Top 25 roundup: Cincinnati knocks off No. 2 Iowa State, loser of 2 straight

Day Day Thomas scored 19 points while Jalen Celestine had four 3-pointers and 12 points off the bench to help host Cincinnati shock No. 2 Iowa State 79-70 in a Big 12 game on Saturday afternoon.

Baba Miller grabbed 12 rebounds while adding eight points, and Jizzle James scored 15 points as Cincinnati (10-8, 2-3 Big 12) secured its best win of the season and its second consecutive victory in conference play.

Milan Momcilovic connected on 8 of 14 shots from 3-point range to lead the Cyclones (16-2, 3-2) with a career-best 34 points. Joshua Jefferson was the only other Iowa State player in double figures with 16 points. He also added nine rebounds and five assists. Cincinnati’s bench outscored the visitors 20-5.

It was the second straight loss for the Cyclones, who fell in a Big 12 game Tuesday at Kansas, 84-63.

No. 1 Arizona 84, UCF 77

Jaden Bradley scored 23 points and sank five free throws in the final 29 seconds as the Wildcats held off the Knights in Orlando, Fla., to avoid an upset.

Bradley made 11 of 13 from the line and added six rebounds, five assists and two steals for Arizona (18-0, 5-0 Big 12). Brayden Burries notched 18 points and Motiejus Krivas posted a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Leading scorer Koa Peat played with foul trouble, was held scoreless in the first half and finished with a career-low four points in 20 minutes.

Point guard Themus Fulks had a career-high 30 points but fouled out for UCF (14-3, 3-2). Jordan Burks netted 16 points, and Riley Kugel put in 12.

No. 3 UConn 64, Georgetown 62

Tarris Reed Jr. posted 15 points and 11 rebounds, as the Huskies overcame a shaky shooting performance to extend their winning streak to 14 games with a win over the Hoyas in Washington, D.C.

Silas Demary Jr. scored 12 points, Braylon Mullins added 11, and Solo Ball had 10. UConn (18-1, 8-0 Big East) is off to its best start in conference play since the 1998-99 season despite shooting 36.2% from the field.

Vince Iwuchukwu had 12 points and a career-high 14 rebounds, as Georgetown (9-9, 1-6) has lost five straight games overall and six in a row in league play. KJ Lewis scored 12 points. The Hoyas have lost 24 straight games against AP Top 25 opponents dating to the 2021 NCAA Tournament.

No. 4 Michigan 81, Oregon 71

Elliot Cadeau had 17 points and five assists in Eugene, Ore., as the Wolverines handed the Ducks their fourth straight loss.

Nimari Burnett contributed 15 points, while Aday Mara supplied 12 and blocked three shots for Michigan (16-1, 6-1 Big Ten). Yaxel Lendeborg added six points with a team-high 10 rebounds.

Sean Stewart led Oregon (8-10, 1-6) with 22 points and eight rebounds. Kwame Evans Jr. had 18 points with seven rebounds. Takai Simpkins tossed in 12 points and Wei Lin added 11 with four assists. The Ducks were held to 42.2% shooting from the field.

No. 5 Purdue 69, Southern California 64

Braden Smith scored two of his game-high 22 points on a crucial steal and layup to help the Boilermakers escape with a win over the Trojans in Los Angeles.

With Purdue (17-1, 7-0 Big Ten) holding a 63-62 lead and USC looking for the go-ahead basket, Smith swiped the ball from Jaden Brownell. The Boilermakers’ guard raced down the court and finished the fast break under duress from Chad Baker-Mazara for a 65-62 advantage with 23 seconds left. Oscar Cluff contributed 19 points, six rebounds and four assists for Purdue.

Baker-Mazara led the Trojans (14-4, 3-4) with 15 points. Jacob Cofie, who knocked down one of USC’s three triples, posted a double-double with 13 points and a career-high 15 rebounds. Ezra Ausar added 11 points and eight rebounds in the loss.

