College Basketball Saturday: Syracuse, Kentucky Win Blowouts, Creighton, UNLV Upset

VIDEO: Ohio State-Michigan State Ref Calls Buckeyes' Bench Safe

No. 8 Kansas Vs. No. 4 Missouri: Tigers' Late Rally Secures Border War Win, 74-71

The Missouri Tigers got 29 points and nine rebounds from Marcus Denmon, and staged a late rally to top Kansas in Columbia.

Ole Miss Vs. Alabama: Crimson Tide Clinch Huge 2 OT Win

Facing a fellow middle of the road SEC team at home, sitting at 3-4 in the conference, the Alabama Crimson Tide were in serious need of a win to keep an NCAA tournament bid well within reach. They're now 4-4 in the conference and 15-7 overall after they barely hung on in a double-overtime thriller against the Ole Miss Rebels. Mississippi needed miracles to force OT and double OT, but eventually fell 69-67 after 50 minutes of play.

Andrew Steele made Alabama's final field goal in the second overtime period and hit a free throw to ice the game and make it a two-possession contest with 15 seconds remaining. JaMychal Green was the Tide's best overall performer, turning in 16 points and 12 rebounds.

With his team down three points, Terrance Henry created a three-point play late in regulation for Ole Miss to force overtime. Alabama led by as many as five points in the first OT, but Nick Williams made the last two field goals in the period -- a two and a three-point shot -- to force a second OT period. The Rebels couldn't come up with any heroics a third time, and Alabama held on to a much-needed home victory.

For more on the two teams, check out Alabama Crimson Tide blog Roll 'Bama Roll and Ole Miss Rebels blog Red Cup Rebellion.

No. 1 Kentucky Vs. South Carolina: Anthony Davis Scores 22 In Wildcat Romp

Anthony Davis scored 22 points and No. 1 Kentucky had no trouble racing past South Carolina, 86-52, on Saturday for its 15th straight win.

Doron Lamb added 18 points, Terrence Jones scored 16 and the Wildcats (23-1, 9-0 SEC) remained unbeaten since their last-second loss to Indiana on December 10.

Davis and Jones outscored South Carolina by themselves in the first half, 34-25, as Kentucky built a 52-25 lead.

Damien Leonard had 19 points and Anthony Gill scored 10 for the Gamecocks (9-13, 1-7), who fell to 1-9 all-time versus the No. 1 team in the AP poll.

The Wildcats are on a roll since their first and only loss of the season, 73-72 at Indiana back on Dec. 10, having collected 14-straight wins. They've also won seven of their nine league games by 13 points or more.

For more on the Wildcats, visit Kentucky blog A Sea Of Blue. For more on the Gamecocks, visit South Carolina blog Garnet And Black Attack.

No. 13 Creighton Vs. Northern Iowa: Panthers Bite Bluejays In 65-62 Upset

After Antoine Young's three-pointer from the top of the arc tied the game at 62 with five seconds remaining, Anthony James raced up the floor and buried a step-back three-pointer at the buzzer, lifting the Northern Iowa Panthers to a 65-62 upset win over the No. 13 Creighton Bluejays.

James scored the final eight points for the Panthers (16-9, 6-7 MVC), who turned the ball over just twice and made 11-of-21 shots from three-point range. James finished with 16 points.

Seth Tuttle added 13 points and nine rebounds and Deon Mitchell had 12 points for Northern Iowa.

Young poured in 23 points while Doug McDermott had a double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds for Creighton (21-3, 11-2), which had its 11-game winning streak snapped.

The Bluejays, which came in shooting 45.3 percent from beyond the arc, -- the best percentage in the country -- made just 5-of-16 attempts from three-point range.

No. 11 UNLV Vs. Wyoming: Cowboys Shock The Rebels, 68-66

Leonard Washington and Francisco Cruz netted 16 points apiece and the Wyoming Cowboys upset No. 11 UNLV, 68-66, on Saturday.

Luke Martinez added 15 points and Adam Waddell contributed 14 for Wyoming (18-5, 4-3 Mountain West), which won for the fourth time in six games and had its coach beaming afterward.

"There can't be a coach anywhere that is prouder of how their team has played this season than I am of this group of guys," said Larry Shyatt. "They executed all the keys that we talked about leading up to this game, and they played with such great energy tonight."

Quintrell Thomas led the Runnin' Rebels (21-4, 5-2) with 15 points. Oscar Bellfield and Anthony Marshall both scored 12 while Mike Moser had 11 points and 11 rebounds for UNLV, which shot 49 percent from the floor but made just 3-of-14 shots from beyond the arc.

For more on the Cowboys, visit our Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude.

No. 22 Mississippi State Vs. Auburn: Arnett Moultrie Lifts Bulldogs To 91-88 Victory

Arnett Moultrie scored 21 points and pulled down seven rebounds to lift No. 22 Mississippi State to a 91-88 win over Auburn.

