Saints

The Minnesota Lynx survived yet again another tough challenge from the New York Liberty and won, 80-77, in Game 4 of the 2024 WNBA Finals to force a winner-take-all Game 5.&nbsp;
With their season on the line, all Minnesota starters scored in double digits in a complete team effort. Kayla McBride led all scorers with 19 points, Courtney Williams had 15, while Bridget Carleton and Alanna Smith both had 12 markers. Defensive Player of the Year Napheesa Collier once again played all 40 minutes available and finished with 14 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists.&nbsp;
Carleton made the biggest play of the game by hitting two free throws with two seconds left and the Lynx forced the stop on the next possession against another potential game-winning three point attempt by Sabrina Ionescu at the buzzer. Ionescu broke the hearts of Minnesota fans in Game 3 after she hit a tough side-stepping three from 30 ft to steal the game on the road.&nbsp;
The Lynx won the game by forcing Liberty superstars Breanna Stewart and Ionescu to tough shooting nights. Stewart only had 11 points on 5-20 shooting after a 30-10 game in Game 3 while Ionescu was 5-16 from the floor, scoring only 10 points.&nbsp;
The two teams will meet again for the final time on Sunday night in New York to claim the 2024 title.
Minnesota will have a chance to be the winningest franchise in WNBA history by winning their 5th title to break their tie with the Houston Comets and the Seattle Storm. The Lynx reached the Finals for the first time since 2017, when they won the last of four championships in seven years.&nbsp;
New York, on the other hand, is looking for their first-ever WNBA title after having lost five times in previous seasons. This is their second straight Finals appearance after having lost to the Las Vegas Aces last year in 4 games.

The Minnesota Lynx survived the New York Liberty, 80-77, in Game 4 of the 2024 WNBA Finals to force a winner-take-all Game 5.

Lynx stave off Liberty to force winner-take-all Game 5 in 2024 WNBA Finals

The New York Liberty were not to be denied this time around.&nbsp;
Behind a spirited effort from its starters, the Liberty bounced back from a horrible loss in Game 1 and blew out the Minnesota Lynx, 80-66, winning Game 2 of the 2024 WNBA Finals and tying the series at 1-1.&nbsp;
It was not easy however, with the Lynx making the Liberty work for the win by applying pressure all game long. Minnesota cut the lead to as little as 2, 64-66, via Napheesa Collier&rsquo;s layup.&nbsp;
That was the closest Minnesota would come though as New York went on a 14-2 run late for the game&rsquo;s final spread.&nbsp;
Breanna Stewart led the way with 21 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists while Betnijah Laney-Hamilton added 20 points as the Liberty avoided yet another comeback by the Lynx. Minnesota forced overtime and went on to win Game 1 after a furious run in the 4th quarter.
Sabrina Ionescu bounced back with an efficient shooting night at 5-9 to finish with 15 points while Jonquel Jones had 14 points and 9 boards as the series shifts to Minnesota for Game 3 on Wednesday night.
Courtney Williams, the hero for the Lynx in Game 1, scored 15 points and dished out 8 assists and Collier added 16 points and 8 rebounds in Minnesota&rsquo;s losing effort.

Behind a spirited effort from its starters, the Liberty bounced back from a horrible loss in Game 1 and blew out the Minnesota Lynx.

Liberty get back at Lynx, tie 2024 WNBA Finals

The Minnesota Lynx have stolen Game 1 vs the New York Liberty after a cardiac comeback win in overtime, 95-93, to draw first blood in the 2024 WNBA Finals.
After a dominant first half from New York, Minnesota stormed back behind a huge scoring surge in the 4th quarter to take the lead in the dying seconds of the game.
The Liberty led by 15 with 5 minutes left in the game before the Lynx unleashed their furious run. It was led by Courtney Williams, who sank back-to-back threes with under 2 minutes to go. One of them was a four-point play as Williams got fouled by Sabrina Ionescu to give Minnesota the go-ahead lead late.
Breanna Stewart had a chance to win it for the Liberty in regulation but she missed the free throw that could&rsquo;ve given New York the lead and the win, sending the game into OT.
In overtime, 2024 WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Napheesa Collier showed her wares that she&rsquo;s not just a defensive player when she gave the Lynx the final lead for the final tally on a tough fadeaway jumper.
Stewart had a chance again to send the game to a 2nd overtime but she missed a point-blank layup at the buzzer.
Collier finished with 21 points on 10-16 shooting with 8 rebounds and 4 assists to lead Minnesota&rsquo;s comeback. Williams chipped in 23 points as the team&rsquo;s leading scorer while Kayla McBride added 22 markers.
Stewart and Ionescu, New York&rsquo;s two superstars, scored 18 and 19 points respectively but struggled from the field overall (6-21 and 8-26) as the Liberty lost home court advantage following Game 1&rsquo;s loss. Jonquel Jones spearheaded the Liberty with 24 points and 10 rebounds but it was not enough to stop the Lynx&rsquo;s comeback.
Game 2 will still be at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY on Monday, October 14 at 3:00 p.m.

Minnesota have stolen Game 1 vs New York after a cardiac comeback win in overtime, 95-93, in the 2024 WNBA Finals.

Lynx strike first in 2024 WNBA Finals after after thrilling comeback win

The New York Liberty and the Minnesota Lynx have set up a grand finale clash in the WNBA Finals after beating their respective opponents in the semifinals.&nbsp;
The Lynx ousted the Connecticut Sun, 88-77, in Game 5 of their best-of-5 series at home in Target Center. Napheesa Collier, the 2024 WNBA Defensive Player of the Year and a member of the All-WNBA First Team, had 27 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 blocks in an all-around performance. Collier went 10-16 from the field in an efficient performance while Courtney Williams added 24 points.&nbsp;
On the other hand, the Liberty finished off the defending champions Las Vegas Aces in just four games, winning 76-62 in Game 4. Sabrina Ionescu was brilliant for New York in their WNBA Finals 2023 rematch with 22 points while Breanna Stewart had 19 points and 14 rebounds as the Liberty effectively ended the Aces&rsquo; bid for a three-peat this season.&nbsp;
The Liberty-Lynx Finals matchup immediately starts Friday night in New York for Game 1 and continues to Game 2 and then the series shifts over to Minnesota for Games 3 and 4. If necessary, Game 5 will be played back in New York.&nbsp;
In their season series, the Lynx own a 3-1 advantage over the Liberty, including their Commissioner&rsquo;s Cup title win midseason. Minnesota finished second in the standings behind just New York by just two games.&nbsp;

The Liberty and the Lynx have set up a grand finale clash in the WNBA Finals after beating their respective opponents.

Liberty-Lynx set for WNBA Finals clash

New York Liberty guard Courtney Vandersloot is the recipient of the August WNBA Cares Community Assist Award, which recognizes her efforts to raise awareness and support research for multiple myeloma.
In July 2022, Vandersloot&rsquo;s mother was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a form of cancer.&nbsp; Vandersloot has since made it her purpose to spread awareness and support those in the fight against multiple myeloma.
This season, Vandersloot has taken part in several events to support finding a cure for multiple myeloma. In May, Vandersloot joined the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) in the TD Five Boro Bike Tour.
On Aug. 6, during the Liberty&rsquo;s Women&rsquo;s Health Game, the team donated $500 for every assist by Vandersloot in New York&rsquo;s 99-61 win over the Las Vegas Aces, followed by $100 for each Vandersloot assist at home for the remainder of the regular season. Vandersloot and the Liberty raised over $6,500 for MMRF.
In addition, Vandersloot and the Liberty put together a team for the upcoming MMRF Walk in October to continue to raise awareness and involve WNBA fans in Vandersloot&rsquo;s mission to support research for multiple myeloma.
In recognition of Vandersloot&rsquo;s efforts, the WNBA will make a $5,000 donation to the&nbsp;<a href="https://themmrf.org/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://themmrf.org/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1695502030440000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1Q_F7kiP3rK3USXaWPCY_D">Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation</a>.
Each month during the season, the WNBA Cares Community Assist Award recognizes a player who best demonstrates the passion that the league and WNBA players share for giving back to their communities.

New York Liberty guard Courtney Vandersloot is the recipient of the August WNBA Cares Community Assist Award.

Courtney Vandersloot wins WNBA Cares Community Assist Award for August

Prior to the 2023 WNBA Playoffs tipping off today, the league announced the recipients of the Player of the Week awards for the final week of the WNBA regular season.
The Eastern Conference Player of the Week is Courtney Williams of the Chicago Sky, who averaged 17.7 points, 9.0 rebounds and 9.3 assists while leading the Sky to a 3-0 record during the week. This is Williams' second time winning the WNBA's Player of the Week award this year.
Through 40 games this season, Williams has averaged 10.4 points, 6.3 assists, 6.0 rebounds, 1.2 threes and 1.0 steal, while shooting 43.7% from the field and 44.3% from three-point range.&nbsp;
The Western Conference Player of the Week is A&rsquo;ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces, who averaged 33.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.5 steals while leading the Aces to a 2-0 record during the week. This is Wilson's fifth time winning the WNBA's Player of the Week award this year.
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Through 40 games this season, Wilson has averaged 22.8 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.2 blocks and 1.4 steals, while shooting 55.7% from the field and 31.0% from three-point range.
Williams and Wilson will face off during the first round of the WNBA Playoffs, as the Sky and Aces are set to tip off their best-of-three series tonight at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN.
For more of the 2023 WNBA Playoffs (including the first-round match-ups, schedule and how to watch), <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2023-wnba-playoffs-guide-how-to-watch-schedule-more" target="_blank" rel="noopener">check out our guide here</a>.

Prior to the 2023 WNBA Playoffs tipping off today, the league announced the recipients of the Player of the Week awards.

