21) George Washington 74 (OT)
Washington, DC (Basketball News) - Rashaun Freeman scored 27 points and hit the game-winning shot with 4/10ths of a second remaining in overtime, as Massachusetts upset No. 21 George Washington, 76-74, at the Smith Center. Maurice Maxwell chipped in with 20 points and Chris Chadwick added 12 for UMass (8-6, 2-2 Atlantic-10), which defeated its second ranked opponent of the season. The Minutemen also knocked off Connecticut on December 9. J.R. Pinnock led the Colonials (11-3, 3-1) with 15 points off the bench, while Mike Hall netted 14 points and grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds.Freeman, who only scored six points and recorded five rebounds in the UMass loss to Saint Joseph’s on Wednesday, bounced back with a game-high 15 rebounds.
Final Score: (22) Marquette 66, South Florida 64
Milwaukee, WI (Basketball News) - Todd Townsend scored the last of his 10 points on a three-point play with five seconds remaining, lifting No. 22 Marquette over a pesky South Florida squad, 66-64, at the Bradley Center. Travis Diener scored 24 points with seven assists for Marquette (14-2, 2-1 Conference USA), which was coming off a loss at Memphis on Thursday. The Golden Eagles have won five of six. Terrence Leather scored a game-high 25 points to lead South Florida (8-6, 1-2), which has dropped two straight on the heels of a three-game winning streak. The Bulls also lost a heartbreaker last Saturday, falling 62-61 at home against UAB.
Final Score: (24) Iowa 66, Minnesota 60
Iowa City, IA (Basketball News) - Pierre Pierce scored a game-high 18 points and Greg Brunner collected 13 points and 11 rebounds, as No. 24 Iowa earned a 66-60 victory over Minnesota in Big Ten action at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Adam Haluska added 15 points and Jeff Horner finished with 12 as the Hawkeyes (13-3, 1-2 Big Ten) rebounded from recent losses to Michigan and Ohio State to open its conference schedule. Jeff Hagen racked up 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Golden Gophers (12-4, 2-1), who had won 10 straight coming in but were playing only their second road game of the year.
Final Score: (25) Oklahoma 65, Baylor 61
Waco, TX (Basketball News) - Drew Lavender netted 20 points, including five in the last minute of the game, as the streaking 25th-ranked Oklahoma Sooners beat the Baylor Bears, 65-61, in a Big 12 contest at the Ferrell Center. Kevin Bookout scored 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for Oklahoma (13-2, 2-0 Big 12), which has won seven straight contests and continued its dominance over Baylor. The Sooners are 26-5 all-time versus Baylor, including 21 consecutive victories dating back to the 1977-78 season. Taj Gray hit 5-of-6 field goal attempts en route to 13 points and eight boards for the Sooners. Leading Baylor, which has won six of its last eight matchups, was Aaron Bruce, who hit 7-of-17 field goal attempts for 21 points. Tommy Swanson had 13 points and Tim Bush chipped in 11 in the losing effort for the Bears (8-5, 0-2).
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