No. 6 Duke 80, Stanford 50

Cameron Boozer scored 30 points to help the Blue Devils complete a San Francisco Bay Area sweep with an 80-50 romp over the host Cardinal.

Boozer completed his ninth double-double with a game-high 14 rebounds for Duke (17-1, 6-0 ACC), also adding three assists, three steals and one block. Isaiah Evans’ 15 points and Patrick Ngongba’s 13 helped in the comfortable wire-to-wire win.

Jeremy Dent-Smith came off the bench for a team-high 18 points for Stanford (14-5, 3-3), which was unable to build off the momentum of Wednesday’s home upset of No. 14 North Carolina. Freshman sensation Ebuka Okorie, who had a season-high 36 points against the Tar Heels, managed just nine against the Blue Devils.

No. 8 Nebraska 77, Northwestern 58

Braden Frager and Pryce Sandfort each scored in the 20s for the second consecutive game and the Cornhuskers extended the nation’s longest active win streak with a victory over the Wildcats in Evanston, Ill.

The Cornhuskers (18-0, 7-0 Big Ten) matched their best start in conference play since 1965-66 with a dominant second half, one in which they shot 56% and went 6 of 11 from 3. Sandfort had 22 points on 7-of-13 shooting including 5 of 10 from 3-point range, while Frager had 20 on 8-of-14 shooting.

Northwestern (8-10, 0-7) dropped its fifth straight and continued its worst start to Big Ten play since 2007-08. The Wildcats got 22 points from conference scoring leader Nick Martinelli, including 15 in the first half, and 14 from Tre Singleton. Nebraska won a fourth straight conference road game for the first time since 1975-76.

No. 9 Gonzaga 71, Seattle 50

The Bulldogs, missing their two leading scorers, dominated the host Redhawks in the second half and produced 45 bench points.

Gonzaga (19-1, 7-0 West Coast Conference) was led by bench standouts Mario Saint-Supery (20 points on 7-for-10 shooting) and Davis Fogle (13 points, 6-for-9). Saint-Supery recorded four 3-pointers and four assists. Jalen Warley chipped in 14 points and six rebounds.

Seattle (13-7, 2-5) struggled shooting, making just 35.8% from the field (19 of 53) and 23.8% (5 of 21) from 3-point range. Brayden Maldonado scored 12 points but shot just 5-for-12 from the field, and Houran Dan added 10 points off the bench, sinking each of his four shots and two free throws.

No. 19 Florida 98, No. 10 Vanderbilt 94

Rueben Chinyelu had 20 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks as the Gators upset the Commodores in Nashville, Tenn.

Xaivian Lee (20 points, six rebounds) made huge plays down the stretch for Florida (13-5, 4-1 Southeastern Conference). Tommy Haugh (18 points, eight rebounds), Alex Condon (16 and eight) and Isaiah Brown (14 points) were also key contributors. The Gators outrebounded Vanderbilt 40-26 and shot 52.5% from the floor, 37.5% from 3 and 83.3% from the foul line.

Tyler Tanner (20 points, five assists), Duke Miles and AK Okereke (15 points each) and Tyler Nickel and Jalen Washington (14 points each) led the Commodores (16-2, 3-2), who turned it over just four times but still lost their second straight.

No. 15 Texas Tech 84, No. 11 BYU 71

J.T. Toppin delivered a 27-point, 12-rebound performance, Christian Anderson added 22 points and seven assists and the host Red Raiders pulled away from the Cougars in Lubbock, Texas.

Texas Tech (14-4, 4-1 Big 12) improved to 10-0 at home. Toppin emerged as the star, scoring 17 points in the second half and notching his seventh straight double-double and his 12th of the season. LeJuan Watts joined the 20-point club with 20 points and eight rebounds, and Jaylen Petty had 10 points.

BYU (16-2, 4-1) dropped its first conference game with its 13-game winning streak snapped. Robert Wright III exploded for a game-high 28 points, including 22 in the second half, and Richie Saunders added 18 points. Standout freshman AJ Dybantsa finished with 13 points — continuing his streak of reaching double figures in every game — but he was limited to two points in the second half.