Courtney Williams, A’ja Wilson named WNBA Players of the Week

The Orlando Magic have had their fair share of ups and downs in their relatively short history. However, since the franchise was established in 1989, they have provided their fans with some unforgettable seasons. From the early success of Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway to the dominant play of Dwight Howard in the late 2000s, the Magic have had some remarkable teams.
The Magic have had quite a bit of lottery luck, landing the No. 1 pick in 1992 (which allowed them to select O'Neal), 1993 (which allowed them to pick Chris Webber and trade him to the Golden State Warriors for Penny Hardaway and three future first-round picks), 2004 (which allowed them to select Howard) and 2022 (which allowed them to draft Paolo Banchero).&nbsp;
The current Magic squad has fans in Orlando excited about the future, with a core of Banchero, Franz Wagner, Wendell Carter Jr. and Markelle Fultz among others. But today, let's look back at the past and examine the five best seasons in franchise history.
5. 2007-08 SEASON RECORD: 52-30 FINISH: LOST IN CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS
This season, the Magic won 52 games and finished as the third-best team in the Eastern Conference. The team was led by a 22-year-old Dwight Howard, who earned his second All-Star selection while emerging as a two-way force. During the regular season, Howard averaged 20.7 points, 14.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocks, while shooting 59.9% from the field. He was even more dominant in the playoffs, averaging 18.9 points, 15.8 rebounds and 3.4 blocks. Orlando defeated the Toronto Raptors in five games in the first round, but they were ultimately eliminated by the Detroit Pistons in five games in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. This season laid the groundwork for Orlando's Finals run in 2008-09.
4. 2009-10 SEASON RECORD: 59-23 FINISH: LOST IN CONFERENCE FINALS
Despite coming off of an NBA Finals run, the Magic decided to make some big changes entering this 2009-19 season. Orlando acquired Vince Carter in a blockbuster trade with the New Jersey Nets and added some new role players in Matt Barnes, Jason Williams, Ryan Anderson and Brandon Bass. The Magic won 59 games, which was the second-best record in the Eastern Conference. Orlando was once again led by Howard, who earned his second-straight Defensive Player of the Year award. The Magic were dominant through the first two rounds of the 2010 NBA Playoffs, sweeping the Charlotte Bobcats and Atlanta Hawks. But in the Eastern Conference Finals, they faced off against the Boston Celtics and lost in six games. Still, their regular-season success and deep postseason run cannot be overlooked.
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3. 1995-96 SEASON RECORD: 60-22 FINISH: LOST IN CONFERENCE FINALS
The 1995-96 season was another successful year for the Magic. The team finished with a record of 60-22, which was the second-best in the Eastern Conference and is still the franchise record for most wins in a single season. Led by one of the best one-two punches in the league in Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway, Orlando went 7-1 through the first two rounds of the 1996 NBA Playoffs, eliminating the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks with ease. But in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Magic ran into Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, who got their revenge from the previous year by sweeping Orlando.
2. 2008-09 SEASON RECORD: 59-23 FINISH: LOST IN NBA FINALS
This team was ahead of its time, as Stan Van Gundy surrounded Dwight Howard with shooters and made teams pick their poison. The Magic had a terrific core of Howard, Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu and Jameer Nelson, plus excellent role players such as Rafer Alston, Courtney Lee, Mickael Pietrus, J.J. Redick and Marcin Gortat. Orlando's run in the 2009 NBA Playoffs was incredible, as they defeated the Philadelphia 76ers, Boston Celtics (led by the Big Three) and Cleveland Cavaliers (led by LeBron James). Until this year, the Magic were the only team to defeat James in a Conference Finals series. In the NBA Finals, the Magic matched up against Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers, ultimately losing in five games. What if Courtney Lee hits the game-winning layup at the end of Game 2 in the 2009 NBA Finals? That's one of the biggest "what ifs" among Magic fans to this day.
1. 1994-95 SEASON RECORD: 57-25 FINISH: LOST IN NBA FINALS
The 1994-95 season was the most successful season in the Magic's franchise history. Shaquille O'Neal was virtually unstoppable, averaging 29.3 points, 11.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.4 blocks, while shooting 58.3% from the field. Penny Hardaway was excellent as well, averaging an efficient 20.9 points, 7.2 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 1.7 steals on 51.2/34.9/76.9 shooting splits. The team won 57 games, which was the best record in the East. Prior to the 1995 NBA Finals, the Magic became the only team to eliminate Michael Jordan in the playoffs during the 1990s, beating Chicago in six games in the Conference Semifinals. Jordan came out of retirement midseason and the Magic spoiled his return. After defeating the Indiana Pacers in seven games in the Conference Finals, the Magic faced off against the Houston Rockets in the NBA Finals. Hakeem Olajuwon put up 32.8 points, 11.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 2.0 blocks and 2.0 steals per game and helped the Rockets sweep the Magic. Still, the Magic's run to the Finals was nothing short of spectacular.
While the Magic have not won an NBA championship, they have had some great seasons and provided their fans with plenty of memorable moments.&nbsp;

From Shaq and Penny to the Dwight Howard era, Basketball News looks back at the five best teams in Orlando Magic history.

Ranking the 5 best seasons in Orlando Magic history

DENVER (AP) &mdash; Eric Lewis was not selected as one of the 12 referees who will work the NBA Finals between the Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat, while the league continues to look into whether he used a Twitter account to defend himself and other officials from online critiques.
Lewis had been chosen to work the finals in each of the last four seasons. This year&rsquo;s finals referees were announced by the league Thursday morning, about 12 hours before the start of the title series.
After some now-deleted tweets were revealed by a pair of Twitter users last week, the league opened an investigation into whether Lewis violated NBA rules by speaking about officiating in an unauthorized manner. It has not been determined if Lewis was using the account, which utilizes the name &ldquo;blair cuttliff.&rdquo; The account was deactivated briefly last week but was active again Wednesday evening.
&ldquo;Regarding Eric Lewis and the social media posts, we are continuing to review the matter and he will not be working the finals,&rdquo; NBA spokesman Mike Bass said Thursday.
The league has not revealed a timetable for the completion of its probe into whether Lewis used the Twitter account. It also remains unknown what discipline from the league that Lewis could face if he broke policy by discussing officiating matters openly without approval.
Of the 12 referees picked for the Nuggets-Heat matchup, nine worked the title series last season. Scott Foster will be a finals referee for the 16th year, while Tony Brothers and Marc Davis were picked for a 12th time. Zach Zarba is now a 10-time selection, John Goble was picked for the seventh time, David Guthrie for the sixth time, Josh Tiven for the fourth and Courtney Kirkland and James Williams are now three-time selections.
Returning to the referee lineup for the finals are Ed Malloy, now an eight-time pick, and Bill Kennedy &mdash; picked for the fifth time. The only first-time selection this year is Kevin Scott, who began working NBA games in the 2010-11 season.
Tyler Ford and Ben Taylor have been assigned as finals alternates. Foster has officiated 23 NBA Finals games, followed by Davis (18) and Brothers (15).
&ldquo;The pinnacle for an NBA official is to work the NBA Finals,&rdquo; said Byron Spruell, the league&rsquo;s president of basketball operations.
Davis, Guthrie and Malloy will work Game 1 of the series Thursday night, the league said. Typically, the 12 referees each get to work one of the first four games of the series.
Besides Lewis, the other referees who worked the 2022 finals but aren&rsquo;t working them this year are Kane Fitzgerald &mdash; who left on-court work after last season and took over in September as the league&rsquo;s Vice President of Referee Operations and Replay Center Principal &mdash; and James Capers, who is injured.
Lewis has worked more than 1,200 games, counting both regular season and playoffs, in 19 seasons as an NBA referee. He last worked on May 16, when Denver played host to the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals. The reports of the tweets came out about a week later.

Eric Lewis was not selected to work the NBA Finals while the league looks into whether he used a Twitter account to defend himself.

Referee Eric Lewis won't work NBA Finals while league looks into tweets

PHOENIX (AP) &mdash; Brittney Griner won the opening tip and ran to her familiar spot in the low post.
There was nowhere else the ball was going to go on the Phoenix Mercury&rsquo;s opening possession of the season &mdash; not after what Griner had gone through to get here.
Her back to the basket, Griner faked as though she would shoot a turnaround, spun the other way and put up another up-fake. Chicago&rsquo;s Elizabeth Williams fell for the deke, Griner absorbed the contact and hit the shot to begin a three-point play.
After all the emotional buildup, Griner got off to the perfect start in her first regular-season home game since being released after more than&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/brittney-griner-wnba-mercury-russia-aeec9996a12eff831db54039a5e20545">10 months in a Russian prison</a>.
It didn&rsquo;t end quite the way she wanted.
Griner finished with 27 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots, but the Chicago Sky held on for a&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/497be3792e2cf7f689f0bdb1d488a0cb">75-69 win on Sunday</a>.
Griner received a warm reception in her lone preseason game and again in&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/brittney-griner-wnba-mercury-russia-e3fe291486d48676e512ca6352f3a974">the Mercury&rsquo;s season opener</a>&nbsp;at the Los Angeles Sparks.
Her home debut had an entirely different vibe.
Many fans wore Griner&rsquo;s 42 jersey and some waved small black towels with &ldquo;BG&rdquo; on the front. One young fan held a sign that said &ldquo;We (heart) BG. Welcome home!&rdquo;
During warmups, Griner shared hugs with her teammates, Sky players and Chicago coach James Wade, who had coached her overseas. Just as warmups were winding down, Mercury guard Sophie Cunningham grabbed a microphone near midcourt and addressed the crowd.
&ldquo;Last year, all we wanted was to get BG home. We did that and we&rsquo;re all together now,&rdquo; Cunningham said, drawing roars from the crowd.
Just before player introductions, a poet paid tribute to Griner while being surrounded by the Mercury&rsquo;s dancers. Once introductions started, the fans gave each of the Mercury players loud cheers before Griner came out last.
The 6-foot-9 forward walked out from behind a wall and, surrounded by flashing lights, stepped into the bowel of the arena, drawing a massive ovation.
Griner had an immediate impact against the Sparks Friday night, finishing with 18 points, six rebounds and four blocked shots in the 94-71 loss.
She opened with the three-point play against Chicago, blocked a shot on the Sky&rsquo;s second possession and dropped a nifty bounce pass to Diana Taurasi for a backdoor layup.
Griner swatted another shot and sprinkled in some trash talk as she turned up the floor. She added another three-point play late in the second half to pull the Mercury within seven points.
Griner drew a laugh from the crowd early in the third quarter when, after fouling Courtney Williams, forcefully helped up Williams, who flew through the air to accentuate it.
The support turned into a roar when Griner hit a 3-pointer, the fans rising from their seats and to match the two-handed, three-fingered gesture she flashed while screaming on the court.
Griner scored on a three-point play to pull Phoenix within 69-67 with just under two minutes left, but it was hers and the Mercury&rsquo;s last gasp.
Phoenix had a couple of sloppy turnovers, Chicago&rsquo;s Dana Evans scored on a running bank shot and the Sky held on for the win.
Griner ended her home debut by hugging Sky players and Wade again before heading to the baseline to hug her wife Cherelle.

In her home debut, Griner finished with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 4 blocks, but the Chicago Sky held on for a 75-69 win on Sunday.

