Top-25 College Basketball Game Capsules

Atlanta, GA (SportsNetwork.com) – Michael Frazier II and Scottie Wilbekin had 15 points apiece and No. 1 Florida pulled away for a 72-49 win over Missouri in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament on Friday. The game was tied at halftime but the Gators (30-2) outscored the Tigers 43-20 the rest of the way to extend their school-record winning streak to 24 games. Dorian Finney-Smith added 10 points for Florida, which will face Tennessee in Saturday’s semifinals. Jabari Brown had 18 points to lead eighth-seeded Missouri (22-11), which beat Texas A&M 91-83 in overtime on Thursday to make the semifinals.

Final Score: (4) Arizona 63, Colorado 43

Las Vegas, NV (SportsNetwork.com) – Colorado’s Xavier Johnson drove along the left baseline and leapt into the air before cocking the ball back for a potential thunderous slam. Then he met Aaron Gordon at the apex and the Arizona forward sent it back, and the Wildcats put the game away shortly thereafter. Nick Johnson had 16 points and No. 4 Arizona pulled away in the second half to beat Colorado, 63-43, in the semifinals of the Pac-12 Tournament. The Wildcats (30-3) netted 11 straight points following the Gordon block to turn an eight-point advantage into a healthy 51-32 margin just past the middle stage of the second half. T.J. McConnell tallied 12 points and five assists, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson provided 12 points and eight rebounds and Gordon added nine points, nine boards, three blocks and three steals for top-seeded Arizona, which will face UCLA in Saturday’s Pac-12 title game. Askia Booker supplied 12 points and six boards for the fifth-seeded Buffaloes (23-11), who defeated USC in the first round and California in the quarterfinals.

Final Score: (5) Louisville 94, Houston 65

Memphis, TN (SportsNetwork.com) – Russ Smith scored a career-high 42 points, including a school-record 27 in the first half, as fifth-ranked Louisville cruised past Houston, 94-65, on Friday in the semifinals of the American Athletic Conference Tournament. Smith shot 14-of-22 from the field, including 5-of-7 from 3-point range, en route to the third highest point total in Louisville history behind Bud Olsen’s 44 in 1962 and Wes Unseld’s 45 in 1967. Luke Hancock and Montrezl Harrell each added 12 points for the second-seeded Cardinals (28-5), who will face Connecticut in the first-ever AAC title game on Saturday. The fourth-seeded Huskies held off Cincinnati in Friday’s other semifinal. TaShawn Thomas and Brandon Morris supplied 13 points apiece to pace the Cougars (17-16), who upended SMU in the quarterfinals.

Final Score: (6) Virginia 64, Florida State 51

Greensboro, NC (SportsNetwork.com) – Joe Harris scored 20 points and Anthony Gill added 16, leading sixth-ranked Virginia to a 64-51 victory over Florida State in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals. No other Cavalier scored more than six, but the strong team effort was enough to send Virginia into its first ACC Tournament semifinal since 1995. The Cavaliers (26-6) will next play Pittsburgh. Virginia was coming off an overtime loss at Maryland in its regular-season finale last Sunday, a setback that ended a 13-game winning streak. The Cavaliers, however, had already secured the top seed in the ACC Tournament for the first time since 1981. Their lone tournament title came way back in 1976. Okaro White scored 17 points and Aaron Thomas chipped in 13 for the Seminoles (19-13), who beat Maryland in the second round on Thursday and now sit squarely on the bubble for an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.

Final Score: (7) Duke 63, Clemson 62

Greensboro, NC (SportsNetwork.com) – Rodney Hood hit two free throws with 3.8 seconds left, enabling seventh-ranked Duke to survive a stiff challenge from Clemson and come away with a 63-62 decision in an ACC Tournament quarterfinal. The Blue Devils (25-7) moved on to the tournament semis for the 15th time in the last 17 editions, though it was anything but a cakewalk. Clemson overcame a 13-point deficit with under 12 minutes left to grab a 63-62 lead on Rod Hall’s basket with 7.4 remaining. Hood was fouled by K.J. McDaniels while driving the lane on the ensuing possession, however, and capped a 17- point night by sinking both bonus attempts to send Duke back in front. The Blue Devils, who fell 72-59 to the Tigers in the teams’ lone regular-season meeting this year, then held on when Hall was stripped off the ball by Tyler Thornton while penetrating to attempt the potential game-winner. Jabari Parker added 18 points and Rasheed Sulaimon scored 14 to help send the third-seeded Blue Devils into Saturday’s matchup with No. 7 seed North Carolina State, which pulled off a 66-63 upset of 11th-ranked Syracuse earlier in the evening. Hall finished with 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting, while McDaniels had 12 points for Clemson (20-12).

