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NEW YORK — Mikal Bridges scored 25 points and hit two 3-pointers in overtime to lift No. 2 Villanova to a 76-66 win over Providence in the Big East Tournament championship game Saturday night.
The Wildcats (30-4) won their second straight Big East Tournament and third in four years (losing in the 2016 final). They put the bow on a fantastic season that should have them earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Villanova had rolled to a pair of dominant victories in the tourney and held off a pesky Providence team that played its third straight overtime game.
The fifth-seeded Friars (21-13) rallied in the second half from yet another double-digit hole and seemed set to pull off one more upset and earn the automatic NCAA berth. Providence erased a 17-point hole in the second half to beat top-seeded Xavier to reach the final. With one stunning rally on its resume, Providence nearly made it two.
Kyron Cartwright hit a jumper with 1:38 left that tied the game at 58-all and Alpha Diallo scored on a driving layup with 40 seconds left for a 60-58 lead.
Big East player of the year Jalen Brunson tied it for Villanova with two free throws.
Providence missed a last-gasp shot at the buzzer and played in its third straight overtime game.
BIG 12 TOURNAMENT
No. 9 Kansas 81, No. 18 West Virginia 70
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Devonte Graham piled up 18 points and 13 assists, Silvio De Sousa came up big in place of Udoka Azubuike and ninth-ranked Kansas proved its toughness down the stretch for a victory over No. 18 West Virginia in the Big 12 Tournament title game.
De Sousa had 16 points on 8 of 8 shooting while grabbing 10 rebounds, and Malik Newman added 20 points to cap a phenomenal tournament, lifting the Jayhawks (27-7) to their 11th tournament title and a likely No. 1 seed when the NCAA Tournament bracket is revealed Sunday.
It was the second time in three years they’ve beaten West Virginia (24-10) in the title game.
Svi Mykhailiuk also had 16 points for the Jayhawks, who scrapped their way through three games in three days without their 7-foot anchor. Azubuike hurt a ligament in his left knee in practice early in the week and spent the weekend on the bench, though he’s expected to return next week.
Not that it mattered the way Graham and Newman were knocking down 3-pointers.
SEC TOURNAMENT
Kentucky 86, Alabama 63
ST. LOUIS — Collin Sexton and Alabama were making another push in the second half, cutting Kentucky’s big lead down to nine with 5:15 remaining.
But when Wenyen Gabriel knocked down his seventh 3-pointer on the next possession, the Wildcats were on their way.
Gabriel whipped up his hands, prompting a thundering “Go Big Blue” chant from the thousands of Kentucky fans at Scottrade Center. His teammates were shoving him around as he repeatedly tossed up three fingers.
Gabriel shot 7-for-7 on 3s and matched his career high with 23 points, sending Kentucky past Alabama in the Southeastern Conference Tournament semifinals.
The fourth-seeded Wildcats (23-10) advanced to play No. 13 Tennessee.
No. 13 Tennessee 84, Arkansas 66
ST. LOUIS — Jordan Bone scored 19 points to help spark a hot-shooting first half for No. 13 Tennessee in a win over Arkansas .
The win is the sixth straight and 13th in the last 15 games for the second-seeded Volunteers (25-7), who will try to win their first SEC Tournament championship in almost 40 years when they face Kentucky.
Bone scored 17 of his points in the first half, hitting 7 of 7 from the field and all three of his 3-point attempts. The sophomore finished 8 of 11 from the field and hit the three 3-pointers — part of an 11-of-17 shooting effort from behind the arc for Tennessee.
A-10 TOURNAMENT
No. 25 Rhode Island 90, Saint Joseph’s 87
WASHINGTON — Andre Berry scored 18 points, Fatts Russell made two crucial 3-pointers in the final six minutes and No. 25 Rhode Island rallied past Saint Joseph’s in the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament semifinals.
The Rams (25-6) are the first No. 1 seed in the Atlantic 10 to reach the conference championship game since Saint Louis in 2013.
Jeff Dowtin added 16 points and 10 assists for Rhode Island, Russell scored 14 points and E.C. Matthews had 11 of his 14 points in the second half for the defending tournament champions.
Davidson 82, St. Bonaventure 70
WASHINGTON — Peyton Aldridge scored 24 points and No. 3 seed Davidson snapped second-seeded St. Bonaventure’s 13-game win streak.
Aldridge made two 3-pointers and sliced through two defenders for a two-handed dunk as part of a 10-4 surge that gave the Wildcats a 70-63 lead with 3:33 remaining. Aldridge, the A-10 co-player of the year, was 8 of 14 from the field and made six of the Wildcats’ 16 3-pointers.
AAC TOURNAMENT
No. 8 Cincinnati 70, Memphis 60
ORLANDO, Fla. — Jarron Cumberland scored 18 points and Gary Clark had 17 points and 12 rebounds to rally No. 8 Cincinnati to a victory over Memphis in the semifinals of the American Athletic Conference Tournament.
Kyle Washington added 11 for the Bearcats (29-4), who advanced to meet Houston in Sunday’s final.
Jamal Johnson led Memphis with 17 points but didn’t score in the second half, when the Tigers squandered a 13-point lead. Kyvon Davenport had 12 points and 11 rebounds for Memphis (21-13), which is hoping for an invitation to the NIT tournament.