No. 12 Michigan State 80, Washington 63

Jeremy Fears Jr. scored 19 points on 6-for-9 shooting, and the Spartans pulled away for a win over the Huskies in Seattle.

Kur Teng added 11 points and made 3 of 5 shots from beyond the arc for Michigan State (16-2, 6-1 Big Ten), which won its fourth game in a row. Carson Cooper tallied 10 points and six rebounds.

Zoom Diallo scored 18 points on 7-for-11 shooting to lead Washington (10-8, 2-5), which trailed by five points with 12:58 left before the Spartans finally separated. Hannes Steinbach added 17 points, and Franck Kepnang finished with 13 points on 6-for-8 shooting.

No. 13 Illinois 77, Minnesota 67

Zvonimir Ivisic had 18 points and nine rebounds as the Fighting Illini stayed hot with a victory against the Golden Gophers in Champaign, Ill.

Illinois (15-3, 6-1 Big Ten) won its seventh straight game behind a plus-11 rebounding edge and a balanced attack. David Mirkovic (12 points) and Tomislav Ivisic (10) also scored in double figures.

Minnesota (10-8, 3-4) lost its third straight game in another back-and-forth contest. Jaylen Crocker-Johnson led the team with 22 points while knocking down five 3-pointers.

California 84, No. 14 North Carolina 78

John Camden poured in 20 points, Dai Dai Ames added 19 and the Golden Bears ended their three-game losing streak with a thrilling victory over the Tar Heels in Berkeley, Cal.

Justin Pippen made two clutch free throws with 10 seconds to play to help California (14-5, 2-4 ACC) hold off a furious rally by North Carolina (14-4, 2-3). The Golden Bears fueled their success by shooting 53.8% (14 of 26) from beyond the arc. Pippen tallied 19 points and five assists.

Caleb Wilson scored 17 points to lead the Tar Heels, who have dropped two in a row and three of four. They have allowed 58 3-pointers in the last four games. Derek Dixon (14 points), Henri Veesaar (14) and Seth Trimble (12) also reached double figures.

No. 16 Virginia 72, SMU 68

Malik Thomas had 23 points and 11 rebounds and the Cavaliers pulled out a win against the host Mustangs in a back-and-forth contest in Dallas.

Thijs De Ridder added 17 points, hitting four free throws down the stretch to give the Cavaliers (16-2, 5-1 ACC) their fifth consecutive victory. Thomas was 6 of 10 from 3-point distance. Devin Tillis added 11 points and Dallin Hall had nine assists.

Jaron Pierre Jr. had 16 points to lead SMU. B.J. Edwards added 13 points, Boopie Miller had 12 and Samet Yigitoglu chipped in 10. Virginia turned 16 offensive rebounds into 22 second-chance points and handed the Mustangs (13-5, 2-3) their first home loss after an 11-0 start to the season.

No. 21 Georgia 90, No. 17 Arkansas 76

Jeremiah Wilkinson and Blue Cain combined for 38 points to help propel the Bulldogs past the Razorbacks in a battle of ranked teams at Athens, Ga.

Wilkinson scored 20 points with four 3-pointers and Cain, coming off a season-low three-point performance against Ole Miss, scored 18 on 8-for-12 shooting. Georgia (15-3, 3-2 SEC) also got 15 points and five assists from Kanon Catchings and 11 points from Jake Wilkins. Somto Cyril blocked a career-high seven shots, giving him 52 this season.

Arkansas (13-5, 3-2) was led by Darius Acuff Jr. with 20 points on 7-for-16 shooting, six rebounds and six assists. Billy Richmond III had 12 points and eight rebounds, and Malique Ewin had 12 points and seven rebounds.

No. 18 Alabama 83, Oklahoma 81

Labaron Philon scored 23 points, hitting a trio of key shots down the stretch, to lead the Crimson Tide to a win over the Sooners in Norman.

