UNDATED (AP) — Ryan Hawkins scored 23 points and Creighton upset No. 17 UConn 59-55. Hawkins hit eight of his 12 shots, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range for the Bluejays, who moved over .500 in conference play and snapped a two-game losing streak. Isaiah Whaley had a career-high 20-points for UConn, which had won five in a row and was looking for its first six-game win streak since the NCAA Tournament run in 2014 that brought the Huskies their fourth national title.
In other men’s college basketball action:
— Kevin Obanor had 17 points with five 3-pointers and 14th-ranked Texas Tech beat No. 23 Texas 77-64 in Chris Beard’s return. It was emotionally charged arena packed with fans who used to love the coach who took the Red Raiders to the national championship game only three years ago. But when Beard left 10 months ago to become coach at his alma mater, and their most-hated rival, those fans immediately started pointing to this chance to let him hear how they felt. It was raucous throughout the victory that kept Tech undefeated at home.
— Wendell Green Jr. scored a season-high 23 points off the bench as No. 1 Auburn cruised past rival Alabama with a 100-81 home win. Green led the Tigers in scoring while also recording eight rebounds and six assists with only one turnover. Jabari Smith added 17 points as Auburn (21-1, 9-0 Southeastern Conference) extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 18. After foul trouble limited him to only 12 minutes in Auburn’s first meeting with Alabama last month, Walker Kessler made his presence felt in the rematch with 14 points, 12 rebounds, eight blocks and four steals. Jaden Shackelford led Alabama (14-8, 4-5) with 26 points and shot 5-for-10 from 3-point range. Jahvon Quinerly added 20 points.
— Daeshun Ruffin scored 19 points before sitting out the final 12 minutes with a right leg injury, and Mississippi held of No. 25 LSU 76-72. It is the Tigers’ fifth loss in six games. Luis Rodriguez scored 15 for Ole Miss, which saw its 24-point, first-half lead trimmed to two in the final minutes. Darius Days made five 3-pointers and finished with 21 points for LSU. Jaemyn Brakefield had a breakaway layup with 10 seconds left to score the Rebels’ only field goal in the last 9:50 of the game.
Jared Bynum scored 19 points and Al Durham made eight straight free throws in the final 27 seconds as No. 15 Providence held off St. John’s 86-82 for its sixth straight victory. Nate Watson scored 15 of his 16 points in the second half for the surprising Friars, who hold sole possession of first place in the Big East. They have their highest ranking in six years and are 19-2 for the first time since the 1972-73 season, when they went to their first Final Four. Providence was 27 for 33 at the foul line, while St. John’s went 4 of 11. Posh Alexander had 29 points and 12 assists for the scuffling Red Storm, both career highs for the sophomore guard.
— David McCormack scored 14 points, Jalen Wilson had 13 rebounds, and No. 10 Kansas defeated No. 20 Iowa State 70-61. McCormick made all seven of his shots and had 13 rebounds for the Jayhawks. Kansas was without Ochai Agbaji because of COVID-19 protocols. Wilson scored all 13 of his points in the second half. Izaiah Brockington led Iowa State with 24 points.
— Malik Hall made a driving layup with 1.9 seconds left, and No. 13 Michigan State survived a second-half rally by Maryland to beat the Terrapins 65-63. Hall led the Spartans with 16 points, and Joey Hauser and Marcus Bingham Jr. had 10 apiece. Eric Ayala scored 15 points and Donta Scott had 14 for Maryland, which rallied from a 15-point second half deficit to tie the score twice within the final three minutes.
— Kennedy Chandler scored 16 points, Olivier Nkamhoua added 15 and No. 22 Tennessee beat Texas A&M 90-80. The Volunteers led by as many as 13 points in the first half. However, the Aggies cut the lead to one point with 8:49 left in the game. That’s when Nkamhoua hit a short jumper and John Fulkerson had a tip-in basket.
