Last weekend brought another great Saturday of men's basketball games, including several ranked matchups that lived up to the hype. Here's everything you need to know from last week, from unexpected upsets to a triple-overtime game that no one wanted to end.
No. 7 Kansas falls victim to “Hilton Magic,” loses at No. 23 Iowa State
Kansas traveled to Iowa State for a ranked showdown that was anticipated to be the best game of the week. This one certainly met expectations in large part because of an incredible atmosphere in Ames.
The Cyclones won 79-75 over the higher-ranked Jayhawks. Tre King was sensational for Iowa State, scoring 21 points and collecting nine rebounds. As for Kansas, Hunter Dickinson had a 20-point game, but that wasn’t enough to get the win. It hurt Kansas that its bench unit scored just two points, cementing the Jayhawks' lack of depth as their main problem.
TCU upsets No. 15 Baylor on the road in a crazy, triple-overtime nail-biter
The most entertaining game of the week took place at Baylor when the Bears hosted TCU in what ended up being a triple-overtime classic. It was a close game throughout, but Baylor had a slight edge for most of the second half.
This didn’t faze TCU, as Chuck O’Bannon made a clutch bucket to tie it in regulation. Baylor's Ja’Kobe Walter made a game-tying three in the first overtime period.
In triple overtime, TCU was the better team down the stretch and pulled out the win 105-102. TCU's Jameer Nelson Jr. had 30 points off the bench in the best individual showing all day. Emmanuel Miller and Micah Peavy were also pivotal for the Horned Frogs. For Baylor, Yves Missi and RayJ Dennis led the charge, but came up just short.
TCU came away with the win in what may be remembered as the best game of the regular season.
No. 21 BYU beats Texas, No. 20 Texas Tech defeats No. 11 Oklahoma
There were several great Big 12 matchups on Saturday. Texas traveled to BYU and while the Longhorns were coming off of two big wins, they lost to the Cougars 84-72 in front of a rowdy Provo crowd.
Both Jaxson Robinson and Noah Waterman were terrific for BYU, scoring 17 points apiece. For Texas, Dylan Disu had another great game, scoring 19 points, but his teammates didn't produce enough for Texas to win.
Per usual, it was BYU's offense that led the Cougars to victory. Their shooting percentage was once again stellar. Both these teams moved to 3-4 in conference play.
Texas Tech needed a late comeback run to get a road win at Oklahoma, 85-84. Chance McMillian was the go-to guy for the Red Raiders, as he scored 27 points off the bench. Oklahoma's leading scorer, Rivaldo Soares, also came off the bench. It’s fairly uncommon to have each team's leading scorer start the game on the bench.
No. 8 Auburn, No. 16 Dayton fall in upsets
Mississippi State knocked off Auburn because the Bulldogs played great defensively. Josh Hubbard was Mississippi State's leading scorer, scoring 17 points. For Auburn, almost the whole team had a disappointing game offensively, with several key players having subpar performances. A Quadrant 1 win still eludes the Tigers, so their projected seed line will likely fall after this loss.
Dayton was the other ranked team to suffer an upset on Saturday. Richmond knocked off the Flyers, 69-64. This one was extremely surprising, as the Flyers had been rolling as of late. College basketball constantly reminds us anything is possible.
Richmond moved to 7-0 in conference play with the win. Jordan King leading the way by scoring 17 points in this one. Dayton star DaRon Holmes II was limited to nine points, which is a main reason the Flyers lost.
This win could potentially put Richmond on the NCAA tournament bubble, if not make the A-10 a contender for being a two-bid league.
Mountain West provides two overtime classics
Colorado State and Wyoming played one of the craziest finishes college basketball has seen in a long time. Down by 11 with just a minute to go, most teams would stop fouling and concede the loss. But not Wyoming, though.
The Cowboys stormed back and went on a 12-1 run in the final minute to send the game to overtime. This included an incredible and intentional missed free throw and put-back, which was sensational to watch. In overtime, they continued their momentum and won 79-76.
Also in Mountain West play, Utah State beat Boise State 90-84 in overtime. It was the Aggies’ defense that sealed the victory.
No. 4 Houston, No. 12 Duke win at home, although in very different ways
First, Houston dominated Kansas State, taking the game handily, 74-52. The Cougars led this one by 20-plus for the vast majority game, coming close to a 30-point lead at several points. Jamal Shead led Houston with 17 points, but it was the Cougars’ stifling defense that was the real focal point of this game.
Kansas State looked completely overwhelmed on offense and put up a season-low 52 points. Houston is exceptional on this end of the floor, but the Cougars also looked solid on offense too, showing they can do it all. It was their fourth win in a row. They're a projected No. 1 seed, while Kansas State is still trying to solidify a spot in the projected NCAA tournament field.
For Duke, its home win was far more stressful, as the Blue Devils beat Clemson, 72-71. This one was back and forth the entire game with the Tigers leading for most of the closing minutes.
The Blue Devils, though, drew several key fouls and converted their free throws, leading to their slim victory. Jared McCain was the best player for Duke, scoring 21 points, including several key threes early on. P.J. Hall led Clemson with 19 points and he was the go-to guy in clutch time.
If Clemson had won, it would have been Duke’s second straight home loss, something the Blue Devils were certainly fortunate to avoid. As for Clemson, it's still projected to be in the NCAA tournament field but a win would have bolstered its resume greatly.
No. 6 Kentucky, No. 9 Arizona, No. 10 Illinois get upset
Several ranked teams went down on the road to conference opponents last week. Possibly the most notable one was Kentucky losing at South Carolina on Tuesday. The environment in Columbia was special and the Gamecocks fed off it well, beating the favored Wildcats 79-62.
They dominated most of the game with their great shot-making, especially from Ta’Lon Cooper, who had 20 points in what was a career day. Most of Kentucky’s stars played worse than they usually do.
Arizona lost to Oregon State on Thursday, 83-80. This one, unlike Kentucky’s loss, was extremely close throughout the game and ended with a buzzer-beating shot. Jared Pope stepped back and nailed a fadeaway three to give the Beavers the upset victory. The fans proceeded to storm the court.
In addition to his game-winner, Pope had a sensational game, scoring 31 points, including five shots from long distance. This was Arizona’s third upset loss in Pac-12 play, something the Wildcats need to clean up if they want to succeed in March.
Illinois lost on Wednesday at Northwestern by a score of 96-91. This one was a true rivalry environment as the Northwestern fans were loud and rowdy the entire game. Northwestern players also had some great performances, with Boo Buie and Brooks Barnhizer scoring 29 and 23 points, respectively. Although the Illini were solid on offense, Northwestern was almost invincible.
Elms' Essentials: Week 12