Final Score: (8) Michigan 64, Illinois 63

Indianapolis, IN (SportsNetwork.com) – Jordan Morgan’s layup with 7.9 seconds left helped eighth-ranked Michigan escape with a 64-63 win over Illinois in quarterfinal action of the Big Ten Tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Nik Stauskas had 19 points and Glenn Robinson III added 15 with seven rebounds for top-seeded Michigan (24-7), which has won six in a row and will face Ohio State in Saturday’s semifinals. Tracy Abrams and Rayvonte Rice each had 11 points for ninth-seeded Illinois (19-14), which advanced to this game with a win over the No. 8 seed Indiana on Thursday. The Illini, who were vying for their first Big Ten title since 2005 and 13th semifinal appearance, fell for the just second time in their last seven games. Both losses came against Michigan.

Final Score: (8) San Diego State 59, UNLV 51

Las Vegas, NV (SportsNetwork.com) – Dwayne Polee II had 18 points and six rebounds as No. 8 San Diego State took a 59-51 win over UNLV in the semifinals of the Mountain West Conference Tournament. Xavier Thames scored 17 points with six assists for the Aztecs (29-3), who advanced to the final and will play New Mexico on Saturday. San Diego State will be looking for its fifth conference championship, and first since beating BYU three years ago. Deville Smith had 17 points and Bryce Dejean-Jones gave 10 for the Rebels (20-13), who were looking to get to the championship game for a second year in a row.

Final Score: (16) Iowa State 94, (10) Kansas 83

Kansas City, MO (SportsNetwork.com) – Georges Niang played like a warrior and left the game late with a battle wound. Niang had 25 points and seven assists to lift the 16th-ranked Iowa State Cyclones over the 10th-ranked Kansas Jayhawks, 94-83, in the semifinals of the Big 12 Tournament. With 1:23 to play, Niang took an elbow to the face while taking a charge from Kansas guard Brannen Greene. Niang, bloodied, pumped his fist to the crowd as he left the court with a towel over his face. DeAndre Kane added 20 points, six rebounds and six assists for the Cyclones (25-7), who will take on Baylor in the title game on Saturday. Melvin Ejim tallied 19 points. Perry Ellis ended with 30 points on 11-of-12 shooting from the field for the Jayhawks (24-9), who got 22 points and seven boards from Andrew Wiggins.

Final Score: North Carolina State 66, (11) Syracuse 63

Greensboro, NC (SportsNetwork.com) – T.J. Warren and North Carolina State got its revenge against Syracuse, with the conference Player of the Year depositing 28 points to lead the Wolfpack to a profile-building 66-63 win over the 11th-ranked Orange in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament. Nearly a month after dropping a 56-55 heartbreaker to the then-unbeaten Orange in the Carrier Dome, a Wolfpack team squarely on the NCAA bubble enhanced their credentials and advanced to a third straight ACC semifinal behind a sound defensive effort and clutch shooting down the stretch. Ralston Turner’s 3-pointer with 2:28 remaining snapped a 59-59 tie, and N.C. State (21-12) survived a frantic sequence in the final seconds in which Syracuse missed six consecutive shots on its last possession. Warren added eight rebounds and Jordan Vanderberg scored 10 points for the seventh-seeded Wolfpack, who will face seventh-ranked Duke in Saturday’s semis. The No. 3 seed Blue Devils moved on with a 63-62 decision over Clemson in Friday’s last quarterfinal. Playing its first-ever conference tournament game other than the Big East, Syracuse (27-5) had its fate sealed by poor shooting. The Orange made good on just 32.7 percent of its field goal attempts in its fifth defeat in seven outings since beginning the season 25-0. Tyler Ennis nearly led the Orange back from a 10-point deficit in the second half, netting 15 of his 21 points after the break while dishing out seven assists. Jerami Grant finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.