Brittney Griner gets warm welcome in first home game since Russia

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) &mdash; Jordan Miller took 20 shots in the regional final for Miami and made them all, helping the Hurricanes rally their way into the Final Four. The personification of clutch.
Fitting.
A guy named Clutch is why he&rsquo;s at Miami, why Miller has become one of the stars of March Madness &mdash; and why the Hurricanes are one of the four men&rsquo;s teams lucky enough to head to Houston this weekend and see their season stretch into April.
It was around this time two years ago when Miami then-assistant coach Bill Courtney&rsquo;s phone rang with news that Miller had entered the transfer portal and was leaving George Mason. Courtney dove into some tape and began looking into Miller&rsquo;s background. Turns out, one of Courtney&rsquo;s old pickup-game buddies from Virginia &mdash; Clutch, real name Gary Collins &mdash; was Miller&rsquo;s AAU coach.
&ldquo;The recruitment got pretty simple from there,&rdquo; said Courtney, now the Hurricanes&rsquo; associate head coach.
Good thing that recruitment went the way it did, because Miami has needed Miller this season &mdash; never more than it did on Sunday. Miller was 7 for 7 from the field and 13 for 13 from the foul line in Miami&rsquo;s 88-81 win over Texas, a victory that sent the Hurricanes (29-7) into Saturday&rsquo;s national semifinals against UConn (29-8). For the season, Miller is averaging 15.4 points and 6.1 rebounds per game, second-most for Miami in both categories.
He helped the Hurricans get to the Elite Eight last season &mdash; and at least one step further this season.
&ldquo;That loss sat with me for a really, really long time,&rdquo; Miller said of the defeat to eventual national champion Kansas in last year&rsquo;s tournament. &ldquo;I had to put it in the past because it was a new season, but having the opportunity to kind of right your wrongs almost and get past something that stumped you previously is a great feeling.&rdquo;
The 20-for-20 combined shooting effort from the field and the line against Texas matched Christian Laettner&rsquo;s historic game for Duke against Kentucky in a regional final in 1992. Laettner &mdash; who went 10 for 10 from both the field and the line in that game &mdash; tweeted congratulations to Miller on Monday; Miller responded with &ldquo;Appreciate you! Glad to join some elite company.&rdquo;
There is rich irony in that Miller came to Miami from George Mason &mdash; as did Hurricanes coach Jim Larra&ntilde;aga, who took that school to the Final Four in 2006 and got Miami to the Final Four on exactly the 17th anniversary of that win.
&ldquo;I just asked Jordan to ask the people at George Mason who know what kind of coach I am if he&rsquo;d fit in my program,&rdquo; Larra&ntilde;aga said. &ldquo;And a lot of them told him, &lsquo;Yeah, you should go play for Coach L.&rsquo; I was so impressed with him as an individual. You know, the basketball ability is one thing but his personality, his work ethic, his basketball IQ made me feel like &lsquo;OK, this kid will fit in really, really well.&rsquo; I had no idea he was this good.&rdquo;
The Hurricanes were even talking to other players &mdash; frankly, with better numbers &mdash; than Miller had when he entered the portal. Had it not been for Clutch, it&rsquo;s extremely likely that Miami would have gone in a different direction. And then who knows how this season would have turned out for Miller or the Hurricanes.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know if anyone expected this,&rdquo; Courtney said. &ldquo;Clutch was the only one who told me he could be this.&rdquo;
Larra&ntilde;aga doesn&rsquo;t think many people know how good Miller is. He calls the 6-foot-7, 195-pound wing &ldquo;the most underrated player in the country.&rdquo;
That moniker might not hold up anymore, especially not after the show Miller put on on Sunday. The 27 points might be a breakout of sorts; it was the second-best scoring effort of his 141-game collegiate career, and by far the most points he&rsquo;s managed in a postseason game at either George Mason or Miami.
Larra&ntilde;aga essentially challenged Miller when last season ended to be this guy.
&ldquo;I sat down and talked to Jordan before this season began. I just said to him: &lsquo;Your role is going to completely change. We&rsquo;re going to expand it,&rsquo;&rdquo; Larra&ntilde;aga said. &ldquo;He asked me one question: &lsquo;Hey, if I get a defensive rebound, can I push it in transition, dribble it up the court?&rsquo; I asked him one question: &lsquo;Are you going to turn the ball over?&rsquo; And he said &lsquo;No.&rsquo; I said, &lsquo;Then you can do it.&rsquo;&rdquo;
They chart everything in every practice at Miami, as is the case at many schools, and Larra&ntilde;aga quickly became enthralled by the idea of Miller getting his way &mdash; grabbing a rebound like a big guy, then heading downcourt like a guard. For every turnover he had in scrimmages, he had seven assists. Such a ratio is absurd for point guards; for wings and combo players like Miller, it&rsquo;s unheard of. During the season, it&rsquo;s still a very respectable 2:1.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s underrated because he&rsquo;s under been under the radar,&rdquo; Larra&ntilde;aga said. &ldquo;People just haven&rsquo;t seen him to understand how good he is. I think he showed the country how good he is these past two weeks.&rdquo;
Indeed, thanks to Clutch, he&rsquo;s been clutch. And Clutch is heading to Houston this weekend, to see if Miller and Miami can grab a national championship. The underrated kid might end up standing tallest of all.

A guy named Clutch is why Jordan Miller is at Miami, and is a big reason why he has become one of the stars of March Madness.

A ‘Clutch’ tip helps Miller, Miami reach first Final Four

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) &mdash;&nbsp;Mitch Henderson&rsquo;s victory leap&nbsp;that punctuated Princeton&rsquo;s famed upset over UCLA in 1996 has become an iconic moment. There is a picture of the joyous jump at the school&rsquo;s practice facility that serves as a constant reminder of what&rsquo;s possible.
Now Henderson&rsquo;s current players have authored one of their own.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
History repeats itself. Pete Carril is smiling upstairs - Congrats <a href="https://twitter.com/M_Henderson98?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@M_Henderson98</a> <a href="https://t.co/V2cbrCVz6I">pic.twitter.com/V2cbrCVz6I</a>
&mdash; Doug Gottlieb (@GottliebShow) <a href="https://twitter.com/GottliebShow/status/1636493636153262081?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 16, 2023</a></blockquote>

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Ryan Langborg lifted Princeton&nbsp;to its first lead with 2:03 to play and the Tigers used a late-game run to earn their first NCAA Tournament win in 25 years, topping No. 2 seed Arizona 59-55 on Thursday.
&ldquo;Pretty surreal feeling,&rdquo; guard Matt Allocco said. &ldquo;To beat a great team like that on this stage is a pretty special feeling. But also I can&rsquo;t say I&rsquo;m surprised. This team has been so good all year, so gritty. On paper, it&rsquo;s going to look like a big upset. But we believe in each other and we think we&rsquo;re a really good team. When we&rsquo;re at our best, then I think we can beat anybody in the country.&rdquo;
The 15th-seeded Tigers (22-9) scored the final nine points, holding the Pac-12 Tournament champion scoreless over the final 4:43.
Tosan Evbuomwan scored 15 points in Princeton&rsquo;s first tournament victory since beating UNLV in 1998 when Henderson was a player for the Tigers.
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Henderson also played on the 1996 team that beat defending champion UCLA in the school&rsquo;s final tournament under coach Pete Carril, who died in August. This victory fittingly came in Sacramento, where Carril spent time as an NBA assistant after retiring as Tigers coach.
&ldquo;He would be very proud of the group,&rdquo; Henderson said. &ldquo;He wouldn&rsquo;t want any attention to be brought other than what these guys did. They played to win. We knew we had to keep the game low possessions.&rdquo;
Princeton advanced to play seventh-seeded Missouri in the second round of the South Region. The Tigers beat Utah State 76-65.
Azuolas Tubelis scored 22 points for the Wildcats (28-7), who haven&rsquo;t won a tournament game in consecutive years since 2014-15.
It marked the third straight year and 11th time overall that a No. 15 seed won a first-round game. Arizona is the only school to be on the wrong end of one of those upsets twice, also losing to Steve Nash and Santa Clara in 1993.
&ldquo;If you want to be a great player, you want to be a great coach, we all got to learn from this,&rsquo;&rdquo; coach Tommy Lloyd said. &ldquo;We got to go back and figure out what happened and understand the value of being up 10 to 12 points with 10 minutes to go, putting the hammer on people, not letting people get back in the game.&rdquo;
The Wildcats seemed in control of this one when Oumar Ballo&rsquo;s basket put them up 10 with eight minutes left.
But the Tigers responded with seven straight points, capped by&nbsp;a second-chance 3-pointer&nbsp;from Blake Peters that made it 51-48 with about six minutes left.
They closed the game with a 9-0 run &mdash; just like they did in their most memorable tournament win against UCLA in 1996.
Keeshawn Kellman started the spurt with a putback dunk before Langborg hit a jumper and then a layup to give the Tigers the lead.
The Wildcats then missed all five shots down the stretch and Princeton put it away at the foul line. Langborg also blocked Courtney Ramey&rsquo;s shot with 50 seconds left and the Tigers protecting a one-point lead.
&ldquo;When I blocked it I saw the whole crowd erupt,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;My teammates were all locked in with each other and it was kind of that moment where you know, like, &lsquo;Wow we can really do this. We&rsquo;re going to do this and nothing&rsquo;s going to stop us.&rsquo;&rdquo;
Ramey, who hit a game-winning shot in the Pac-12 Tournament, missed a contested 3-pointer with 14 seconds left that could have tied the game. Kerr Kriisa also missed from long range after an offensive rebound,&nbsp;sending Princeton into an early celebration.
LET THEM PLAY
The game featured just 12 free throws, with four coming after intentional fouls by Arizona late in the game. The Wildcats went to the line seven times despite a big size advantage with Tubelis and Bello.
&ldquo;You go inside over and over and over again, and you shoot seven free throws. I mean, I don&rsquo;t know if they&rsquo;re fouls or not. They must not have been because obviously they didn&rsquo;t get called,&rdquo; Lloyd said. &ldquo;When the game is reffed like that, it makes it tough.&rdquo;
BIG PICTURE
Princeton: The Tigers gave the Ivy League its first tournament win since 2016 when Yale beat Baylor. The conference had been one-and-done the last four trips, having missed the 2021 edition because of COVID-19.
Arizona: The Wildcats got little help offensively outside of Tubelis and Ballo, who combined for 35 points. The rest of the team shot 9 for 27.
UP NEXT
Princeton will look to win two games in the tournament for the first time since 1983.

The 15th-seeded Tigers (22-9) scored the final nine points to finish the upset, holding the Wildcats scoreless over the final 4:21.

No. 15 Princeton stuns No. 2 Arizona 59-55 in March Madness

LAS VEGAS (AP) &mdash; Courtney Ramey had missed all four of his previous 3-point attempts Saturday night when the ball wound up back in his hands at the most critical moment.
Ramey shook a defender and then calmly drilled one from the top of the key with 16.7 seconds left to put Arizona in front. The eighth-ranked Wildcats hung on from there, beating No. 2 UCLA 61-59 in the Pac-12 championship game.
&ldquo;I kept telling myself, the next shot is going in,&rdquo; Ramey said. &ldquo;My job was to make a play.&rdquo;
The Wildcats (28-6) boosted their case for a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. UCLA (29-5) still hopes to land the No. 1 seed in the West and return to Las Vegas in two weeks for the regional.
It was the second year in a row Arizona beat UCLA in the Pac-12 title game.
Arizona second-year coach Tommy Lloyd can&rsquo;t lose in Las Vegas. He is 9-0 in this city, 8-0 at T-Mobile Arena and 6-0 in the Pac-12 Tournament.
&ldquo;It was a knock down, drag out and I had a feeling it was going to be that way,&rdquo; Lloyd said. &ldquo;So much respect for the UCLA program. Obviously, they&rsquo;re going through a lot of injury stuff right now, but they&rsquo;re resilient and I knew it was going to be like that.&rdquo;
Ramey&rsquo;s 3-pointer put the Wildcats ahead 60-58. The clutch shot came after teammate Azuolas Tubelis missed a 3 that was rebounded by Pelle Larsson, who got the ball to Ramey.
UCLA guard Tyger Campbell was fouled with 6.8 seconds left, and he made the first free throw but missed the second. Tubelis hit one of two free throws with 5.8 seconds to go, and UCLA&rsquo;s Dylan Andrews missed a 3 at the buzzer to ensure Arizona&rsquo;s victory.
&ldquo;Wide-open shot to win the game,&rdquo; UCLA coach Mick Cronin said. &ldquo;Tyger&rsquo;s beating himself up over a missed free throw, but that had nothing to do with some of our bad fouls and defensive breakdowns. Those are controllables. I&rsquo;ll take Tyger at the line and put my career on the line with Tyger at the line.&rdquo;
Tubelis, the tournament&rsquo;s Most Outstanding Player, had 19 points and 14 rebounds for second-seeded Arizona. Oumar Ballo scored 13 points and Larsson had 11.
Amari Bailey led top-seeded UCLA with 19 points. Campbell scored 16 and Jaime Jaquez Jr. had 13 points and 10 rebounds.
The Bruins knew coming in they wouldn&rsquo;t have guard Jaylen Clark (lower leg) or Adem Bona (shoulder), and their problems only mounted when two of Bona&rsquo;s replacements in the post got into foul trouble.
Mac Etienne and Kenneth Nwuba each had four fouls in the second half, forcing Cronin to play at least one of them. Etienne fouled out with 9:35 left and Nwuba with 4:27 remaining, meaning the Bruins had to play with a smaller lineup the rest of the game.
Arizona wasn&rsquo;t completely healthy, either. Point guard Kerr Kriisa has been playing with a balky shoulder this tournament.
POSTGAME COMMOTION
An Arizona fan was yelling at Cronin&rsquo;s dad, Hep, after the game, according to UCLA radio broadcaster Josh Lewin. When a reporter told Cronin afterward, he immediately left the postgame news conference. Athletic director Martin Jarmond quickly followed him.
BIG PICTURE
Arizona: The Wildcats entered the game just 10 3-pointers behind their school record set in the 2010-11 season. But long-range shots didn&rsquo;t fall for them against the Bruins until the end. Arizona went 6 of 20 from beyond the arc.
UCLA: The question is the health of Clark and Bona. Cronin won&rsquo;t provide any information other than saying before the Pac-12 Tournament that Clark wouldn&rsquo;t play. UCLA was easily the class of the Pac-12 this season, but not having those players was quite noticeable, especially against Arizona.
UP NEXT
Arizona: Likely will be a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
UCLA: Almost certainly a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the NCAA tourney.

