Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

LATE NIGHT SNACKS: No. 5 Xavier beats No. 1 Villanova, No. 8 Iowa and No. 9 Arizona fall

J.P. Macura

Xavier’s J.P. Macura (55) celebrates with fans after their NCAA college basketball game against Villanova, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, in Cincinnati. Xavier won 90-83. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

AP

GAME OF THE NIGHT: No. 5 Xavier 90, No.1 Villanova 83

The top two teams in the Big East met at the Cintas Center, with the Musketeers picking up the win to move within a game of first place. In total six Musketeers reached double figures with Edmond Sumner and JP Macura scoring 19 apiece, as they gave the Villanova defense fits all night. The question now: does Chris Mack’s team have what it takes to play deep into the NCAA tournament?

IMPORTANT OUTCOMES

Wisconsin 67, No. 8 Iowa 59: Zak Showalter limited Peter Jok to four second half points as the Badgers won for the nine time in their last ten games. Bronson Koenig scored 15 points and Nigel Hayes 12 for Wisconsin, which added another quality win to its résumé. And the biggest reason for the improvement in Greg Gard’s team has been the play of his reserves.

Colorado 75, No. 9 Arizona 72: Colorado also added another quality win to its résumé, as they held off the Wildcats in Boulder. Josh Scott accounted for 26 points, nine rebounds and three blocks in the win, and George King added 14 points and seven rebounds. Ryan Anderson led the Wildcats with 19 points and ten rebounds, but Arizona will now nd help if they’re to win another Pac-12 title.
BUBBLE BANTER: Colorado, Wisconsin pick up big wins, VCU falters

No. 7 North Carolina 80, NC State 68: No. 7 North Carolina rebounded from a slow start to win at NC State. The Tar Heels didn’t have an answer for Cat Barber (32 points) early, but the Wolfpack were unable to do enough to keep UNC under wraps on the other end of the floor. Brice Johnson finished with 22 points and 11 boards for North Carolina, which leads the ACC, but Marcus Paige continues to struggle offensively.

STARRED

Ryan Spangler, Oklahoma: 26 points and 14 rebounds in the Sooners’ home win over Oklahoma State.

Chris Hass, Bucknell: 30 points, eight rebounds and two assists in the Bison’s 86-83 double overtime win at Lafayette.

Edmond Sumner and JP Macura, Xavier: Sumner and Macura scored 19 points apiece, with Sumner also accounting for six rebounds and nine assists, in the Musketeers’ 90-83 win over No. 1 Villanova.

STRUGGLED

Maverick Rowan, NC State: Rowan scored eight points, shooting 2-for-12 from the field, in the Wolfpack’s 80-68 loss to No. 7 North Carolina.

Nick Faust, Long Beach State: Three points on 1-for-9 shooting and three turnovers in the 49ers’ loss at UC Irvine.

Devonte Brown and Khristian Smith, Indiana State: Brown and Smith combined to score 12 points on 4-for-21 shooting in the Sycamores’ 66-44 loss at Northern Iowa.

THE REST OF THE TOP 25


  • No. 3 Oklahoma took control of its game against Oklahoma State in the second half, outscoring the Cowboys by 19 points as they won by the final score of 71-49. Ryan Spangler was the star for the Sooners, finishing with 26 points and 14 rebounds.
  • Pittsburgh missed out on a quality win, as they lost at home to No. 11 Louisville 67-60. Quentin Snider led four Cardinals in double figures with 14 points while also dishing out seven assists, and Damion Lee added 13 points.
  • No. 13 Oregon won its school-record 24th straight home game, beating Washington State 76-62. Elgin Cook finished with 24 points, six rebounds, three assists, three steals and three blocks, and Chris Boucher added 18 points, 13 boards and four blocked shots.
  • No. 21 Texas A&M avoided a bad loss, beating Mississippi State 68-66 in College Station. Danuel House scored all 16 of his points in the second half, and Tyler Davis finished with 15 points, six rebounds and two blocked shots.
  • No. 23 Notre Dame rebounded from its close loss at Georgia Tech with a 69-58 win at Wake Forest, limiting the Demon Deacons to 31.4 percent shooting. Zach Auguste posted a double-double for the Fighting Irish with 18 points and 12 rebounds, with Steve Vasturia (16 points) and Demetrius Jackson (15) also scoring in double figures.

OTHER NOTABLE RESULTS


  • Houston picked up its 20th win of the season, beating UCF 88-61 in Orlando. The Cougars, who will in all likelihood need to win the AAC tournament to go dancing, haven’t won 20 games in a season since 2013.
  • Wednesday was an important night for bubble teams in the Atlantic 10, with VCU, George Washington and St. Bonaventure all in action. While the Colonials (73-61 win at Richmond) and Bonnies (80-76 win over Duquesne) took care of business the Rams didn’t, losing 76-69 at George Mason.
  • Bucknell retained a one-game lead on Lehigh in the Patriot League as they won 86-83 at Lafayette in double overtime. The Bison host Navy Saturday, while Lehigh (winners of eight straight) visits Army.
  • Marquette picked up 66-61 win at Creighton, which could be a crippling blow to the Bluejays’ NCAA tournament hopes. Henry Ellenson posted his 17th double-double with 22 points and ten rebounds.
  • San Diego State wrapped up the outright Mountain West title with a 71-61 win at Wyoming, despite Wyoming’s Josh Adams scoring 27 points. The Aztecs lead second place Fresno State by four games, and if they won out this would be the largest margin for a league champion in Mountain West history.
  • UC Irvine, which lost to first-place Hawai’i Saturday night, grabbed sole possession of second place in the Big West with a 90-69 win over Long Beach State. The Anteaters (10-3) are ahead of the 49ers (9-4) by a game, and they hold the head to head tiebreaker due to their sweep of the season series.
  • Stephen Thompson Jr.'s three-pointer as time expired gave Oregon State an 82-81 win over Washington in Corvallis. And with both teams looking to play their way into the NCAA tournament, this finish is an important one for both teams.