No. 10 Connecticut too strong for Rutgers

Associated Press

HARTFORD, Conn.

Alex Oriakhi had 17 points, 12 rebounds and four blocked shots as No. 10 Connecticut returned to Big East play with a 67-53 victory over Rutgers on Tuesday night.

Kemba Walker finished with 18 points.

He has led Connecticut in scoring in every game this season.

No. 11 BYU 104, Utah 79

SALT LAKE CITY

Jimmer Fredettte scored 47 points and Jackson Emery added 20 points and set BYU’s career steals record as the Cougars extended their winning streak to seven games.

BYU (17-1, 3-0 Mountain West) has won four straight and eight of the last nine against Utah.

No. 12 Texas 83, Texas Tech 52

LUBBOCK, Texas

Freshman Tristan Thompson scored 20 points to lift Texas.

Jordan Hamilton added 16 points and Cory Joseph had 15 for the Longhorns (13-3, 1-0 Big 12).

No. 13 Kentucky 78, Auburn 54

LEXINGTON, Ky.

Terrence Jones set a Kentucky freshman record with 35 points.

Jones broke the previous record of 32 points — set by teammate Doron Lamb against Winthrop last month — behind a series of jumpers and layups as Kentucky (13-3, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) easily avoided its first losing streak under coach John Calipari.

Big Ten Penn St. 57, No. 16 Illinois 55

STATE COLLEGE, PA.

Andrew Jones converted an offensive rebound with 1 second left and Talor Battle scored 26 points to lead Penn State to its second straight upset of a ranked team.

After a layup by Bill Cole of Illinois tied the game with 20 seconds left, go-to guy Battle set up for the last shot. His off-balance attempt in the lane bounced off the rim and into the hands of Jones, the 6-foot-10 center who dunked in the go-ahead bucket.

Illinois’ desperation heave downcourt was intercepted by Jones, and the blue-and-white faithful rushed the court. There was good reason to celebrate — it was the first time Penn State (10-6, 3-2 Big Ten) beat ranked foes in consecutive games since the 1954 NCAA tournament.

The Nittany Lions beat then-No. 18 Michigan State 66-62 on Saturday. Mike Tisdale had 16 points and 14 rebounds for Illinois (13-4, 3-1).

Michigan St. 64, No. 20 Wisconsin 61, OT

EAST LANSING, Mich.

Draymond Green scored a career-high 26 points, and Kalin Lucas made three free throws in the final minute of overtime to lift Michigan State.

The Spartans scored the final nine points of regulation to tie the game at 53, then outlasted the Badgers (12-4, 2-2 Big Ten) in the extra session. Lucas put Michigan State (11-5, 3-1) up by one with a free throw with 30.2 seconds remaining, and Wisconsin’s Jordan Taylor then missed from near the top of the key.

Lucas, who finished with 17 points, added two free throws with 2.2 seconds left, and Taylor missed a desperation shot from midcourt.

Mid-American Kent State 80, Bowling Green 63

KENT

Michael Porrini scored 21 points and Justin Greene had 17 points to lead Kent State to an 80-63 win over Bowling Green on Tuesday night.

The Golden Flashes (10-6, 1-1 Mid-American Conference) snapped a three-game losing streak and avoided the program’s first 0-2 start in conference play since 1996-97. Kent State also ended Bowling Green’s (6-10, 1-1) win streak at four games.

Porrini, who also finished with eight assists and eight rebounds, made a jumper with 4 minutes left in the first half to give the Golden Flashes a 33-15 lead.

Northern Illinois 71, Eastern Michigan 69

YPSILANTI, Mich.

Xavier Silas scored 31 points to lead Northern Illinois.

Silas made 11 of his 14 shots from the field — all six of his 3-point attempts — for Northern Illinois (5-9, 1-1 Mid-American).