No. 8 Arizona beat No. 2 UCLA 61-59 in the Pac-12 title game, boosting their case for a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Ramey lifts No. 8 Arizona over No. 2 UCLA for Pac-12 title

On Wednesday, the WNBA and ESPN announced that 25 national broadcasts will occur during the regular season across ABC, ESPN and ESPN2. The star-studded New York Liberty lead all teams with nine national broadcasts, with the reigning champion Las Vegas Aces not far behind with seven.&nbsp;
The two super teams will face off Aug. 6 on ABC.&nbsp;
You can read the full release below:
NEW YORK, March 8, 2023&nbsp;&ndash; The WNBA and ESPN today announced that the league&rsquo;s 27th&nbsp;regular season, set to tip off on Friday, May 19, will be highlighted by 25&nbsp;national broadcasts during the regular season across ABC, ESPN and ESPN2.
During the upcoming season, the WNBA will collaborate with ESPN to present up to 52 possible games beginning with the WNBA Regular Season presented by Google and extending through the WNBA Playoffs presented by Google, which will feature up to 27 games, including the WNBA Finals presented by YouTube TV. In addition,&nbsp;history will be made on Saturday, July 15 when the 2023 AT&amp;T WNBA All-Star Game in Las Vegas airs for the first time in primetime on ABC (8:30 p.m. ET).
Added coverage will be provided by&nbsp;WNBA Countdown presented by Google&nbsp;&ndash; ESPN&rsquo;s pregame show introduced during the 2022 WNBA postseason &ndash; which will now be available throughout the regular season with at least 10 editions immediately preceding game broadcasts.
The complete television and streaming schedule, including games on CBS Television Network, Paramount+, CBS Sports Network, NBA TV, Meta Horizon Worlds, and Twitter will be announced at a later date.
&ldquo;As we get set to tip off our 27th&nbsp;season, ESPN is once again stepping up as an incredibly engaged broadcast partner for the WNBA,&rdquo; said WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. &ldquo;We are grateful that ESPN will provide significant opportunities to tell the stories of the incredible players across the league in 2023. From tip-off weekend through the highly anticipated postseason, ESPN and Google will continue to serve our growing fan base and deliver a robust national platform for WNBA players with game broadcasts and new, regular-season pregame shows.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;
&ldquo;As ESPN enters its 27th season with the WNBA, we continue to elevate our coverage of this exceptional league with premier broadcast windows, expanded studio programming and best-in-class storytelling,&rdquo; said Matt Kenny, vice president of programming and acquisitions, ESPN. &ldquo;Our ongoing collaboration with the WNBA resulted in unprecedented growth and success last year and we have a marquee schedule that will once again showcase the league&rsquo;s best players and teams across ESPN platforms.&rdquo;
The ABC/ESPN/ESPN2 broadcast schedule gets underway on Friday, May 19, as part of&nbsp;WNBA Tip-Off presented by CarMax&nbsp;when Brittney Griner, an eight-time WNBA All-Star selection and two-time Kia WNBA Defensive Player of the Year, and Diana Taurasi, the WNBA&rsquo;s career scoring leader and a three-time league champion now entering her 19th&nbsp;season, lead the Phoenix Mercury against the Los Angeles Sparks. The Sparks&rsquo;&nbsp;revamped roster includes&nbsp;2016 WNBA MVP Nneka Ogwumike and veteran acquisitions&nbsp;Azur&aacute;&nbsp;Stevens and Jasmine Thomas. That game will air on ESPN and stream on ESPN+ at 8 p.m. PT (11 p.m. ET), marking the first time a WNBA game will be available on the ESPN streaming service.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s been refreshing to see women&rsquo;s sports getting more of the attention it deserves over the past year and a half,&rdquo; said Kate Johnson, Director of Global Sports &amp; Entertainment Marketing Partnerships, Content and Media at Google. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re passionate about elevating coverage of women athletes and as we enter our third year as a WNBA Changemaker, continuing to work side by side with the WNBA and EPSN to air more nationally televised games is something we&rsquo;re extremely proud of. We&rsquo;ll continue to challenge ourselves and others to raise the bar for representing women&rsquo;s sports equitably.
WNBA Tip-Off Presented by CarMax&nbsp;also includes a star-studded ABC doubleheader on Saturday, May 20. Action tips off when the Atlanta Dream, led by newly acquired Allisha Gray and reigning Kia WNBA Rookie of the Year Rhyne Howard, visit Gray&rsquo;s former team, the Dallas Wings, with newly acquired WNBA All-Stars Diamond DeShields and Natasha Howard alongside Arike Ogunbowale, one of the league&rsquo;s top scorers in each of the past four seasons (1 p.m. ET).
In the second game of the doubleheader, the Seattle Storm and four-time WNBA All-Star and two-time champion Jewell Loyd host&nbsp;the defending WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces (3 p.m. ET). The Aces&rsquo; roster includes 2022 award winners Chelsea Gray (WNBA Finals MVP and Commissioner&rsquo;s Cup Championship Game MVP), Kelsey Plum (All-WNBA First Team and All-Star Game MVP), A&rsquo;ja Wilson (Kia WNBA MVP and Kia WNBA Defensive Player of the Year) and Jackie Young (Kia WNBA Most Improved Player), along with free agent acquisition Candace Parker, a two-time MVP and two-time league champion.
&mdash;
The opening weekend of WNBA Tip-Off Presented by CarMax concludes on Sunday, May 21, when Griner, Taurasi and the Mercury host 2021 WNBA Finals MVP Kahleah Copper and the Chicago Sky in a rematch of the 2021 WNBA Finals on ESPN and ESPN+ at 4 p.m. ET.
The New York Liberty, which added 2021 Kia WNBA MVP Jonquel Jones, 2018 MVP Breanna Stewart and six-time league assists leader Courtney Vandersloot to a roster that already included 2022 All-WNBA selection and 2020 No. 1 overall draft pick, Sabrina Ionescu, will play nine games across&nbsp;ESPN platforms. The 2022 champion Aces&nbsp;will appear seven times. The two teams, which feature a combined eight 2022 WNBA All-Stars, will meet four times in the regular season and go head-to-head on ABC on Sunday, Aug. 6 from New York (3 p.m. ET).
Additional Highlights of the ABC/ESPN/ESPN2 Broadcast Schedule:
<ul style="font-weight: 400;">
<li>Six teams will each be showcased four times, including the Connecticut Sun, led by 2022 WNBA All-Star Brionna Jones and fellow All-Star Alyssa Thomas, who posted a WNBA-record four triple-doubles across the 2022 regular season and postseason. Dallas, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Seattle, and Washington will also appear four times each. </li>
<li>In addition to the opening weekend broadcasts featuring Griner and Taurasi, coverage of the Mercury is set for Tuesday, July 25, when Phoenix visits Rhyne Howard and the Dream (ESPN, 7 p.m. ET) and on Sunday, Sept. 10 &ndash; the final day of the regular season &ndash; when Phoenix travels to Las Vegas to face the All-Star quintet of Gray, Parker, Plum, Wilson and Young (ESPN2, 3 p.m. ET). </li>
<li>Stewart, who starred with Seattle for six seasons from 2016-22, will face her former team in a pair of national telecasts &ndash; first when the Liberty visits the Storm on Tuesday, May 30 (ESPN2, 9 p.m. ET), and on Saturday, July 8, when the Storm travels to New York (ESPN, 1:30 p.m. ET). </li>
<li>New York&rsquo;s Courtney Vandersloot, who helped Chicago to two appearances in the WNBA Finals presented by YouTube TV, including a WNBA championship in 2021, will square off against her former team when the Liberty visits the Sky on Sunday, Sept. 3 (ESPN2, 3 p.m. ET). </li>
<li>ABC will air star-studded doubleheaders across two weekends in June beginning on Sunday, June 11, when the Liberty host the Wings (1 p.m. ET) and the Storm host two-time MVP Elena Delle Donne, two-time WNBA All-Star Ariel Atkins and the Washington Mystics (3 p.m. ET). On Sunday, June 25, New York hosts Washington (1 p.m. ET) and the Sparks welcome the Wings (3 p.m. ET) to Los Angeles. </li>
<li>Connecticut and Las Vegas, which met in the 2022 WNBA Finals presented by YouTube TV, will play on Saturday, July 1 (ABC, 3 p.m. ET). </li>
<li>In advance of the 2023 AT&amp;T WNBA All-Star Game on July 15, the WNBA&rsquo;s Skills Challenge and the Starry Three-Point Contest will air on ESPN on Friday, July 14 at 4 p.m. ET. </li>
<li>All games across ESPN platforms during the regular season and postseason will stream live on the ESPN App.</li>
</ul>
The 2023 regular season will include a record-high 40 games per team, providing fans with more opportunities to see the best players in the world compete at the highest level. The third year of the Commissioner&rsquo;s Cup presented by Coinbase also brings added excitement and intrigue to the first half of the season for players, teams and fans.&nbsp;
Following the conclusion of the 2023 regular season on Sunday, Sept. 10, ESPN will once again collaborate with the WNBA to broadcast all playoff games. Wall-to-wall coverage of the WNBA Playoffs presented by Google and the WNBA Finals presented by YouTube TV will feature up to 27 nationally televised playoff games across ESPN platforms.&nbsp;
With the tip-off of the WNBA season set for May 19, ESPN Fantasy Women's Basketball is back and now open for the season. Fans can&nbsp;<a href="https://fantasy.espn.com/womens-basketball/welcome?addata=digital_gameopen_wnba" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://fantasy.espn.com/womens-basketball/welcome?addata%3Ddigital_gameopen_wnba&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1678467569267000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0q8LjBe7Mah1dS2mGg4w9c">lock in their spot</a>&nbsp;for free today and get ready to dominate with their favorite WNBA stars in May.&nbsp;Go to&nbsp;<a href="http://espn.com/fantasywomensbasketball" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://espn.com/fantasywomensbasketball&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1678467569267000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0TaJVvZNTg1SCNS6_knO07">espn.com/fantasywomensbasketball</a>&nbsp;or download the ESPN Fantasy App to get started.

The star-studded Liberty will have nine national appearances, with the reigning champion Aces not far behind with seven.