Alabama (13-5, 3-2) missed 10 second-half free throws but outscored Oklahoma 50-37 after the break to win for the second consecutive time while the Sooners dropped their fourth straight game.

Brown led Oklahoma (11-7, 1-4) with 21 points, while Reid added 16 points and nine rebounds. Jadon Jones had seven points, four steals, and a career-high four blocks.

No. 20 Louisville 100, Pittsburgh 59

Ryan Conwell scored 24 points for the Cardinals, who went on the road and steamrolled the Panthers. The senior guard, whose team-leading 19.5 scoring average ranks seventh in the Atlantic Coast Conference, had 17 in the second half.

Louisville (13-5, 3-3 ACC) shot 63.2% (36 of 57) from the floor and 51.7% (15 of 29) from beyond the arc, both season bests, and tied a season-high with 24 assists. J’Vonne Hadley was 7-of-9 shooting to finish with 17 points and seven rebounds. Sananda Fru, who made 6 of 7, and Adrian Wooley tallied 12 each, and Isaac McKneely added 11.

Brandin Cummings led Pittsburgh (8-10, 1-4) with 11 points, finishing as the team’s only player in double digits.

No. 22 Clemson 69, Miami 59

Carter Welling scored 18 points as the Tigers won their ninth consecutive game with a victory over the visiting Hurricanes.

Welling shot 6 of 10 from the floor and also grabbed nine rebounds for the Tigers (16-3, 6-0 ACC). Jestin Porter added 11 points and RJ Godfrey chipped in 10. Dillon Hunter contributed seven points and seven assists.

Despite 22 points from Shelton Henderson, Miami (15-3, 4-1) saw its 10-game win streak snapped. Malik Reneau added 11 points for the Hurricanes before fouling out with about seven minutes to play, while Dante Allen scored 10.

Grand Canyon 84, No. 23 Utah State 74

Brian Moore Jr. and Makaih Williams each scored 20 points as the Antelopes ended the Aggies’ eight-game winning streak with the setback in Phoenix.

Jaden Henley scored 12 points, while Nana Owusu-Anane added 11 points and 11 rebounds as Grand Canyon (11-6, 4-2 Mountain West) improved to 8-2 at home. Dennis Evans had six blocked shots for the Antelopes, who shot 50.9% from the floor and held Utah State to 36.2%.

Mason Falslev scored a game-high 25 points with 12 rebounds while Adlan Elamin and MJ Collins each scored 12 points for the Aggies (15-2, 6-1), who lost for the first time since dropping a road decision to South Florida on Dec. 4.

Kentucky 80, No. 24 Tennessee 78

Collin Chandler’s last-minute steal and feed for Otega Oweh’s breakaway layup capped a frantic second-half comeback as the Wildcats stunned the rival Volunteers in Knoxville.

The steal and layup gave Kentucky (12-6, 3-2 SEC) its first lead after trailing by 17 in the first half. The Wildcats then padded it to three and held on for their third straight win and fourth consecutive at Tennessee (12-6, 2-3). Denzel Aberdeen scored 18 of his 22 points in the second half, two on a crucial layup with 16 seconds left to seal the victory.

The Volunteers’ Ja’Kobi Gillespie had 24 points and eight assists but committed four turnovers. Nate Ament notched 17 points, five rebounds, and two steals.

Butler 77, No. 25 Seton Hall 66

Finley Bizjack scored 25 points and the Bulldogs made a season high 33 free throws to upset the Pirates at Newark, N.J.

Azavier Robinson had 14 points for Butler while Michael Ajayi added 13. A.J. Staton-McCray had 17 points to lead Seton Hall, while Najai Hines added 11 points with 16 rebounds and Mike Williams III also had 11 points.

The teams combined for 46 fouls and shot 66 free throws. The Bulldogs finished 33 of 41 from the line, while the Pirates were 17 of 25. It was the second straight loss for Seton Hall (14-4, 4-3 Big East), while Butler (11-7, 2-5) ended a four-game losing streak.

–Field Level Media