Times wires
Friday, March 11, 2011
INDIANAPOLIS — Talor Battle scored a team-high nine, including a 3-pointer and free throw late, as Penn State defeated No. 13 Wisconsin 36-33 in the Big Ten quarterfinals Friday.
It was the lowest-scoring game in the tournament's 14 years. And it wasn't close. The previous record was 85, Wisconsin over Michigan 51-34 in 2008.
Wisconsin was 15-of-51 from the field and 2-of-21 on 3-pointers. Penn State was 13-of-39 from the field and 3-of-12 on 3-pointers. But that was enough to move into today's semifinals against another upset winner, Michigan State. The Spartans knocked off No. 9 Purdue 74-56.
Kalin Lucas scored a career-high 30 to lead Michigan State, which made 7 of 10 first-half 3-pointers to lead 37-23.
No. 1 Ohio State barely avoided an upset. Jared Sullinger scored 20 and made 10 of 10 free throws in overtime as it eked past Northwestern 67-61.
Sullinger, who had 18 rebounds, was 2-of-12 from the field but 16-of-18 on free throws. The Buckeyes, who face Michigan in the semifinals, attempted just two field goals in overtime and hit one, Jon Diebler's 3-pointer.
In the other quarterfinal, Darius Morris scored eight of his 17 in the final eight minutes to help Michigan rally from a nine-point deficit and beat Illinois 60-55. It's only the second time Illinois did not advance to the semifinals.
Fredette scores 52
LAS VEGAS — Jimmer Fredette scored 52 in No. 8 BYU's 87-76 win over New Mexico in the Mountain West semifinals. Fredette, who scored 32 and 33 in two blowout losses to the Lobos during the regular season, had 33 by halftime as BYU took a 47-42 lead.
He missed his first three shots of the second half and didn't score until 6:52 in. But his 3-pointer made it 71-63 and gave him 47, a tournament record. His three-point play with 4:24 left gave him 50.
BYU faces the winner of Friday's late game between No. 7 San Diego State and UNLV.
No. 2 Kansas 90, Colo. 83: Twins Marcus and Markieff Morris outscored Colorado 17-4 during a first-half stretch for the Jayhawks in the Big 12 semifinals in Kansas City, Mo. Kansas trailed by 12 before the run. It led 43-37 at halftime then started the second half with a 16-5 run. The Jayhawks play No. 10 Texas, which beat Texas A&M 70-58. The Longhorns had four players in double figures, led by Jordan Hamilton's 17.
No. 16 Arizona 67, USC 62: Derrick Williams scored 20, including two free throws that made it a five-point game with 20 seconds left, as the Wildcats reached the Pac-10 final in Los Angeles. They will go for their first tournament title since 2005 against the winner of the late game between Washington and Oregon.
Dayton 68, No. 18 Xavier 67: Luke Fabrizius grabbed an offensive rebound, was fouled and made two free throws with 5.8 seconds left to lift the Flyers in the Atlantic 10 quarterfinals in Atlantic City. The No. 9 seed, which led by 17 midway through the second half, meets No. 12 Saint Joseph's, which beat No. 4 Duquesne 93-90 in overtime. Also, No. 24 Temple beat La Salle 96-76. The Owls didn't trail after a 14-3 run gave them a 30-20 lead. They meet Richmond, which beat Rhode Island 55-45.
No. 23 Utah St. 58, San Jose St. 54: Tai Wesley had 14 points and 12 rebounds to help the Aggies reach the WAC final in Las Vegas. They face the winner of the late game between New Mexico State and Boise State.
Patriot: Bucknell, which upset Kansas in 2005 and Arkansas in 2006, is back in the tournament after beating visiting Lafayette 72-57 in the final.
MEAC: Morgan State led most of the way and upset top-seeded Bethune-Cookman 61-48 in the semifinals in Winston-Salem, N.C. The Bears face Hampton, which beat Norfolk State 85-61.
Ivy: Harvard and Princeton, which tied for the regular-season title, meet tonight at Yale for the tournament berth.
USC coach to sit: USC suspended coach Kevin O'Neill for the rest of the Pac-10 tournament for his confrontation with an Arizona booster at the Trojans' hotel after Thursday's victory against Cal. O'Neill said there was no physical contact with the man with whom he said he doesn't get along. O'Neill was Arizona's interim coach and named Lute Olson's successor in 2007-08. But he was let go after Olson changed his mind about retiring.