WNBA, ESPN announce 2023 national broadcast schedule

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; D&rsquo;Andre Gholston hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give Missouri a stunning 86-85 victory over No. 6 Tennessee on Saturday night.
With 4.2 seconds left in the game and the Volunteers (19-6, 8-4 Southeastern Conference) leading 85-83, Santiago Vescovi missed a free throw. His second attempt was waived off when Tobe Awaka committed a lane violation, setting up a final chance for the Tigers (19-6, 7-5).
Gholston took the inbounds and dribbled up the court before taking an off-balance contested 3-pointer from about 30 feet that swished through the net at the buzzer for the win. He was mobbed by his teammates after hitting the shot.
Tennessee came back from a 17-point deficit early in the second half and led the last 7:11 of the game.
NO. 3 ALABAMA 77, AUBURN 69
AUBURN, Ala. (AP) &mdash; Rylan Griffen scored 16 points, Mark Sears added 15 and Alabama held off a big challenge from its in-state rival Auburn.
The Crimson Tide (22-3, 12-0 Southeastern Conference) remained the only Power 5 team without a league loss. Sears and Griffen helped Alabama overcome an off shooting performance from star Brandon Miller, who had 13 points but missed all seven 3-point attempts.
Wendell Green Jr. had 16 of his 24 points in the second half for Auburn (17-8, 7-5).
STANFORD 88, NO. 4 ARIZONA 79
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) &mdash; Spencer Jones scored all 18 of his points in the second half for Stanford and played a key role in neutralizing Pac-12 leading scorer Azuolas Tubelis, as the Cardinal stunned Arizona.
Stanford (11-14, 5-9 Pac-12) beat a ranked team for the first time this year and a top-five team for the second time in two seasons. Arizona (22-4, 11-4), hoping to stay a half-game behind UCLA for the conference lead, had a seven-game win snapped.
Courtney Ramey scored a season- and game-high 26 points for Arizona. Tubelis was held to four points and did not have any rebounds.
Stanford&rsquo;s Michael O&rsquo;Connell scored a team-high 22 points, helping the Cardinal outshoot the Wildcats 61% to 46% from the field.
NO. 5 TEXAS 94, WEST VIRGINIA 60
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) &mdash; Sir&rsquo;Jabri Rice scored 24 points in just 17 minutes in Texas&rsquo; win over West Virginia.
Texas (20-5) remained in first place in the Big 12 at 9-3, while West Virginia (15-10, 4-8) lost for the sixth time in its last seven games against the Longhorns.
Rice, a guard who transferred this season from New Mexico State, was nearly perfect. He converted 5 of 6 field-goal attempts, including 4 of 5 3-pointers and all 10 free throws.
Emmitt Matthews led West Virginia with 13 points.
NO. 8 VIRGINIA 69, DUKE 62, OT
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) &mdash; Armaan Franklin scored 23 points, including a 3-pointer with 39 seconds left, to lift Virginia over Duke in overtime.
Kihie Clark added 16 points and Ben Vander Plas 13 for the Cavaliers (19-4, 11-3 Atlantic Coast Conference), who won despite a 9 for 22 performance from the free-throw line.
Duke (17-8, 8-6) seemed poised to win when Kyle Filipowski drove on the final play of regulation and two defenders contested his shot. The officials initially whistled a foul, but waved it off after a lengthy review. Jeremy Roach led the Blue Devils with 16 points.
NO. 9 KANSAS 78, OKLAHOMA 55
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) &mdash; Jalen Wilson scored 18 points, and Kansas rolled past Oklahoma.
Wilson, who entered the day leading the Big 12 with nearly 21 points per game, bounced back from a two-point outing against Texas on Monday.
Dajuan Harris scored 16 points and Kevin McCullar added 13 for the Jayhawks (20-5, 8-4 Big 12).
Jalen Hill scored 14 points and Otega Oweh added 11 for the Oklahoma (12-13, 2-10). Grant Sherfield, who leads the Sooners with nearly 17 points per game, was held to 10 on 4-for-14 shooting.
NO. 10 MARQUETTE 89, GEORGETOWN 75
WASHINGTON (AP) &mdash; Kam Jones, Oso Ighodaro and Tyler Kolek each scored 14 points to lead a balanced scoring attack for Marquette in its win over Georgetown.
Olivier-Maxence Prosper had 11 points and Chase Ross added 10 for Marquette (20-6, 12-3 Big East), which moved into first place in the conference.
Jay Heath scored 18 points to lead last-place Georgetown (6-20, 1-14), which has lost five straight after ending their league record 29-game conference losing streak on Jan. 24.
OKLAHOMA ST 64, NO. 11 IOWA ST 56
AMES, Iowa (AP) &mdash; John-Michael Wright scored 19 points and Oklahoma State rallied past Iowa State.
The loss was the Cyclones&rsquo; fourth in five games.
Bryce Thompson added 12 points for the Cowboys (16-9, 7-5 Big 12) in their fifth straight win.
Aljaz Kunc scored 13 for Iowa State (16-8, 7-5).
TEXAS TECH 71, NO. 12 KANSAS STATE 63
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) &mdash;De&rsquo;Vion Harmon scored 20 points, including a crucial driving basket in the final minute, as Texas Tech upended Kansas State.
The Red Raiders (13-12, 2-10 Big 12) held the Wildcats to two field goals in the game&rsquo;s final four minutes.
Kansas State (19-6, 7-5) edged as close as one point throughout the second half, but Tech answered with key baskets to maintain the lead. The Wildcats were led by Markquis Nowell&rsquo;s 18 points. Desi Sills added 12 points.
NO. 14 BAYLOR 72, NO. 17 TCU 68
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) &mdash; Adam Flagler scored 28 points, with 16 in a row for Baylor during the stretch when the Bears overcame a 10-point deficit in the second half and then held on to beat TCU.
LJ Cryer had 23 points for the Bears (19-6, 8-4 Big 12), who on Jan. 4 at home against TCU blew a 17-point lead in an 88-87 loss. They have won nine of their last 10 games.
Damion Baugh had 16 points and 10 assist for TCU (17-8, 6-6).
NO. 15 SAINT MARY&rsquo;S 81, PORTLAND 64
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Logan Johnson had 34 points, six rebounds and six assists as Saint Mary&rsquo;s handled Portland on the road.
Alex Ducas added 18 points and six rebounds for the Gaels (22-5, 11-1 West Coast Conference) and Aidan Mahaney contributed 10 points and five assists.
Kristian Sjolund led the Pilots (13-15, 5-8) with 12 points, and Juan Gorosito and Tyler Robinson each added 10 points.
NO. 18 INDIANA 62, MICHIGAN 61
Trayce Jackson-Davis had 28 points and 11 rebounds, Jalen Hood-Schifino scored 21 points and Indiana held on for a win over Michigan.
Freshman Jett Howard was short on a 3-pointer just before the buzzer, leaving the Wolverines without a point for the final 5:12.
The Hoosiers (18-7, 9-5 Big Ten) trailed by 11 in the first half and for much of the second, but went ahead for good with 2:58 left when Hood-Schifino made two free throws for their last points.
Michigan (14-11, 8-6) fell to 0-4 against teams in the AP Top 25, losing each game by five or fewer points.
Hunter Dickinson scored 16 points, Kobe Bufkin had 14 points and Howard added 12 for the Wolverines.
NO. 19 MIAMI 93, LOUISVILLE 85
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) &mdash; Nijel Pack scored 22 points in Miami&rsquo;s win over Louisville.
Five days following its dominant 22-point home win over Duke, Miami (20-5, 11-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) could not shake off the conference&rsquo;s last-place team until Pack&rsquo;s 3-pointer with 2:44 remaining made it 82-72. Pack shot 8 of 14, including 4 of 9 on 3-pointers.
Isaiah Wong and Norchad Omier finished with 21 points each and Jordan Miller added 10 for the Hurricanes, who are 14-0 at home.
El Ellis scored a career-high 33 points and had five assists while Jae&rsquo;Lyn Withers finished with 18 for the Cardinals (3-22, 1-13).
ST. JOHN&rsquo;S 73, NO. 20 PROVIDENCE 68
NEW YORK (AP) &mdash; David Jones scored 16 points and AJ Storr added 15 for St. John&rsquo;s, which beat Providence.
Joel Soriano had 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Red Storm (15-11, 5-10 Big East).
Bryce Hopkins equaled a career best with 29 points for the Friars (18-7, 10-4).
NO. 22 NORTH CAROLINA STATE 92, BOSTON COLLEGE 62
BOSTON (AP) &mdash; Jarkel Joiner scored 26 points and D.J. Burns Jr. added 18 with 10 rebounds to lead North Carolina State over Boston College.
Terquavion Smith scored 17 points for the Wolfpack (20-6, 10-5 Atlantic Coast Conference), giving him 1,000 points for his career.
Quinten Post scored 20 points for Boston College (12-14, 6-9).
NO. 23 CREIGHTON 56, NO. 21 UCONN 53
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) &mdash; Trey Alexander scored 17 points to lead Creighton past UConn after the Huskies had what would have been a tying 3-pointer erased on video review in the final seconds.
Creighton (17-8, 11-3) is a half-game behind Big East-leading Marquette with its eighth straight win. The Huskies (19-7, 8-7) lost for the first time in four games.
Adama Sanogo had 17 points and 10 rebounds for UConn.
ILLINOIS 69, NO. 24 RUTGERS 60
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) &mdash; Coleman Hawkins scored 18 points and Illinois held Rutgers scoreless for more than 10 minutes in the second half to rally for the win.
Illinois (17-7, 8-5 Big Ten) trailed 47-41 with 14 1/2 minutes left before Hawkins&rsquo; 3-pointer started a 19-0 run. Hawkins hit four consecutive shots &mdash; including a 3 &mdash; and gave the Illini the lead for good at 48-47.
Rutgers (16-9, 8-6) missed 15 straight shots during its drought.
NO. 25 SAN DIEGO STATE 82, UNLV 71
SAN DIEGO (AP) &mdash; Adam Seiko scored all 18 points on 3-pointers and Matt Bradley added 17 points for San Diego, the Mountain West Conference front-runner that beat UNLV for its third straight win and seventh in eight games.
The Aztecs (20-5, 11-2 MWC) buried the Runnin&rsquo; Rebels in a blizzard of 3-pointers and slam dunks, including during a 14-0 run midway through the first half, to sweep the season series and top UNLV the fifth straight time. Keshad Johnson scored 11 of his 14 points in the game&rsquo;s first 6 1/2 minutes and Nathan Mensah had 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Elijah Harkless scored 24 for UNLV (16-9, 5-8) before fouling out with 2:05 to go. Keshon Gilbert added 19 for the Runnin&rsquo; Rebels, who didn&rsquo;t get their first assist until two minutes into the second half.

A recap of Saturday's action in men's college hoops includes numerous upsets in the top-15.

