Gill's free throws help No. 6 Virginia beat Pittsburgh
GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Anthony Gill hit two free throws with 8.5 seconds left to help No. 6 Virginia hold off Pittsburgh 51-48 in Saturday's semifinals of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.
Gill was shooting 63 percent from the line for the Cavaliers (27-6) but calmly made both free throws after James Robinson's hanging layup had brought the Panthers to within 49-48.
Pitt had a chance to tie with 4 seconds left, but Justin Anderson tipped Robinson's 3-pointer to Gill with 0.5 seconds left.
Joe Harris scored 12 points to lead the Cavaliers, who shot 47 percent against the fifth-seeded Panthers (25-9) to earn their first trip to the final since 1994.
Defense powers No. 1 Florida's comeback vs. Tennessee
ATLANTA -- Even facing its biggest deficit since November, No. 1 Florida never panicked.
The Gators know their defense will never let them down.
Swarming relentlessly in the second half, Florida rallied from 10 points down and defeated Tennessee 56-49 in the semifinals of the Southeastern Conference tournament Saturday.
Patric Young scored 16 points and Scottie Wilbekin added 14, but this victory had nothing to do with what happened at the offensive end. It was all about what Tennessee faced when it had the ball after halftime.
The Volunteers made only 5 of 20 shots with 11 turnovers, and things really got grim down the stretch as they were stifled time and time again -- making just one of their last 11 attempts from the field, while turning it over five times.
Florida (31-2) extended its school-record winning streak to 25 in a row after being down 35-28 at halftime.
Tennessee (21-12) had a chance to post its most impressive win of the season. Now, its postseason fate rests in the hands of the NCAA selection committee.
UCLA topples No. 4 Arizona to win Pac-12 title
LAS VEGAS -- Kyle Anderson had 21 points and 15 rebounds, Jordan Adams hit a huge 3-pointer in the final minute, and UCLA outlasted No. 4 Arizona 75-71 in a spirited Pac-12 championship game Saturday.
The Pac-12's two best teams during the regular season, UCLA (26-8) and Arizona (30-4) put on a show in the tournament final, trading big plays and floor burns.
Offense ruled the first half and defense the second until Adams dropped in his contested 3-pointer to put the Bruins up 71-68 with 45 seconds left.
David Wear and Norman Powell combined to hit four free throws down the stretch, giving UCLA the Pac-12 title in its first year under head coach Steve Alford.
Adams finished with 19 points and Powell had 15 for the surging Bruins.
Nick Johnson had 22 points and Kaleb Tarczewski added 12 for Arizona, which may have lost out on a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament with the loss.
Harrell leads No. 5 Louisville past No. 21 Connecticut in AAC
MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Montrezl Harrell had 22 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks, and fifth-ranked Louisville beat No. 21 Connecticut 71-61 on Saturday for the inaugural American Athletic Conference tournament title in the Cardinals' lone season in the league.
The defending national champions clinched their 40th NCAA tournament berth.
The Cardinals (29-5) have won three consecutive league tournament titles after taking the last two in the Big East, and they added their 19th overall to go with their share of the regular-season title with Cincinnati. They will play next season in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Russ Smith, named the tournament's most outstanding player, had 19 points and five steals for Louisville, and Chris Jones added 11 points.
UConn (26-8) came in looking for an eighth tournament title to go with seven from the Big East. It was barred from postseason play a year ago, but is a virtual lock to return to the NCAA tournament this year.
Parker, No. 7 Duke advance to ACC title game
GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Jabari Parker scored 20 points and No. 7 Duke beat NC State 75-67 on Saturday in an Atlantic Coast Conference tournament semifinal.
Rasheed Sulaimon added 16 points for the third-seeded Blue Devils (26-7) while Rodney Hood had 14 points and keyed the defensive effort against ACC player of the year T.J. Warren.
Warren scored 21 points but was just 4 of 13 after halftime while facing a barrage of double teams.
The seventh-seeded Wolfpack (21-13), playing their third game in three days, shot just 36 percent in the second half -- after hitting 67 percent in the opening half -- and were denied their first title game berth since 2007.
No. 20 New Mexico beats No. 8 San Diego State in Mountain West
LAS VEGAS -- Cameron Bairstow scored 17 points to lead No. 20 New Mexico to a 64-58 victory against No. 8 San Diego State in the Mountain West Conference championship game Saturday, giving the Lobos the automatic berth into the NCAA tournament.
