Tuesday night in men's hoops featured 12 AP Top 25 teams in actions including three head-to-head matchups. With conference standings getting tighter by the day, each win and loss counts a little bit more as we approach the postseason.
No. 13 Tennessee 75, Georgia 68No. 11 Villanova 76, No. 9 Providence 74
No. 7 Kentucky 83, Ole Miss 72
Nebraska 78, No. 23 Ohio State 70
TCU 74, No. 6 Kansas 64
No. 4 Duke 86, Pitt 56
No. 15 Houston 71, Cincinnati 53
No. 10 Wisconsin 70, No. 8 Purdue 67
No. 2 Arizona 91, No. 16 Southern Cal 71
Here's what went down on Tuesday:
Hepburn's heroics win Wisconsin a share of Big Ten regular season title
Well then, welcome to March.
The No. 10 Badgers clinched a share of the Big Ten regular season championship in a wild 70-67 win over No. 8 Purdue in Madison. The Kohl Center burst into a frenzy when Chucky Hepburn banked in this three-pointer to take the decisive lead just seconds after Jadyn Ivey tied it at 67.
Ladies and Gentleman, we give you @ChuckyHepburn!!!
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) March 2, 2022
CC: @BadgerMBB pic.twitter.com/pg78HWA5T7
CHUCKY HEPBURN!!!!!!
— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerMBB) March 2, 2022
ASDFJAKSDJFKASDFJAKSFJ
When the clock finally ran out, the pandemonium spilled onto the court as the Badgers celebrated.
WHAT A NIGHT. WELCOME TO MARCH, @BADGERMBB NATION! pic.twitter.com/QIHGIJlIYP
— Wisconsin On BTN (@WisconsinOnBTN) March 2, 2022
Hepburn's dramatic three-pointer capped a 17-point night for him in tandem with 19 points from Tyler Wahl and another 16 for Jonathan Davis.
The Badgers will close their regular season on Sunday against Nebraska while the Boilermakers finish against Indiana on Saturday.
No. 11 Villanova grabs a win against No. 9 Providence
The No. 11 Villanova Wildcats completed a season sweep of the ninth-ranked Providence Friars with a 76-74 win at home on Tuesday night.
Villanova was led by 20 points from guard Caleb Daniels and three others in double digits. Despite shooting just 40.4% from the field and 33% from deep, they won the game by excelling in two facets: free-throw shooting and protecting the ball.
The Wildcats scored 21 points at the line compared to Providence’s nine and turned the ball over just five times in the entire game, eleven fewer times than their opponents.
The crowd at Finneran Pavilion kept the arena rocking all night, and it’s easy to see why when the team is pulling out dunks like this:
Villanova (-550) closes out Providence 76-74 in a ranked Big East clash 😼pic.twitter.com/vDZvqXaQ2z
— Caesars Sportsbook (@CaesarsSports) March 2, 2022
Providence was without its second-leading scorer Al Durham, who averages the most minutes on the team. He missed the game due to what head coach Ed Cooley called a “serious injury”, reportedly a sports hernia. The team was also without senior guard AJ Reeves, another player who averages double-digit scoring.
Although it won’t change the fact that the Friars claimed the Big East regular-season title, Villanova’s perfect record against Providence will likely give them a mental edge if the two were to meet in the conference tournament at Madison Square Garden.
No. 23, Ohio State drops another conference game, upset by Nebraska
In the Big Ten meanwhile, the No. 23 Ohio State Buckeyes were shocked at home 78-70 by a last-place Nebraska team. It’s their second conference loss in a row, dropping them to fifth place in the standings and threatening to cost them their conference-tournament bye.
Ohio State shot just 38.6% from the field and despite getting 27 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks from E.J. Liddell, the Buckeyes could not deal with the Huskers’ impressive guard play.
Nebraska guard Bryce McGowens dropped 26 points, the eleventh time this season he has eclipsed 20. His backcourt partner Alonzo Verge Jr. scored 13 points and dished out 11 assists, while guard C.J. Wilcher added another 15 points of his own.
.@BryceMcgowens5 is en fueg fueg tonight 🔥.
— Nebraska On BTN (@NebraskaOnBTN) March 2, 2022
CC: @HuskerHoops pic.twitter.com/xcG1GuLiy7
The Cornhuskers snapped a 24-game losing streak against the AP Top 25, picking up their first win over a ranked team since 2019. Nebraska has struggled this season, with just three conference wins to their name, so Tuesday’s upset was certainly one to celebrate.
THIS TEAM KEEPS BATTLING. pic.twitter.com/jUailMwZWA
— Nebraska Basketball (@HuskerHoops) March 2, 2022
With just two conference games remaining, the Buckeyes need to turn their fortunes around quickly, as this loss will not look good on the team’s resume.
TCU makes history in upset win over No. 6 Kansas
Down in Fort Worth, TCU sent more shockwaves throughout the college hoops world with a 74-64 win over the No. 6 Kansas Jayhawks.
Coming just days after upsetting No. 9 Texas Tech, the consecutive wins against AP top-10 teams is a first in program history for TCU. With two resume-boosting wins in such quick succession, head coach Jamie Dixon couldn’t help but revel in the moment.
.@CoachDixon got a lot of water bottle showers this week. 😅#GoFrogs pic.twitter.com/amIw76WsFE
— TCU Basketball (@TCUBasketball) March 2, 2022
It was a relatively clean game as neither team turned the ball over more than eight times, but the shooting stroke was not present for the Jayhawks. They sputtered their way to a 37.3% field goal percentage, fronted by Ochai Agbaji’s ice-cold 4-of-17.
The result is Kansas’ second consecutive defeat following another 10-point loss against Baylor on Feb. 26.
The teams will meet again in less than 48 hours as the Frogs travel up to Lawrence for a rematch on Thursday at 7 p.m.
