Auburn holds off Missouri in first game as No. 1

Auburn's Walker Kessler, right, tries to steal the ball from Missouri's Jarron Coleman, left, during the first half of an NCAA basketball game Tuesday in Columbia, Mo. – Photo by L.G. Patterson of The Associated Press
Auburn's Walker Kessler, right, tries to steal the ball from Missouri's Jarron Coleman, left, during the first half of an NCAA basketball game Tuesday in Columbia, Mo. – Photo by L.G. Patterson of The Associated Press

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- K.D. Johnson scored 17 points, including five straight within the final 90 seconds, and No. 1 Auburn survived a scare from Missouri, winning 55-54 on Tuesday night in the program's first-ever game as the nation's top-ranked team.

Johnson converted a three-point play with 1:29 remaining to put Auburn ahead 53-51, then added a layup with 45 seconds left for a four-point advantage, and the Tigers (19-1, 8-0 Southeastern Conference) held on from there.

Walker Kessler had 13 points and 12 rebounds for Auburn, which shot 30% from the field.

Javon Pickett led Missouri (8-11, 2-5) with 17 points, and Jaron Coleman added 10.

No. 7 UCLA 75, No. 3 ARIZONA 59

LOS ANGELES -- Johnny Juzang and Jules Bernard scored 15 points each and UCLA used gritty defense to beat Arizona, handing the Wildcats their first loss in Pac-12 play.

The Bruins (14-2, 6-1) took the lead for good during a 12-0 run in the first half on the way to winning their fourth in a row.

Bennedict Mathurin scored 10 of his 16 points in the second half for the Wildcats (16-2, 6-1), who had their five-game winning streak snapped. Christian Koloko added 11 points and seven rebounds, highlighted by six dunks from the 7-foot-1 center.

No. 4 BAYLOR 74, KANSAS STATE 49

WACO, Texas -- Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua and Kendall Brown each had a double-double as Baylor won its third game in a row since rare consecutive losses, beating Kansas State.

Tchamwa Tchatchoua scored 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting, including a 3-pointer from the top of the key, and the 6-foot-8 post player grabbed 12 rebounds. Brown had 10 points and 11 rebounds.

LJ Cryer added 14 points with three 3-pointers and Adam Flagler had 13 points and five assists for Baylor (18-2, 6-2 Big 12), which was home for the first time since successive defeats in the Ferrell Center two weeks ago.

The Wildcats (10-9, 2-6) led only after Ismael Massoud made a 3-pointer on their first shot of the game, only three days after they almost pulled off an upset over fifth-ranked Kansas.

No. 9 DUKE 71, CLEMSON 69

DURHAM, N.C. -- Paolo Banchero scored 19 points as ninth-ranked Duke pulled away late from Clemson..

Wendell Moore Jr. scored 13 points for Duke (16-4, 6-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), Joey Baker added 11 and Mark Williams registered his fourth double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Banchero also had seven rebounds and four assists.

PJ Hall led Clemson (11-9, 3-6) in scoring and on the glass with 14 points and 10 boards. Hunter Tyson scored 13 points while Chase Hunter had 12.

ILLINOIS 56, No. 10 MICHIGAN STATE 55

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Trent Frazier scored a game-high 16 points, and No. 24 Illinois held on to beat Michigan State and take sole possession of first place in the Big Ten.

Illinois (14-5, 7-2) was without two of its brightest stars: All-American center Kofi Cockburn (concussion) and guard Andre Curbelo (COVID-19 health and safety protocols).

The Illini led by as many as 15 points early in the second half before Michigan State (15-4, 6-2) mounted a furious comeback in the final four minutes.

Down by two, the Spartans had a chance to tie the game with less than a second left after Coleman Hawkins fouled Malik Hall as Hall drove to the basket. He missed the first free throw and made the second, then time expired.

No. 12 KENTUCKY 82, MISSISSIPPI STATE 74, OT

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Kellan Grady scored eight points in overtime, including consecutive 3-pointers about a minute apart, and Sahvir Wheeler added two free throws to lift Kentucky over Mississippi State.

Grady finished with 18 points and Oscar Tshiebwe added 21 points with 22 rebounds for Kentucky (16-3, 6-1 Southeastern Conference), giving Wildcats coach John Calipari his 800th career victory -- albeit the hard way.

After missing a 3-pointer at the end of regulation, Grady regrouped in the extra session to drive the baseline for a layup before adding 3s with 2:23 and 1:13 remaining for an 80-74 lead.

Wheeler twice made the first of two free throws to extend the lead on the Bulldogs, whose only basket in overtime came from Iverson Molinar, a layup with 2:43 left.

The Wildcats led 53-38 with 12:25 left before the Bulldogs (13-6, 4-3) rallied by holding Kentucky scoreless over four minutes. Molinar scored 22 of his 30 points in the second half to lead Mississippi State.

No. 14 VILLANOVA 67, DEPAUL 43

VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Justin Moore scored 16 points, Collin Gillespie had 14 and No. 14 Villanova beat DePaul for the 22nd straight time.

The Blue Demons (10-9, 1-8 Big East) last topped the Wildcats on Jan. 3, 2008.

Two national championships later, the Wildcats (15-5, 8-2) continue to reign as the class of the conference and shook off a sluggish start to cruise again at the Pavilion.

They had a 29-game Pavilion winning streak snapped last week in a loss to Marquette, knocking them down three spots in the AP Top 25 poll. Villanova rebounded with a win over the weekend against Georgetown, then used an 11-2 run to close the first half against DePaul to set the tone for the rout.

No. 20 UCONN 96, GEORGETOWN 73

STORRS, Conn. -- Adama Sanogo scored 19 points to lead UConn to its fourth straight win with a rout of Georgetown.

Isaiah Whaley and Jordan Hawkins each added 15 points for the Huskies (14-4, 5-2 Big East), who never trailed. R.J. Cole had 14 points, seven assists and six rebounds, while Tyrese Martin chipped in with 13 points.

UConn ran past the Hoyas, outscoring them 27-6 on the fast break and dominated the boards, outrebounding Georgetown 40-28,

Freshman Aminu Mohammed had 15 points to lead Georgetown ( 6-11, 0-6), which lost its seventh consecutive game.

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