Final Score: (12) Wisconsin 83, Minnesota 57

Indianapolis, IN (SportsNetwork.com) – Bo Ryan won his 700th career Division-I game as Ben Brust scored 29 points to lead No. 12 Wisconsin to an 83-57 win over Minnesota in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament on Friday. Nigel Hayes scored 15 and had six rebounds and Bronson Koenig added 14 points for Wisconsin (26-6), which will face Michigan State in the semifinals. Sam Dekker contributed 10 points and Frank Kaminsky added 12 rebounds. Deandre Mathieu netted 18 and had five helpers for the Golden Gophers (20-13), who have lost six of their last eight to Wisconsin. Joey King tallied 14 points in defeat. The Golden Gophers could have been golden with a win, but will now have to sweat out Selection Sunday.

Final Score: (21) Connecticut 58, (13) Cincinnati 56

Memphis, TN (SportsNetwork.com) – Ryan Boatright and Niels Giffey guided a late Connecticut push before Sean Kilpatrick’s potential game-tying layup rolled off the rim, allowing the Huskies to hold on for a 58-56 victory over Cincinnati in the semifinals of the American Athletic Conference Tournament. Boatright and Giffey drained two 3-pointers apiece during a 17-2 outburst that turned Connecticut’s seven-point deficit into a 51-43 lead with 4 1/2 minutes remaining. The Bearcats clawed back into the game thanks in large part to a pair of triples from Jermaine Sanders, with the second bringing Cincinnati within 57-56 with 12.2 seconds left. Shabazz Napier then went 1- of-2 from the free throw line to leave the door open for Kilpatrick, who forced his way to the rim only to see his left- handed try roll off the iron. Napier led 21st-ranked Connecticut (26-7) with 15 points, DeAndre Daniels donated 14 points and nine rebounds, while Boatright and Giffey netted 13 and 11 points, respectively, in the win. Defending national champion Louisville awaits the fourth-seeded Huskies in Saturday’s first- ever AAC title game. The Cardinals cruised past Houston in Friday’s first semifinal. Kilpatrick finished with just 14 points on 5-of-15 shooting for the top-seeded Bearcats (27-6), who tied Louisville for the regular-season title but were awarded the top seed in the tourney after winning a coin flip.

Final Score: (14) Creighton 86, Xavier 78

New York, NY (SportsNetwork.com) – Paced by 32 points from Doug McDermott, the Creighton Bluejays outlasted the Xavier Musketeers, 86-78, in the semifinal round of the Big East Conference Tournament at Madison Square Garden. McDermott shot 10-of-20 from the field and a perfect 10-of-10 at the free- throw line for second-seeded Creighton (26-6), which punched its ticket to Saturday’s championship game to take on Providence. Ethan Wragge shot 5-of-9 from 3-point range for 17 points, while Austin Chatman added 11 points. For third-seeded Xavier (21-12), Isaiah Philmore tallied 23 points and seven rebounds, Semaj Christon registered 18 points and six assists and Justin Martin netted 12 points.

Final Score: Pittsburgh 80, (15) North Carolina 75

Greensboro, NC (SportsNetwork.com) – Talib Zanna led the way with 19 points and 21 rebounds, as Pitt raced out to a huge lead then hung on to knock off No. 15 North Carolina by a 80-75 count in ACC quarterfinal action. James Robinson added 19 points, six boards and four steals for the fifth- seeded Panthers (25-8), who advanced to take on Virginia in a Saturday semifinal. Lamar Patterson had 12 points and Cameron Wright contributed 11 for the winners. Marcus Paige poured in a game-high 27 points before fouling out late for the Tar Heels (23-9), who dropped two in a row after winning 12 straight. Brice Johnson totaled 16 points and six rebounds for the four seed, with James McAdoo adding 15 points and seven boards.

