UNDATED (AP) — James Akinjo matched his career high with 27 points, Adam Flagler scored 22 and top-ranked Baylor stretched its national-best winning streak to 20 games with an 84-74 win over Oklahoma. Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua added 12 points for the 14-0 Bears. Their winning streak began with their six wins in last season’s NCAA Tournament on way to their first national championship. Tanner Groves had 13 points to lead four players in double figures for first-year coach Porter Moser and the Sooners. Both teams shot 56% from the field. Baylor sealed the game with seven free throws over the final 40 seconds.
In other college basketball action:
— No. 6 Kansas overcame a scoreless streak of more than 9 1/2 minutes to beat Oklahoma State 74-63 in the delayed Big 12 Conference opener for both teams. David McCormack had 17 points and a career-high 15 rebounds, and Ochai Agbaji scored 16 points for the Jayhawks. Kansas missed 19 straight shots to end the first half, allowing the Cowboys to pull even at 29-29 by halftime. But the Jayhawks made seven straight shots during a 20-8 run early in the second half that put them back ahead by double digits. Kansas has won eight straight. Isaac Likekele led Oklahoma State with 16 points.
— Freshman Paolo Banchero had 17 points and 11 rebounds to help No. 2 Duke beat Georgia Tech 69-57 in its return from a COVID-19 outbreak that had led to a pair of postponements. Duke had a rough night on offense and shot a season-low 37.3%. The Blue Devils finished with a 48-35 rebounding advantage and more than doubled the Yellow Jackets in second-chance points. ACC-leading scorer Michael Devoe finished with 21 points for Georgia Tech. All but five of those came in the final 11-plus minutes. Georgia Tech shot just 33%.
— Wendell Green Jr. scored a season-high 22 points and No. 9 Auburn beat South Carolina 81-66 for its 10th straight win. The Tigers led by 21 points in the second half, but held on after the Gamecocks drew within 63-55 with about seven minutes to play. Green came through again with two foul shots before 7-foot-1 Walker Kesslen jammed home a bucket to restore the double-digit lead. Kessler followed up a triple double last game with 12 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks as Auburn opened 2-0 in the SEC for the first time in four years.
— Marcus Carr scored 19 points, Timmy Allen had 17 and No. 14 Texas rallied in the second half to beat Kansas State 70-57. Courtney Ramey added 14 points and Dylan Disu had 10 for Texas, which has won six in a row. Kansas State led 35-29 at halftime, but the Longhorns opened the second half with an 18-2 run. Nijel Pack scored 21 points, 15 in the first half, and Selton Miguel finished with 13 points for the Wildcats. Kansas State was missing seven players and coach Bruce Weber because of COVID-19 protocols.
— Tari Eason capped his 13-point performance with a dunk following a Kentucky turnover with 13 seconds left, and No. 21 LSU held off No. 16 Kentucky 65-50. Xavier Pinson added 11 points for LSU, capped by his flamboyant dunk in the final seconds after another Wildcats turnover. Kentucky’s Davion Mintz played 28 minutes after an injury to starting point guard and assist leader Sahvir Wheeler and led the Wildcats with 16 points.
— Justin Lewis had a career-high 23 points plus 11 rebounds as Marquette broke out of its slump Tuesday night with an 88-56 blowout of No. 16 Providence that snapped the Friars’ eight-game winning streak. Marquette emphatically ended its four-game skid by scoring 20 straight points late in the first half. The Golden Eagles’ lead never dropped below 20 throughout the second half. That represented a major reversal of fortune for Marquette. The Golden eagles had faced double-digit deficits in the second half of each of their first three Big East games.
— Jared Rhoden scored 17 points, Alexis Yetna had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and No. 24 Seton Hall beat Butler 71-56. Bryce Aiken added 12 points and seven assists for the Pirates, who avoided their first 0-3 start in Big East play since 2009-10. Seton Hall has won four of its past six at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Bryce Golden scored 20 points for Butler, and fellow big man Bryce Nze added 12 points. The Bulldogs were outrebounded 36-25 even though Seton Hall played without Tyrese Samuel, who averages 10.8 points and 6.9 boards.
— Isaiah Stevens scored 15 points as No. 20 Colorado State remained undefeated, holding off short-handed Air Force 67-59. CSU shrugged off some rust following a nearly month-long layoff due to COVID-19 concerns. The Rams have captured 11 in a row to match CSU’s 1988-89 NCAA Tournament team for the second-longest winning streak in school history. The top mark was 14 straight by the 2014-15 squad. David Roddy added 13 points and 12 rebounds for Colorado State, which played for the first time since a 66-63 win over Mississippi State on Dec. 11. A young Air Force team missing six players because of virus protocols, including the team’s leading scorer AJ Walker.
UCLA seeks rival for return to the court
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The UCLA men’s basketball team is back after a nearly two-week shutdown because of COVID-19. Now the fifth-ranked Bruins are trying to find someone to play.
The UCLA staff is furiously working the phones to find a game to schedule, even if it’s not against a Division I opponent.