Trailing by one with a little more than 1 minute left in the game, Bairstow -- selected as the tournament's MVP -- scored five of the Lobos' last eight points to help the Lobos win their third consecutive tournament title.
Kendall Williams added 16 for the Lobos, and Hugh Greenwood had 12.
San Diego State was led by Xavier Thames, who scored 15 points.
The No. 2 seed in the Mountain West tournament is 6-0 all-time when playing the No. 1 seed.
No. 8 Michigan beats No. 24 Ohio State in Big Ten semis
INDIANAPOLIS -- No. 8 Michigan blew a 12-point second-half lead, then finished the game on a 7-1 run to beat archrival Ohio State 72-69 in Saturday's Big Ten tournament semifinal.
Nik Stauskas had 18 points and Caris LeVert had 17 to lead the Wolverines (25-7), winners of seven in a row. It will be Michigan's first title game appearance since 1998, when it won its only tourney title, which was later vacated.
Ohio State (25-9) was led by LaQuinton Ross with 19 points and Shannon Scott with 18.
Providence upsets No. 14 Creighton to win Big East
NEW YORK -- Bryce Cotton scored 23 points and Providence won its first Big East tournament title since 1994 with a great defensive effort against Doug McDermott and No. 14 Creighton in a 65-56 victory Saturday night.
The fourth-seeded Friars (23-11) used a 2-3 zone to hold the second-seeded Bluejays (26-7) 24 points below their season average and to an 8-for-30 effort from behind the 3-point line.
Cotton, the senior guard who finished second to McDermott in conference scoring but was also a unanimous first-team All-Big East selection, was the scoring star in the championship game and he was selected the tournament MVP.
McDermott, who came in leading the nation in scoring with 26.5 average, finished 10 for 19 from the field, including 5 of 12 from 3-point range, for 27 points.
No. 16 Iowa State wins Big 12 championship
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- DeAndre Kane scored 17 points, Georges Niang added 13 and No. 16 Iowa State rallied to beat Baylor 74-65 on Saturday night to win its first Big 12 tournament title since 2000.
Naz Long and Dustin Hogue had 12 points apiece, and Big 12 player of the year Melvin Ejim finished with 10 points and nine rebounds for the fourth-seeded Cyclones (26-7), who knocked off top-seeded Kansas in the semifinals before ending the Bears' tremendous tournament run.
Kenny Chery had 16 points for the seventh-seeded Bears (24-11), who have never won a postseason conference tournament. They've lost all three tries since the formation of the Big 12.
No. 22 Michigan State scores 83-75 win vs. No. 12 Wisconsin
INDIANAPOLIS -- Adreian Payne scored 18 points, Branden Dawson had 14 and No. 22 Michigan State beat No. 12 Wisconsin 83-75 on Saturday to reach the Big Ten tournament championship.
The third-seeded Spartans (25-8) won consecutive games for the first time since winning 11 in a row in a stretch in December and January.
The Spartans went on a 16-1 run in the first half and took a 37-16 lead when Gary Harris scored with 5:39 left before halftime.
Frank Kaminsky had 28 points and Sam Dekker added 11 points and seven rebounds for the second-seeded Badgers (26-7), who were outrebounded 32-28 by the Spartans. Michigan State also shot 56 percent in an impressive performance against defense-minded Wisconsin.
No. 23 VCU rolls to 74-55 win vs. George Washington in A-10
NEW YORK -- Treveon Graham scored 22 points and No. 23 VCU pressed and pressured its way into another conference tournament championship game, beating George Washington 74-55 in the Atlantic 10 semifinals on Saturday.
The second-seeded Rams (26-7) will play for the A-10 title for the second year in a row, facing fourth-seeded Saint Joseph's on Sunday. Head coach Shaka Smart has led the Rams to a conference tournament final in four of his five seasons, first in the Colonial Athletic Association and the past two in the A-10.
Briante Weber added 16 points for the Rams, who lost last year's final to Saint Louis, and Mo Alie-Cox provided muscle and energy off the bench with eight points, seven rebounds and a block.
Isaiah Armwood led third-seeded George Washington (24-8) with 15 points.
VCU will likely have to move on without A-10 sixth man of the year Melvin Johnson, who injured his knee early in the first half.
