Top 25 roundup: Spartans use huge rally to top Wildcats

Cassius Winston posted 17 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, and No. 2 Michigan State erased a 27-point deficit to deny upset-minded Northwestern 65-60 on Saturday at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill.

Nick Ward supplied 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Spartans, who won their 10th straight and took sole possession of first place in the Big Ten, a half-game over idle Ohio State. Jaren Jackson Jr. added 11 points for Michigan State (26-3, 14-2 Big Ten), which scored 24 unanswered points during the second half to take the lead.

Vic Law led the Wildcats (15-13, 6-9) with 21 points and five assists but he scored only three points after halftime. Gavin Skelly tossed in 11 points and Scottie Lindsey chipped in 10 points with four assists for Northwestern, which went more than 11 1/2 minutes without scoring during the Spartans’ rally.

The Wildcats played without second-leading scorer Bryant McIntosh, who suffered a right shoulder injury in an overtime loss to Rutgers on Tuesday. Northwestern had only eight scholarship players available.

No. 3 Villanova 95, No. 4 Xavier 79

Mikal Bridges scored 25 points, Donte DiVincenzo added 21 and the third-ranked Wildcats picked up a huge road victory over the Musketeers in the first matchup featuring two top-five teams in the conference since 2009.

Jalen Brunson, Omari Spellman and Eric Paschall each had 11 points for Villanova, which improved to 24-3 overall and 11-3 in the Big East. Collin Gillespie also chipped in with 10. The Wildcats had dropped two of three but still haven’t lost consecutive games in five seasons.

Trevon Bluiett led Xavier with 26 points while J.P. Macura added 14. Naji Marshall contributed 11 and Quentin Goodin had 10 for the Musketeers, who had their nine-game winning streak snapped. Xavier is 24-4 overall and 12-3 in the conference.

South Carolina 84, No. 10 Auburn 75

Frank Booker’s 19 points led a balanced attack as the Gamecocks upset the No. 10 Tigers in a Southeastern Conference game at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, S.C.

Chris Silva chipped in a 14-point, 11-rebound double-double, while Wesley Myers came off the bench to add 13 points for South Carolina (14-13, 5-10 SEC) before fouling out. It marked the third time this year that the Gamecocks have clipped a ranked SEC opponent.

Mustapha Heron paced the Tigers (23-4, 11-3), who remain in the SEC lead, with 16 points. Jared Harper added 13, Chuma Okeke scored 11 points and Bryce Brown netted 10 but made just 3 of 15 shots from the field.

No. 13 Kansas 77, No. 20 West Virginia 69

Sophomore center Udoka Azubuike went 7-for-8 from the field and also managed to go 7-for-10 from the foul line to score 21 points as the No. 13 Jayhawks rallied from a 12-point deficit to down the No. 20 Mountaineers at Lawrence, Kan.

The victory was the second in as many years at home against West Virginia for Kansas when it rallied from a double-digit deficit in the second half to beat the Mountaineers.

The Jayhawks used a string of 16 unanswered points down the stretch to climb to 21-6, while improving to 10-4 in the Big 12 in pursuit of their 14th consecutive league title.

Georgia 73, No. 18 Tennessee 62

Senior forward Yante Maten once again carried the Bulldogs to an upset in Southeastern Conference play as they knocked off the No. 18 Volunteers at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, Ga.

After scoring 23 points in an overtime win at Florida his previous game, Maten came back with 19, as Georgia (15-11, 6-8 SEC) knocked off the conference’s second-place team for a second straight outing. Forward Derek Ogbeide added a season-high 16 off the bench.

Guard Lamonte Turner scored 14 points and forward Kyle Alexander had a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Vols (19-7, 9-5).

Arkansas 94, No. 21 Texas A&M 75

The Razorbacks got big games out of senior guards Jaylen Barford and Daryl Macon and freshman forward Daniel Gafford in whipping the No. 21 Aggies in Fayetteville.

Barford scored 21 points, Macon 20, and Gafford 18 as the Razorbacks (19-8, 8-6 Southeastern Conference) stretched their winning streak to four games, all by double digits. It was the most points the Aggies have given up this season.

After leading by 11 points at the half, the Hogs led by double digits for most of the second period with the final margin marking their largest lead of the game.

Texas 77, No. 23 Oklahoma 66

Dylan Osetkowski scored 21 points to lead the Longhorns over the No. 23 Sooners at Lloyd Noble Center, snapping a three-game losing streak and sending their Red River rivals to a fifth consecutive loss.

Kerwin Roach II added 12 for Texas, though his primary assignment was slowing down Trae Young, who finished with 26 points and seven assists but struggled again from the floor.

Oklahoma’s freshman duo of Young and Brady Manek have carried the Sooners through much of the season, but both continued their recent struggles Saturday. Young was just 7-of-21 from the floor and made just 3-of-10 from behind the 3-point line.

No. 24 Nevada 93, Utah State 87

Cody Martin poured in a career-high 30 points and twin brother Caleb added 23 as the 24th-ranked Wolf Pack held off the Aggies in Mountain West Conference men’s basketball play in Logan, Utah.

The win completed a season-series sweep for Nevada, who thumped Utah State 83-57, holding the Aggies to a season-low in points, in their January meeting in Reno, Nev.

The Wolf Pack (23-5, 12-2) were playing for the first time since Lindsey Drew, their leader in assists, was lost for the season after rupturing his Achilles in Wednesday’s 77-72 win at Boise State.

–Field Level Media