Renardo Sidney had 17 points, Dee Bost added 15 points with seven assists and Jalen Steele had 13 points off the bench for the Bulldogs (18-5, 5-3 SEC), who bounced back from a loss to Florida last Saturday.

Kenny Gabriel had 22 points and 11 rebounds while Frankie Sullivan added 16 points for the Tigers (13-10, 3-6), who have dropped three of four. Varez Ward had 24 points and five assists in the loss.

Near the midway point of the second half, the Bulldogs held a 13-point lead on a Moultrie dunk, but the Tigers got a layup and three-pointer from Sullivan and Allen Payne followed with a dunk to make it a 68-62 game.

Two free throws from Gabriel with nine minutes to play made it a 69-64 game, but Moultrie and Sidney followed with a pair of free throws each.

It stayed close the rest of the way and Payne made it a four-point game on a jumper late in the contest as the score was 88-84, but Shaun Smith made his two from the line.

A quick layup from Sullivan was followed by a Moultrie free throw and Sullivan was then fouled on a three-pointer, but he made just two of his three shots and it was 91-88 with 0.2 seconds to play.

For more on the Bulldogs, visit For Whom The Cowbell Tolls. For more on the Tigers, visit Track Em Tigers.

UConn Vs. Seton Hall: Without Jim Calhoun, Huskies Rout Pirates 69-46

Ryan Boatright posted a game-high 19 points to lead the Connecticut Huskies to a 69-46 win over the Seton Hall Pirates in a Big East tilt at the XL Center.

Jeremy Lamb added 17 points and collected eight rebounds in the win for Connecticut (15-7, 5-5 Big East), while Alex Oriakhi finished with 10 points and eight boards off the bench.

The duo of Jordan Theodore and Aaron Cosby tallied 10 points apiece to pace Seton Hall (15-8, 4-7), while Fuquan Edwin pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds. The Pirates were without leading scorer and rebounder Herb Pope as he sat out with a pair of bruised ribs as his team lost its sixth-straight game.

The Pirates were held to a paltry 24.0 percent from the field during the first period of play, opening a commanding 30-17 halftime lead for Connecticut.

The Huskies never looked back during the second stanza, as the squad hit 48.3 percent from the floor to go with a 10-of-13 effort at the foul line to roll to a 23-point victory.

The Pirates connected on just 25.9 percent of their attempts from the floor during the contest, including a meager 5-of-26 performance from long range. UConn played without its head coach Jim Calhoun as he is on a medical leave of absence.

For more on the Huskies, visit aptly-named The UConn Blog. For more on the Bulls, visit the not-as-clearly-named VoodooFive.

No. 5 North Carolina Vs. Maryland: Tar Heels Use Late Surge, Down Terps 83-74

No. 5 North Carolina used a late surge to down Maryland, 83-74, thanks to Tyler Zeller and Harrison Barnes.

No. 6 Ohio State Vs. No. 19 Wisconsin: Badgers Can't Finish Upset, Fall 58-52

The Wisconsin Badgers struggled from behind the arc, falling to the Ohio State Buckeyes at home for the first time in over a decade. Jared Sullinger had 24 points in the win.

No. 6 Baylor Vs. Oklahoma State: Bears Dominate Inside, Hold On For 64-60 Win Over Cowboys

Perry Jones III and Quincy Acy had their way on the inside against Oklahoma State, but a young Cowboys team kept it close until the final seconds.

No. 25 Vanderbilt Vs. No. 12 Florida: Gators Win Seventh In A Row Heading Into Date With No. 1 Kentucky

Led by Brad Beal and Kenny Boyton, Florida extended a 19-game home winning streak with a 73-65 win over Vanderbilt.

No. 16 Virginia Vs. No. 21 Florida State: Noles Survive Late Rally By The Cavaliers

The Florida State Seminoles held on to upset the Virginia Cavaliers 58-55 on Saturday.

No. 15 Marquette Vs. Notre Dame: Fighting Irish Catch Fire From Downtown, End Golden Eagles' Winning Streak

The Fighting Irish ended a seven-game Marquette winning streak, as freshman Pat Connaughton caught fire and led Notre Dame to their fourth straight win.

No. 2 Syracuse Vs. St. John's: Orange Cruise To 95-70 Win At Madison Square Garden

The No. 2 Syracuse Orange rolled over the St. John's Red Storm, 95-70, on Saturday. Fab Melo returned to score 14 points.

South Florida Vs. No. 14 Georgetown: Hoyas Dominate Second Half In 30-Point Blowout

The No. 14 Georgetown Hoyas blew out the South Florida Bulls, 75-45, on Saturday.

Harrison Barnes Injury: UNC Star Will Play Saturday, According To Report

Harrison Barnes will play Saturday against the Maryland Terrapins after spraining his ankle on Tuesday.