Noah key cog in Florida win over Mississippi



No. 2 Wisconsin closed with a 10-2 run to beat Illinois, 71-64.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Joakim Noah had two momentum-changing baskets down the stretch, finished with a season-high 24 points and helped top-ranked Florida avoid a near collapse with a 79-70 victory over pesky Mississippi on Saturday.
The defending national champions led 53-28 early in the second half and looked like they would cruise to their 10th consecutive win. But the Rebels used a 29-11 run over a 10-minute span to make it a close game in the final 8 minutes.
Florida (17-2, 4-0 Southeastern Conference) extended the lead to 73-60, but the Rebels stormed back by creating several turnovers. Ole Miss (12-7, 1-4) used three straight buckets to make it a seven-point game for the second time. However, Noah rebounded Taurean Green's missed 3-point shot and slammed it home.
Green made two free throws, and Horford had a dunk in the closing minutes to seal the victory.
Clarence Sanders led Ole Miss with 17 points despite missing seven of eight 3-pointers.
No. 2 Wisconsin 71, Illinois 64
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Kammron Taylor scored 20 points and Wisconsin closed with a 10-2 run to beat Illinois.
Alando Tucker had 17 points and eight rebounds for the Badgers (19-1, 5-0 Big Ten).
Shaun Pruitt had a career-best 19 points and 14 rebounds and Rich McBride added 15 points for the Illini (14-7, 2-4 Big Ten), who led 62-61 with 2:06 remaining.
Greg Stiemsma, who finished with 12 points, hit two free throws to give Wisconsin the lead for good at 63-62.
The Illini took a 60-57 lead on McBride's 3-pointer with 5:06 left. Illinois, 14-for-23 on free throws, was 6-for-19 on 3s.
No. 3 UCLA 73, No. 11 Arizona 69
LOS ANGELES -- Arron Afflalo scored 22 points and No. 3 UCLA sent 11th-ranked Arizona's Lute Olson to his first three-game Pac-10 losing streak in 22 years.
Darren Collison added 14 points and seven assists, Michael Roll had 13 points and Alfred Aboya grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds for the Bruins (16-1, 6-1), who improved to 14-0 at Pauley Pavilion dating to last season.
Ivan Radenovic scored 21 points and Marcus Williams added 11 points and 11 rebounds for Arizona (13-5, 4-4). Olson hadn't experienced a three-game conference losing skid since 1983-84, his first season in Tucson.
Texas Tech 69, No. 5 Kansas 64
LUBBOCK, Texas -- Darryl Dora scored 19 points a Texas Tech snapped Kansas' 10-game win streak.
Alan Voskuil tipped in a rebound with 35 seconds remaining after Jay Jackson missed a shot to seal the win. After Kansas missed two 3-point attempts, Tech got the rebound and passed the ball to a wide open Martin Zeno who dunked it to cap the upset.
No. 10 Alabama 78, Georgia 76
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Ronald Steele's off-balance jump shot as time expired completed No. 10 Alabama's comeback from an 11-point deficit over the final 4:35.
Alonzo Gee had 21 points to lead Alabama (14-3, 2-2 Southeastern Conference), which didn't have a lead before the winning shot. Steele, who finished with 13 points, tied it with a long 3-pointer from the top of the key with 54 seconds to play.
Sundiata Gaines scored 22 points and Takais Brown had 21 points and 10 rebounds for the Bulldogs (11-6, 3-2).
No. 13 Air Force 56,San Diego St. 51
AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- Jacob Burtschi scored 23 points as No. 13 Air Force held off a late surge for its 26th straight home win.
Heath and Jerome Habel had 15 points apiece for San Diego State (13-6, 2-3).
No. 14 Duke 79, N.C. State 56
RALEIGH, N.C. -- Jon Scheyer scored 20 points and DeMarcus Nelson added 15 as No. 14 Duke beat North Carolina State.
Arkansas 72, No. 16 LSU 52
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- Steven Hill scored a career-high 16 points as Arkansas rolled to an easy win.
No. 17 Memphis 61, East Carolina 42
GREENVILLE, N.C. -- Jeremy Hunt scored 16 points to help Memphis remain unbeaten in Conference USA. Doneal Mack added 15 and Robert Dozier had 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Tigers (15-3, 5-0), who shot just 31 percent from the field.
No. 18 Butler 80,Wis.-Green Bay 59
INDIANAPOLIS -- A.J. Graves, back in the starting lineup for the first time in three games, scored 28 points and raised his nation-best free-throws streak to 63 in a row for No. 18 Butler.
Pete Campbell added 14 points and Brandon Crone had 13 for the Bulldogs. Ryan Evanochko led Green Bay with 21 points.
No. 19 Clemson 74,Boston College 54
CLEMSON, S.C. -- Cliff Hammonds scored 17 points and No. 19 Clemson took advantage of Sean Williams' absence, handing Boston College its first ACC loss of the season.
Villanova 76, No. 21 Texas 69
PHILADELPHIA -- Freshman Scottie Reynolds scored 26 points and Villanova held Texas' first-year standout Kevin Durant to 12 in a victory over the 21st-ranked Longhorns.
Freshman D.J. Augustin matched his career high with 25 points for the Longhorns (13-5).
No. 22 Tennessee 64,South Carolina 61
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- JaJuan Smith scored 21 points and Wayne Chism added 14 points and 10 rebounds to help Tennessee end its three-game losing streak. The Volunteers (14-5, 2-2 Southeastern Conference) had lost three in a row by a total of six points and avoided losing their fourth straight despite the loss of the league's leading scorer Chris Lofton. Lofton left the game early in the second half with a right ankle injury after scoring only four points.
Vanderbilt 72, No. 25 Kentucky 67
LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Derrick Byars had 23 points, including 12 on 3-pointers, and Vanderbilt got its third straight win against Kentucky and its fourth win against a ranked opponent this season.
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