Three-pointer at buzzer lifts Missouri over No. 6 Tennessee

The Sky is falling in Chicago.
We knew this would be a crucial offseason for them, with four of their top five players hitting free agency. The worst case scenario &mdash; at least in terms of next season's record &mdash; is currently playing out. None of the four will suit up for the Sky next season.
In a shocking twist, Candace Parker has <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-aces-are-signing-candace-parker-though-its-hard-to-be-excited-right-now" target="_blank" rel="noopener">joined the Las Vegas Aces</a>. Courtney Vandersloot, the franchise's greatest player and one of the best point guards the WNBA has ever seen, <a href="https://twitter.com/Sloot22/status/1620602271892643841?s=20&amp;t=HnKKHdqBNRQa28-3PMpKGg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced in a statement</a> that she wouldn't be returning to the franchise; sharpshooter Allie Quigley, her wife, is <a href="https://twitter.com/espnW/status/1620921650999967748?s=20&amp;t=HnKKHdqBNRQa28-3PMpKGg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly sitting out</a> the 2023 season.
Most devastatingly, per multiple reports (both <a href="https://twitter.com/alexaphilippou/status/1621168612219183104?s=20&amp;t=HnKKHdqBNRQa28-3PMpKGg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN's Alexa Philippou</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/RachGall/status/1621168665826574341?s=20&amp;t=HnKKHdqBNRQa28-3PMpKGg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Winsidr's Rachel Galligan</a> tweeted out the news on Thursday at 10:28 am ET, so I have no idea who technically reported it first), versatile center Azur&aacute; Stevens will be joining the Los Angeles Sparks.
Stevens is coming off the healthiest campaign of her young career, appearing in a career-high 35 games while averaging 10.6 points (53.5% on twos, 36.2% on threes), 3.9 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per contest in a primary bench role.&nbsp;
The upside for Stevens is immeasurable. She's the rare big (listed at 6-foot-6) with true spacing and handling capabilities. Her intersection of size and skill makes her difficult to defend; the blend of length and mobility allows her to be a factor in multiple defensive coverages.
With the acquisition of Stevens, the Sparks have added to one of the most versatile frontcourts in The W. They re-signed superstar forward Nneka Ogwumike, with her sister Chiney Ogwumike expected to be back as well. We're not far removed from the Sparks <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/aces-trade-allstar-forward-dearica-hamby-to-the-sparks" target="_blank" rel="noopener">trading for All-Star and former Sixth Woman of the Year Dearica Hamby</a>.
With the Ogwumikes, Stevens and Hamby, the Sparks will be able to tinker with all types of frontcourt pairings. Stevens has plenty of experience in two-big lineups, with her shooting prowess opening up the floor for whoever she's paired with. Hamby has played 3-through-5, and the Ogwumikes have toggled between both frontcourt spots in their careers.&nbsp;
There's potential for some funky-but-effective three-big lineups here. Considering what the New York Liberty have done this offseason &mdash; and even what Aces experimented with last regular season &mdash; that could be a worthwhile investment.
It helps that the Sparks' new head coach, Curt Miller, has his own experience with three-big alignments. He had no issue playing his three star bigs &mdash; Alyssa Thomas, Brionna Jones and Jonquel Jones &mdash; together last season with the Connecticut Sun. That unit was fruitful; <a href="https://www.pbpstats.com/wowy/wnba?Season=2022&amp;SeasonType=All&amp;TeamId=1611661323&amp;Type=Team&amp;0Exactly3OnFloor=203826,1627673,1628280" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per PBP Stats</a>, they outscored opponents by 70 points (plus-13.6 net rating) in 263 minutes together.

Coming off the healthiest campaign of her young career, Azura Stevens is reportedly heading to the Los Angeles Sparks.

WNBA Free Agency: Versatile center Azura Stevens to join LA Sparks

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) &mdash; Grant Sherfield scored a season-high 30 points, and Oklahoma beat No. 2 Alabama 93-69 on Saturday in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge to end the Crimson Tide&rsquo;s nine-win streak.
Jalen Hill added a career-high 26 points, helping second-year Oklahoma coach Porter Moser to his biggest win with the program. Tanner Groves had 14 points and 12 rebounds.
The Sooners (12-9) had lost three straight, but against the Crimson Tide shot 58% from the field.
Rylan Griffen led Alabama (18-3) with 15 points and seven rebounds. Freshman Brandon Miller, who came in averaging 19.5 points per game, finished with 11.
NO. 3 HOUSTON 75, CINCINNATI 69
HOUSTON (AP) &mdash; Jarace Walker had a career-high 25 points and seven rebounds, and Houston rallied from an 11-point second-half deficit to defeat Cincinnati.
Walker, who scored 13 points in the second half, was 10 of 14 from the field. J&rsquo;Wan Roberts added 14 points and six rebounds, and Jamal Shead scored 13 points for Houston (20-2, 8-1 American Athletic Conference).
Houston has won at least 20 games in eight straight seasons under coach Kelvin Sampson.
Landers Nolley II had 24 points, including 6 3-pointers. Vicktor Lakhin added 15 points, and David DeJulius had 14 points and nine assists for Cincinnati (14-8, 5-4).&nbsp;
NO. 4 TENNESSEE 82, NO. 10 TEXAS 71
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; Olivier Nkamhoua scored 27 points and Zakai Zeigler had 22 points and 10 assists to lead Tennessee over Texas in an SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
Josiah-Jordan James added 14 and Santiago Vescovi had 12 for Tennessee (18-3), which led by as many as 22 midway through the second half.
Sir&rsquo;Jabari Rice scored 21 to lead Texas (17-4). Marcus Carr and Brock Cunningham finished with 11 each.
NO. 5 KANSAS STATE 64, FLORIDA 50
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) &mdash; Keyontae Johnson had 13 points and 11 rebounds against his former team, Markquis Nowell flirted with the first triple-double in Kanas State history, and the Wildcats beat Florida in an SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
Nowell finished with 13 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, and Nae&rsquo;Qwan Tomlin also had 11 points. The Wildcats improved to 18-3 to match the 1972-73 team for the best start through 21 games in school history.
Johnson struggled from the field, going just 5 of 16 and even getting stuffed by the front of the rim during a windmill dunk on a second-half fast break. But it was nevertheless a special night for the senior forward, who collapsed on the Gators&rsquo; sideline due to a heart condition during a game against Florida State just over two years ago.
Colin Castleton scored 13 points for the Gators (12-9). Myreon Jones and Will Richard had 11 apiece.
NO. 6 ARIZONA 95, WASHINGTON 72
SEATTLE (AP) &mdash; Azuolas Tubelis had 25 points and 10 rebounds, Oumar Ballo added 21 points and 12 rebounds, and Arizona used a big second-half run to pull away to win its fourth straight.
Tubelis topped 20 points for the first time in five games and his rebound putback while being fouled with 4:29 remaining gave the Wildcats a 78-63 lead and sent Washington fans headed for the exits.
Kerr Kriisa added 18 points, hitting six 3-pointers, and Courtney Ramey scored 14 for the Wildcats (19-3, 8-3 Pac-12).
Keion Brooks Jr. led Washington with 25 points and Keyon Menifield added 21. But the Huskies (13-10, 5-7) suffered from too many scoring droughts and didn&rsquo;t have an answer for Arizona&rsquo;s 19-1 run in the early stages of the second half.
NO. 7 VIRGINIA 76, BOSTON COLLEGE 57
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) &mdash; Armaan Franklin and Jayden Gardner scored 18 points each and Virginia used a big first-half run to take control over Boston College for its sixth straight victory.
The Cavaliers (16-3, 8-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) trailed 18-15 before starting an 18-4 run over the next 11 minutes. Virginia put the game away with a 16-4 second-half spurt.
Quinten Post scored 24 to lead the Eagles (10-12, 4-7) and Makai Ashton-Langford added 12 points.
Virginia&rsquo;s Isaac McKneely finished with 12 points and Reece Beekman had 11 and eight assists.
NO. 9 KANSAS 77, KENTUCKY 68
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) &mdash; Jalen Wilson scored 22 points, including one in a series of huge 3-pointers down the stretch, and Kansas avoided its first four-game losing streak under coach Bill Self.
Wilson made 9 of 18 from the field and grabbed eight rebounds for Kansas (17-4), which finished even with Kentucky at 49% shooting. K.J. Adams Jr. added 17 points, Dick had 13 and McCullar 11 with 12 rebounds as the Jayhawks edged Kentucky 34-29 on the glass.
Oscar Tshiebwe had 18 points and nine rebounds, and Jacob Toppin and Cason Wallace each added 14 for Kentucky (14-7), which had won its previous four.
MISSISSIPPI STATE 81, NO. 11 TCU 74, OT
STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) &mdash; Tolu Smith had 27 points, 13 rebounds and five assists to lead Mississippi State to an overtime victory.
Dashawn Davis added 16 points to help Mississippi State (13-8) snap a five-game losing streak. Shakeel Moore had 11, including six in overtime, while Cameron Matthews had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Bulldogs. Tyler Stevenson also added 10 points off the Bulldogs&rsquo; bench.
Damion Baugh led TCU (16-5) with 19 points and Emanuel Miller had 13. Shahada Wells and Jakobe Coles each had 12 for the Horned Frogs and Chuck O&rsquo;Bannon had 10.
Davis&rsquo; 3 pointer with 55 seconds left in the second half gave the Bulldogs a 66-64 advantage. Emanuel Miller scored with 32 seconds remaining and then both teams missed chances to win in regulation.
MISSOURI 78, NO. 12 IOWA STATE 61
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) &mdash; Kobe Brown scored 20 points, and D&rsquo;Moi Hodge scored 17 points to help Missouri take down Iowa State in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
Brown scored 14 of his points in the first half and led Missouri (16-5) with 12 rebounds. Nick Honor added 12 points and DeAndre Gholston scored 10.
Jaren Holmes led Iowa State (15-5) with 19 points, and Gabe Kalscheur added 14.
The Tigers&rsquo; 78 points were a season-high for an Iowa State opponent in regulation; the Cyclones are 0-3 this season when allowing at least 70 points in regulation.
CREIGHTON 84, NO. 13 XAVIER 67
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) &mdash; Arthur Kamula scored 20 points, Creighton&rsquo;s four other starters finished in double-figures and the Bluejays earned their fourth straight Big East win.
Creighton (13-8, 7-3) steadily built a double-digit lead throughout the game and made 34 of its 60 field goal attempts (56.7%) before a sold-out crowd.
Ryan Kalkbrenner scored 17 points, Baylor Scheierman had 14, Trey Alexander finished with 13 and Ryan Nembhard added 11 for the Bluejays, who avenged a 90-87 loss at Xavier on Jan. 11.
Zach Freemantle led Xavier (17-5, 9-2) with 18 points, followed by Colby Jones and Adam Kunkel with 13.
NO. 14 GONZAGA 82, PORTLAND 67
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Julian Strawther had a career-high 40 points, including eight 3-pointers, and Gonzaga pulled away down the stretch for its 16th consecutive victory over Portland.
Anton Watson added 17 points for Gonzaga (18-4, 7-1 West Coast Conference).
Strawther is the first player to reach 40 points for the Zags since Kyle Wiltjer had 45 against Pacific in 2016.
Portland (11-13, 3-5) was led by Moses Wood with 19 points. Juan Sebastian Gorosito, a freshman, finished with a career-high 17 points.
WEST VIRGINIA 80, NO. 15 AUBURN 77
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) &mdash; Erik Stevenson scored a career-high 31 points and West Virginia withstood a furious late rally from Auburn to win an SEC/Big 12 Challenge matchup.
The Mountaineers (13-8) have won two straight for the first time in a month. Jimmy Bell Jr. added 15 points for the Mountaineers.
Charles Barkley cheered on his alma mater from a courtside seat, but Auburn (16-5) couldn&rsquo;t overcome another slow start. The Tigers have lost two straight for the first time in two years.
Jaylin Williams led Auburn with 18 points. Johni Broome added 15 and Allen Flanigan scored 13.
NO. 16 MARQUETTE 89, DEPAUL 69
CHICAGO (AP) &mdash; David Joplin went 8 for 11 from 3-point range for a career-high 28 points, Tyler Kolek had 24 points, 10 assists and 9 rebounds, and Marquette defeated DePaul.
Marquette has won eight of its last nine games, and moved into a tie with No. 13 Xavier atop the Big East.
Marquette (17-5, 9-2) pulled away in the second half. Oso Ighodaro had 10 points, making all five of his shots, and Olivier-Maxence Prosper scored 13 and had 8 rebounds.
Umoja Gibson scored 25 points for DePaul (9-13, 3-8) on 8-of-12 shooting.
NO. 17 BAYLOR 67, ARKANSAS 64
WACO, Texas (AP) &mdash; Keyonte George scored 24 points, including seven in a row down the stretch, and Baylor beat Arkansas in an SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
Baylor (16-5) fell behind by as many as eight points in the second half after an early 11-point lead. But the Bears closed it out after Flo Thamba made two free throws for a 55-53 lead with 3:37 left.
LJ Cryer added 20 points and Jalen Bridges had 10 for the Bears, who won their sixth game in a row despite shooting a 34% (20 of 59) from the field. They offset the season-worst shooting from the field by making 21 of 24 free throws, including two by Cryer with 10 seconds left and two by George with 4.3 seconds remaining.
Ricky Council IV scored 25 points for Arkansas (14-7). Davonte Davis had 16 points, but missed the front end of a 1-plus-1 with 2.3 seconds left, though Joseph Pinion got the ball in the right corner only to miss wildly on a 3-pointer as time ran out.
HOFSTRA 85, NO. 18 COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON 81
CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) &mdash; Aaron Estrada scored 25 points and Darlinstone Dubar added 18 as Hofstra ended College of Charleston&rsquo;s 20-game winning streak.
The Pride (15-8, 8-2 Colonial Athletic Association) were down 28-20 early before rallying past the Cougars (21-2, 9-1), who had not lost since falling to then-No. 1 North Carolina on Nov. 11.
Tyler Thomas had 17 points and eight rebounds for Hofstra.
Ante Brzovic finished with 18 points to lead Charleston.
PITTSBURGH 71, NO. 20 MIAMI 68
PITTSBURGH (AP) &mdash; Blake Hinson tipped in a Jamarius Burton miss with 31 seconds remaining and Pittsburgh rallied past Miami.
The Panthers (15-7, 8-3 ACC) held the Hurricanes (16-5, 7-4) scoreless over the final 2:26 while closing on an 11-0 run to beat a ranked team for the third time this season to bolster its increasingly impressive NCAA tournament resume.
Hinson finished with 21 points for Pitt. Burton had 19 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists as the Panthers stunned Miami in front of a rare sell-out crowd at the Petersen Events Center.
Jordan Miller led the Hurricanes with 18 points. Isaiah Wong added 14 but Miami committed three of its 12 turnovers in the final 35 seconds as the Panthers stormed back.
NO. 21 FAU 70, W. KENTUCKY 63
BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) &mdash; Brandon Weatherspoon scored 14 points and Florida Atlantic remained undefeated at home.
The victory extended FAU&rsquo;s winning streak to a program-record 20 games, which is now the nation&rsquo;s longest. The Owls&rsquo; 21 victories on the season ties their Division I record set in 2010-11. Western Kentucky (11-11, 3-8 Conference USA) has lost five straight.
Alijah Martin scored eight while grabbing seven rebounds for the Owls (21-1, 11-0).
Jordan Rawls led all scorers with 17 for W. Kentucky. Dayvion McKnight and Emmanuel Akot each had 16.
NO. 22 SAINT MARY&rsquo;S (CAL) 57, BYU 56
PROVO, Utah (AP) &mdash; Logan Johnson had 14 points and freshman Aidan Mahaney scored all 10 of his points, including a fade-away jumper just before the buzzer, in the second half and Saint Mary&rsquo;s (Cal) won its 10th in a row.
Mitchell Saxen had 11 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and two blocks for Saint Mary&rsquo;s (19-4, 8-0 West Coast Conference). Alex Ducas scored 12 points and Augustas Marciulionis added 10.
Dallin Hall was fouled on a driving lay-up attempt with 10.2 seconds left and made 1-of-2 free throws to give BYU a 56-55 lead but Mahaney took the inbounds pass, probed the defense before he drove the lane, stopped near the right block and pivoted away from the basket before hitting the winning jumper over the out-stretched arm of defender Fousseyni Traore.
Hall scored a career-high 23 points on 9 of 14 shooting but made just 3 of 6 from the free-throw line for BYU (14-10, 4-5). Fousseyni Traore added 11 points and eight rebounds.
NO. 24 CLEMSON 82, FLORIDA STATE 81
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) &mdash; Chase Hunter drove the lane and drew a foul, sinking the free throw, to help Clemson escape with a win over Florida State.
Hunter Tyson scored 27 points on 10 of 17 shooting for Clemson (18-4, 10-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), which halted an eight-game road losing streak to Florida State. Hunter finished with 25.
Matthew Cleveland scored 15 of his 18 points in the second half for Florida State (7-15, 5-6), which made a season-high 13 3-pointers. Caleb Mills and Darin Green Jr. each hit four 3-pointers for the Seminoles. Freshman forward Baba Miller had his best game, scoring 11 points and pulling down four rebounds in 20 minutes.