Final Score: St. Bonaventure 71, (18) Saint Louis 68

Brooklyn, NY (SportsNetwork.com) – Jordan Gathers knocked down a 3-pointer at the buzzer to lift St. Bonaventure to a 71-68 upset of No. 18 St. Louis on Friday, knocking the top-seeded Billikens out of the Atlantic 10 Tournament. Gathers’ shot was the third 3-pointer made in the last 39 seconds of the game and set up a meeting with Saint Joseph’s in Saturday’s semifinals. The Hawks beat Dayton later Friday. Dwayne Evans had just tied the score for St. Louis on a 3-pointer at the other end but couldn’t get out quick enough on Gathers, who broke free up top to get into position for Charlon Kloof’s pass. Matthew Wright scored 22 points for St. Bonaventure (18-14) and made three key 3- pointers in the second half, including one from the right corner for a 68-65 lead with 38.2 seconds left. Earlier, he made back-to-back threes — the first to give St. Bonaventure its first lead, and the second to make it a 57-52 game with nine minutes left, capping a 10-0 run Kloof also scored 22 for the ninth- seeded Bonnies, who opened the tournament with an 82-72 win over La Salle on Thursday to stop a four-game losing streak. Youssou Ndoye added 13 points in the win. Mike McCall Jr. led Saint Louis (26-6) with 21 points, Evans scored 15 and Jordair Jett had nine.

Final Score: (20) New Mexico 70, Boise State 67

Las Vegas, NV (SportsNetwork.com) – Cameron Bairstow had 23 points and eight rebounds as No. 20 New Mexico survived for a 70-67 victory over Boise State in the semifinals of the Mountain West Conference Tournament. Kendall Williams had 16 points and Deshawn Delaney added 14 points and seven rebounds for the Lobos (26-6), who will take on San Diego State in the final on Saturday in the hopes of winning their third straight conference title. Derrick Marks had 20 points and Thomas Bropleh added 16, but was thrown out for a flagrant 2 foul on Bairstow with just over seven minutes to play for the Broncos (21-13), who had defeated San Jose State and Nevada to reach the semifinal.

Final Score: (22) Michigan State 67, Northwestern 51

Indianapolis, IN (SportsNetwork.com) – Branden Dawson had 16 points and nine rebounds and No. 22 Michigan State routed Northwestern, 67-51, in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament on Friday night. Gary Harris filled the stat sheet with 13 points, seven rebounds, three assists, three blocks and two steals for the third-seeded Spartans (24-8), who will face second-seeded Wisconsin in the semifinals on Saturday. Drew Crawford netted 21 points to lead 11th-seeded Northwestern (14-19), which upset Iowa in the first round Thursday.

Final Score: (23) VCU 71, Richmond 53

Brooklyn, NY (SportsNetwork.com) – Briante Weber shot 8-of-10 from the field on his way to 18 points, as the No. 23 VCU Rams downed the Richmond Spiders, 71-53, in the quarterfinals of the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament at Barclays Center. Treveon Graham poured in 14 points for second-seeded VCU (25-7), which will take on George Washington in the semifinals on Saturday. Melvin Johnson added 13 points, while Mo Alie-Cox hauled in 10 rebounds. Weber, well known for his defensive prowess with a nation- leading 3.6 spg, came in scoring just 9.1 ppg. For seventh-seeded Richmond (19-14), ShawnDre’ Jones had 18 points, Terry Allen netted 16 and Alonzo Nelson-Ododa grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked four shots.

Final Score: (24) Ohio State 71, Nebraska 67

Indianapolis, IN (SportsNetwork.com) – The Buckeyes overcame an 18-point deficit, on the strength of a career-high 26 points from LaQuinton Ross as No. 24 Ohio State knocked off Nebraska, 71-67, in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament. Ross added 13 rebounds and Amedeo Della Valle had 12 points, six boards, and three blocks for the Buckeyes (25-8), who will face the top-seed, No. 8 Michigan in the semifinals on Saturday. Aaron Craft chipped in six points, six boards and six assists in the win. Terran Petteway scored 20 and Walter Pitchford netted 15 points for the Cornhuskers (19-12). Shavon Shields contributed 12 points, six rebounds and four assists in defeat.

Categorized in: NCAA Basketball