Cincinnati trailed 42-29 at halftime but erased the deficit in the first seven minutes of the second half with an active and aggressive defense.
No. 21 Houston 77, Wichita State 74
ORLANDO, Fla. — Rob Gray had a key steal and scored 33 points, including two free throws with 5 seconds remaining, as No. 21 Houston held off Wichita State.
Corey Davis Jr. scored 19 points for the Cougars (26-6).
Houston led by as many as nine points in the first half before the lead changed hands or was tied eight times in the final seven minutes.
UMBC 65, Vermont 62
BURLINGTON, Vt. — Jairus Myles hit a long 3-pointer with less than a second left, lifting Maryland Baltimore County over top-seeded Vermont in the America East championship game.
Myles scored 27 points to lead the second-seeded Retrievers (23-10) to their second conference title and second trip to the NCAA Tournament.
IVY LEAGUE TOURNAMENT
Pennsylvania 80, Yale 57
PHILADELPHIA — AJ Brodeur scored 25 points, on 10-of-13 shooting, and grabbed 10 rebounds and Pennsylvania never trailed in its win over Yale on Saturday in the Ivy League Tournament.
The second-seeded Quakers will play No. 1 seed Harvard in the championship game on Sunday. Penn (23-8) split the regular-season series with the Crimson with each team winning on its home court.
Brodeur scored 11 points in the first 10 minutes and Penn used a 12-0 run to take a 15-point lead when Caleb Wood hit three free throws with 9:48 left in the first half. Yale missed eight consecutive field-goal attempts and went scoreless for 4½ minutes during that stretch. Jackson Donahue’s 3-pointer capped a 12-3 spurt that pushed the lead to 23 points late in the first half and the Bulldogs trailed by at least 18 the rest of the way.
Harvard 74, Cornell 55
PHILADELPHIA — Seth Towns and Chris Lewis each had a double-double to help Harvard beat Cornel.
Towns scored 24 points and grabbed a career-high tying 12 rebounds and Lewis finished with 16 points and 10 boards. Christian Juzang added 12 points, hitting 4 of 6 from 3-point range for Harvard (18-12).
Juzang hit three 3s during a 16-4 run to close the first half and Lewis’ putback of his own miss to open the second gave Harvard a 39-32 lead.
MEAC TOURNAMENT
N.C. Central 71, Hampton 63
NORFOLK, Va. — Pablo Rivas had 22 points and North Carolina Central scored 11 in a row to break a 58-all tie and beat Hampton in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament championship.
Jordan Perkins added 13 points and nine assists and John Guerra scored 12 for the Eagles (19-15), who earned the league’s automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament for the third time in five years.
MWC TOURNAMENT
San Diego State 82, New Mexico 75
LAS VEGAS — Troy Kell scored 28 points to lead San Diego State to a victory over New Mexico in the Mountain West Conference tournament championship.
The Aztecs (22-10) earn the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
San Diego State also got 16 points from Malik Pope and 12 from Devin Watson.
The Aztecs, who played in a record 10th Mountain West tournament championship game, were playing in the title game for the fourth time in five seasons, and eighth time in 10 years.
SUN BELT TOURNAMENT
Georgia State 73, Georgia Southern 67
NEW ORLEANS — Isaiah Williams scored 14 of his 21 points in the second half, Devin Mitchell hit a late 3-pointer and Georgia State held off Georgia Southern in a Sun Belt Tournament semifinal.
The second-seeded Panthers (23-10) will play No. 4 seed UT-Arlington (21-12) in Sunday’s championship.
Quan Jackson’s 3-point play pulled Georgia Southern to 66-63 with 53 seconds left. Following a Georgia State timeout and with 20 seconds left on the shot clock, Mitchell took the inbound pass and hit a deep 3-pointer with 21.4 seconds to play. Williams made four free throws to seal it.
UT-Arlington 71, Louisiana-Lafayette 68
NEW ORLEANS — Kaelon Wilson scored 12 of his 17 points in the second half and No. 4 seed UT-Arlington upset top-seeded Louisiana-Lafayette.
The 2017 regular-season champion Mavericks (21-12) have won five straight and advanced to their first Sun Belt championship.
Louisiana-Lafayette (27-6) had its last lead, 68-67, with 1:54 to play. Wilson and Kevin Hervey made two free throws apiece while the Ragin’ Cajuns missed their last four field goals, including a pair of 3-pointers in the last five seconds.
SWAC TOURNAMENT
Texas Southern 84, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 69
HOUSTON — Texas Southern started out 0-13 this season. Didn’t win a game until Jan. 1. Never beat a nonconference opponent.
Who cares? The Tigers are going to the NCAA Tournament.
Trayvon Reed had 17 points and 10 rebounds, Demontrae Jefferson added 15 points and Texas Southern downed top-seeded Arkansas-Pine Bluff in the Southwestern Athletic Conference championship game.
Texas Southern (15-19) earned an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season.
This is the Tigers’ fourth appearance in the last five years. They’re the only team since 1985 to reach the NCAA Tournament after starting 0-13.