A recap of Saturday's action in men's college hoops includes five upsets in the AP top 15.

Oklahoma's rout of No. 2 Alabama one of many top-15 upsets on Saturday

Gear up for fireworks, folks.
The fun period of the WNBA offseason is on the horizon. As of yesterday, teams are now allowed to offer qualifying offers and core designations to their own restricted and unrestricted free agents respectively. That period ends on Jan. 20, with (outside) free agents and teams being able to negotiate deals on Jan. 21.
With superstars like Breanna Stewart, Candace Parker and Nneka Ogwumike headlining the market &mdash; and with rumors already swirling about Stewart eyeing the Big Apple &mdash; this is one of most anticipated free-agency periods in recent memory.
Below the star tier, it's worth keeping an eye on what's happening with the Dallas Wings.
Midway through <a href="https://twitter.com/Khristina/status/1548019576142585857" target="_blank" rel="noopener">last season</a>, Khristina Williams of Girls Talk Sports (<a href="https://twitter.com/Khristina" target="_blank" rel="noopener">follow her!</a>) reported that Allisha Gray &mdash; an All-Star caliber wing for Dallas &mdash; would stick around through the trade deadline, but was expected to be moved during the offseason.
Well, the offseason is here, and, per Williams, that's looking more like an inevitability.
Here's her report from Wednesday night:&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
SOURCES: Allisha Gray is expected to be traded from Dallas. Possible destinations include Washington, Chicago, Connecticut,and Atlanta. Gray is in the last year of her contract and plans to exercise free agency when her contract is up. <a href="https://twitter.com/GrlsTlkSportsTV?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GrlsTlkSportsTV</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WNBA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WNBA</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WNBAFreeAgency?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WNBAFreeAgency</a> <a href="https://t.co/KEp5ALIMib">https://t.co/KEp5ALIMib</a>
&mdash; Khristina Williams (@Khristina) <a href="https://twitter.com/Khristina/status/1613363135146037254?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 12, 2023</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Not only do we have a follow-up on Gray, but we also have potential destinations!&nbsp;
The Connecticut Sun are fresh off a Finals appearance (and a loss to the Las Vegas Aces), but have their own tightrope to walk with an actual All-Star. Brionna Jones, a two-time All-Star and reigning Sixth Woman of the Year, is an unrestricted free agent this offseason. And because of the Sun's salary crunch, they may not be able to retain her on the max deal she's worthy of without moving a piece (or two) of their core.
Aside from the Seattle Storm, there may not be a team in The W with more potential roster turnover than&nbsp; the Chicago Sky. After losing to the Sun in the Eastern Conference Finals, they're now faced with a daunting offseason. Parker is a free agent, as is All-Star guard Courtney Vandersloot, sharpshooter Allie Quigley and budding star big Azura Stevens.
The Washington Mystics are stacked with talent, headlined by Elena Delle Donne and a pair of two-way forces in Natasha Cloud and Ariel Atkins. Though they have pending free agents like Alysha Clark, Shatori Walker-Kimbrough and Elizabeth Williams, they don't run the risk of losing core talent like the Sun and Sky, which sets them up as an interesting landing spot for Gray.
And then, we have the Atlanta Dream, whose <a href="https://www.wnba.com/news/theyve-got-next-an-inside-look-at-the-atlanta-dream-rebuild/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">organizational overhaul</a> has set them up for long-term success. Not only do they have talent now &mdash; reigning Rookie of the Year Rhyne Howard has "star" written all over her, and versatile big Cheyenne Parker is coming off the best season of her career &mdash; they're flush with cap space.
In summation, the destination list contains three recent contenders and one team that's on the upswing and has plenty of money to spend. All four could use a shooting boost in particular.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
To that end, it's easy to see why Gray is so coveted. She was one of six players to knock down 40% of her threes while attempting at least four per game. Her ability to play-make against tilted defenses adds to her offensive value. Add in her defense &mdash; the list of players who can defend on the perimeter like or better than Gray is a short one &mdash; and you have one of the most versatile wings in the sport, smack dab in the middle of her prime.
When players like her are on the trade market, it would behoove a good team to pounce. Her contract status could complicate things a bit; she has one year left on her deal and, per Williams, she plans on testing the market next offseason. But this is the type of player you shouldn't have issue commiting to long-term.
Among the teams listed, I'd probably give the Mystics the edge here.
In light of Dallas having some questions in the frontcourt &mdash; Isabelle Harrison is an unrestricted free agent who isn't far removed from complaining about her playing time; Teaira McCowan is a restricted free agent with up-in-the-air market value due to play style &mdash; the Mystics could use Myisha Hines-Allen to headline a package. Beyond that, the Mystics have draft equity to use, including the No. 4 overall pick in this year's draft.&nbsp;
A starting five of Cloud, Atkins, Gray, Delle Donne and Rookie of the Year runner-up Shakira Austin (already a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/how-the-washington-mystics-are-winning-with-activity" target="_blank" rel="noopener">near-elite defender</a>) would challenge the Aces for the best unit in The W.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Among the teams not listed in Williams' report, I wonder if the New York Liberty could get into the mix. They could surely use more punch in their stable of perimeter options.
It was almost comical how much better their defense looked &mdash; roughly <a href="https://www.pbpstats.com/wowy-combos/wnba?TeamId=1611661313&amp;Season=2022&amp;SeasonType=Regular%2BSeason&amp;PlayerIds=204335" target="_blank" rel="noopener">five points per 100 possessions stingier</a> &mdash; when Betnijah Laney rejoined the rotation after recovery from meniscus surgery. She was the Liberty's only wing option that could credibly defend while also drawing the attention of defenders when operating off the ball.
Regardless of who lands her, you can put Gray's name on the list of players whose acquisition could help shape this year's title picture in The W.

Nekias Duncan digs into a buzzworthy 2023 WNBA offseason that could include Wings guard Allisha Gray being on the move.

Weighing sensible landing spots for Dallas Wings' Allisha Gray

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) &mdash; Olivia Miles had 21 points and eight rebounds for No. 7 Notre Dame, and UConn star Azzi Fudd was injured in a collision with a teammate as the Fighting Irish handed the third-ranked Huskies their first loss of the season, 74-60 on Sunday.
Fudd, who came in averaging 24.0 points per game, exited in the final minute of the first quarter following a collision with teammate Aaliyah Edwards. She returned midway through the second period to play four minutes, but sat the rest of the day, going scoreless on two shots over 13 minutes.
Maddy Westbeld added a season-high 17 points and nine rebounds for Notre Dame (7-1), which bounced back from a 74-72 loss to No. 20 Maryland three days earlier.
Lou Lopez Senechal led UConn (6-1) with 21 points. Edwards added 14.
No. 2 STANFORD 84, No. 23 GONZAGA 63
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) &mdash; Cameron Brink had 14 points and a season-high 16 rebounds and Brooke Demetre made five 3s and scored 17 points, leading Stanford past Gonzaga.
The Cardinal (10-1) have now won five straight games after falling to top-ranked South Carolina in overtime on Nov. 20.
Hannah Jump hit four 3s and scored 14 points and Haley Jones had 12 points for Stanford.
Short-handed Gonzaga (7-2), limited to seven players because of illness and injuries, had won three in a row.
No. 4 OHIO STATE 82, RUTGERS 70
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) &mdash; Rebeka Mikulasikova scored a career-high 31 points and Taylor Mikesell added 30 to help Ohio State beat Rutgers, a day that the Scarlet Knights honored former coach C. Vivian Stringer.
The school dedicated the court to Stringer, who retired after last season.
Buoyed by the return of their Hall of Fame coach, Rutgers played its best game of the season against a ranked opponent. Ohio State (8-0) jumped out to a 20-6 lead after one quarter, but the Scarlet Knights (4-6) wouldn&rsquo;t go away.
They were down 18 near the end of the half before Kaylene Smikle hit a 3-pointer just before the buzzer to get within 43-28. Rutgers continued that momentum in the second half and made it 53-45 with 3:25 left in the third quarter.
Mikulasikova and Mikesell then scored the next six points for Ohio State to restore the double-digit advantage, and Rutgers couldn&rsquo;t recover.
Smikle led Rutgers with 21 points.
No. 5 INDIANA 65, ILLINOIS 61
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) &mdash; Mackenzie Holmes scored 23 points, including a go-ahead layup with 37 seconds left, and Indiana got past Illinois in their Big Ten opener.
Indiana (9-0) had not trailed in the second half of any game this season before going back and forth in the closing minutes with Illinois (3-7).
Makira Cook scored 33 points to lead the Illini.
The Hoosiers were coming off an 87-63 win over No. 6 North Carolina.
No. 9 VIRGINIA TECH 59, TENNESSEE 56
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; Kayana Traylor scored 18 points and Virginia Tech held off Tennessee in a Jimmy V Women&rsquo;s Classic matchup.
Jordan Horston led Tennesssee (4-5) with 26 points and 11 rebounds, but missed a pair of late shots that would&rsquo;ve tied it.
Trailing 58-56 with 3 seconds left, Horston was off on a jumper. Down three with 1.1 seconds remaining, her 3-point try from the top of the key bounced off.
Cayla King scored 11 points and Georgia Amoore and D&rsquo;asia Gregg each had 10 for the Hokies (8-0).
Tennessee played without leading scorer and rebounder Rickea Jackson, who was absent because of a coach&rsquo;s decision.
No. 10 IOWA 102, WISCONSIN 71
MADISON, Wis. (AP) &mdash; Caitlin Clark had 22 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for her seventh career triple-double to break the Big Ten record in Iowa&rsquo;s win over Wisconsin.
Clark surpassed the record of six career triple-doubles set by former Iowa player Samantha Logic, who achieved the feat from 2012-2015.
Iowa (6-3) stopped a two-game skid and beat the Badgers (3-7) for the 26th straight time.
No. 11 LSU 85, TULANE 72
NEW ORLEANS (AP) &mdash; Angel Reese scored 21 points and had 10 rebounds and Jasmine Carson scored 21 and LSU beat Tulane.
The Tigers (9-0) are off to their best since winning their first nine in the 2009-10 season.
LSU led 27-20 in a first quarter in which it made 11 of 16 shots and Tulane 9 for 17. The Tigers extended their lead to 40-27 at halftime before the Green Wave unloaded with a 30-point third in which it shot 12 for 16 including 6 for 7 from 3-point range. Dynah Jones scored 16 of her team-high 25 points for Tulane in the quarter and the Green Wave closed to 61-58.
Reese made 1 of 2 foul shots for the Tigers and Kahia Warmsley responded with a layup for Tulane to get it within two, but LaDazhia Williams made a layup and Carson a 3 and LSU kept Tulane at bay from there. Reese made two foul shots with 5:01 left to extend the lead to 73-62.
Marta Galic scored 21 points for Tulane.
ST. JOHN&rsquo;S 66, No. 13 CREIGHTON 62
NEW YORK (AP) &mdash; Jayla Everett scored 20 points and St. John&rsquo;s remained unbeaten by handing Creighton its first loss.
The Red Storm had a 47-32 lead in the middle of the third quarter before the Bluejays got it down to a one-possession deficit in the final 90 seconds.
After Emma Ronsiek&rsquo;s basket pulled Creighton within 61-59 with 1:27 to play, the Bluejays had a possession to tie or take the lead but couldn&rsquo;t score.
Kadaj Bailey and Unique Drake had 13 points apiece for St. John&rsquo;s (8-0, 2-0 Big East Conference).
Lauren Jensen scored 21 points for the Bluejays (7-1, 2-1) but couldn&rsquo;t get the tying jumper to fall with 13 seconds to go.
No. 14 ARIZONA 77, NEW MEXICO 60
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) &mdash; Jade Loville made 10 of 13 shots, including a career-best six 3-pointers, and scored 27 points to lead Arizona to a win over New Mexico.
Shaina Pellington added 19 points for the Wildcats (7-0), who had their lowest output of the year and won by less than 20 for only the second time this season.
Paula Reus scored 14 points for the Lobos (4-4).
No. 17 MICHIGAN 77, NORTHWESTERN 66
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) &mdash; Emily Kiser and Laila Phelia scored 18 points each and Michigan shut down Northwestern with an 8-0 run in the fourth quarter.
Leigha Brown added 10 points and 11 assists for Michigan (9-0), which won its Big Ten opener.
Jillian Brown had 17 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals for Northwestern (4-4, 0-1 Big Ten). Caileigh Walsh had 12 points and four blocks, and Sydney Wood scored 10 points.
MIDDLE TENNESSEE 67, No. 18 LOUISVILLE 49
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; Savannah Wheeler had 23 points, six rebounds and five assists, Courtney Whitson added 16 points and 10 rebounds and Middle Tennessee beat cold-shooting Louisville.
Middle Tennessee (5-2) won its first home game against a ranked opponent since the Lady Raiders beat No. 6 Kentucky 70-58 on December 28, 2011.
Kseniya Malashka added 15 points for Middle Tennessee (5-2).
Olivia Cochran scored a season-high 14 points for Louisville (5-4).
NEBRASKA 90, No. 20 MARYLAND 67
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) &mdash; Jaz Shelley scored 29 points, Nebraska dominated the second half and the Cornhuskers surprised Maryland in the Big Ten Conference opener for both teams.
Allison Weidner had 13 points and 15 rebounds for Nebraska (6-3). Isabelle Bourne had 18 points and Alexis Markowski added 14. Shelley had six 3-pointers, five assists and three steals.
Two free throws from Diamond Miller drew Maryland (7-3) to within 77-67 points with 4:03 remaining, but the Terrapins would not score again while Nebraska scored 13.
No. 21 BAYLOR 79, HOUSTON CHRISTIAN 35
WACO, Texas (AP) &mdash; Freshman guard Bella Fontleroy came off the bench to score 17 points and grab 11 rebounds and Baylor romped to a victory over Houston Christian.
Fontleroy sank 6 of 10 shots with three 3-pointers for the Lady Bears (6-2) and notched her first double-double. Jaden Owens added 14 points and six assists. Kendra Gillispie scored 10 on 5-of-6 shooting.
Marilyn Nzoiwu was the lone bright spot for the Huskies (3-4). She finished with 13 points and five rebounds, sinking 6 of 9 shots from the floor. Her teammates made 8 of 40 shots, including 2 of 15 from beyond the arc.
The Lady Bears played a fifth straight game without injured leading scorer Aijha Blackwell.
No. 22 TEXAS 92, SOUTHERN 43
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) &mdash; Shaylee Gonzales scored 22 points, Sonya Morris added 20 points, and Texas routed Southern.
Aaliyah Moore scored 11 points and DeYona Gaston had 10 for the Longhorns (4-4). Rori Harmon had nine points and 10 rebounds.
Freshman guard Sirviva Legions led the Jaguars (2-5) with 13 points off the bench.
The Longhorns rolled to a 29-10 lead through the first quarter after making 10 of 14 shots. They scored 11 points off seven Southern turnovers. Texas went on to lead 46-16 at halftime.
SETON HALL 82, No. 24 MARQUETTE 78
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. (AP) &mdash; Lauren Park-Lane scored 17 of her 31 points in the fourth quarter, Sidney Cooks added 23 and Seton Hall knocked off Marquette.
Kae Satterfield added 12 points for Seton Hall (6-4, 2-0 Big East Conference), which has won four straight. The Pirates last beat a ranked team, No. 24 DePaul, in January 2019.
Chloe Marotta scored 30 points and had 12 rebounds for the Golden Eagles (7-2, 1-1). Jordan King added 14 points and Liz Karlen had 12 points and nine rebounds.
No. 25 VILLANOVA 79, PROVIDENCE 54
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) &mdash; Maddy Seigrist scored 20 of her 29 points in the first half and grabbed nine rebounds to lead Villanova past Providence.
Seigrist was 12-of-18 shooting, including 4 of 6 from 3-point range. The Wildcats (7-2, 1-1 Big East Conference) made 12 of 28 behind the arc and shot 52% overall (33 of 63). Lucy Olsen added 14 points and Bella Runyan 10.
Janai Crooms led the Friars (6-4, 0-2) with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

A recap of Sunday's women's college basketball slate features a top-10 battle.

Notre Dame tops UConn as Azzi Fudd gets hurt

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) &mdash; Courtney Ramey and Kerr Kriisa scored 21 points apiece and No. 14 Arizona pulled away in the second half to beat 17th-ranked San Diego State 87-70 on Tuesday night in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational.
Arizona (5-0) will play No. 10 Creighton in Wednesday&rsquo;s championship game. San Diego State will take on No. 9 Arkansas in the consolation finals.
Azuola Tubelis had all 14 of his points in the first half and Ramey scored 12 for Arizona. A twisting layup by Tubelis on an alley-oop pass gave the Wildccats a 31-15 lead at 5:06 before intermission. Darrion Trammell hit a 3-pointer for San Diego State and turned two steals into layups to help the Aztecs close out the half on an 18-6 run to get within 37-33.
Keshad Johnson had two rebound baskets and a three-point play dunk and San Diego State used a 9-3 spurt to grab a 42-40 lead just 2:40 into the second half. It was the Aztecs first and only lead of the game.
Pelle Larsson sank a 3-pointer, Trammell missed a 3 and Oumar Ballo followed with a three-point play to put Arizona up 46-42. The Wildcats upped their lead to 10 on a Ballo free throw with 11:43 remaining and pushed it to 71-56 on a Cedric Henderson jumper with 6:58 left to play.
Ramey, a graduate transfer from the University of Texas, hit all five of his 3-point shots in his second game with Arizona. Kerr added five assists. Ballo finished with 12 points and nine rebounds before fouling out. Henderson scored 10.
Trammell topped San Diego State with 21 points. Micah Parrish scored 10.
Arizona, which came in leading the nation shooting 62.9% from the floor, shot 58.6% against the Aztecs and made 9 of 20 from beyond the arc. SDSU shot 38% overall and made only 3 of 19 from distance.

Courtney Ramey and Kerr Kriisa scored 21 points apiece and No. 14 Arizona pulled away in the second half.

No. 14 Arizona beats No. 17 San Diego State 87-70 in Maui

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) &mdash; Arizona guard Courtney Ramey will be suspended the first three games of the season for participating in a non-certified per-draft camp last spring.
The school announced Monday that Ramey lost an appeal for taking part in the seniors-only Portsmouth Invitational in April.
Ramey will be able to play in No. 18 Arizona&rsquo;s exhibition game against Western Oregon on Tuesday, but will have to sit out games against Nicholls, Southern and Utah Tech.
The Portsmouth Invitational was designed for seniors who had exhausted their college eligibility, but Ramey&rsquo;s participation was a bit of a gray area because the NCAA gave players an extra COVID-19 year. The camp was not played the past two years due to COVID-19 concerns.
A fifth-year senior, Ramey is expected to play a big role for Arizona this season after transferring from Texas, where he spent most of the past four years as a starter.

Courtney Ramey will be suspended the first three games of the season for participating in a non-certified per-draft camp last spring.