college basketball | Men’s roundup

No. 19 Cincinnati 86, No. 24 Xavier 78

CINCINNATI

Jacob Evans III scored 21 points and led No. 19 Cincinnati’s second-half surge to a victory over No. 24 Xavier on the Bearcats’ home court, ending the Musketeers’ streak of three straight wins in their annual crosstown rivalry game. The Bearcats (18-2) got their 11th straight win by overcoming Trevon Bluiett’s incredible shooting performance — 12 of 15 for a career-high 40 points. Cincinnati dominated up front as Xavier (14-6) got little out of its front line. The Bearcats controlled the boards 42-18 and had 30 second-chance points. Evans scored the first three points in a 15-2 run that put Cincinnati ahead to stay. Gary Clark added 13 points and 11 rebounds. Bluiett made all of his eight shots in the first half for 26 points and his first 10 overall before missing a rushed 3 to beat the shot clock. He was 9 of 11 from beyond the arc, tying the school record for 3s in a game.

No. 3 Gonzaga 79, San Diego 43

SPOKANE, WASH.

Nigel Williams-Goss scored 25 points as undefeated and third-ranked Gonzaga beat San Diego, clearing one obstacle to a possible No. 1 ranking next week. Johnathan Williams added 13 points and 12 rebounds for Gonzaga (21-0, 9-0 West Coast), which has the nation’s longest winning streak at 21 games. The Zags are the nation’s last remaining undefeated Division I team. If Gonzaga can win at Pepperdine on Saturday, the Zags have a good chance of claiming the top spot in the next Top 25 as No. 1 Villanova and No. 2 Kansas lost this week. Olin Carter III scored 12 points for San Diego (10-11, 3-6), which has lost five straight to Gonzaga.

No. 9 North Carolina 91, Virginia Tech 72

CHAPEL HILL, N.C.

Justin Jackson scored 26 points and No. 9 North Carolina hit a season-high 14 3-pointers to beat Virginia Tech. Kennedy Meeks added 15 points and 14 rebounds for the Tar Heels (19-3, 7-1), who have climbed into sole possession of first place in the Atlantic Coast Conference with seven straight wins along with No. 6 Florida State’s loss at Georgia Tech on Wednesday. UNC led 44-33 by halftime, then ran off 10 straight points midway through the second half to turn this one into a rout. The Tar Heels also shot 49 percent and had a 43-22 edge on the glass, helping them to 20 second-chance points. Seth Allen scored 19 points for the Hokies (15-5, 4-4), who shot 51 percent in the first half but didn’t do much to get UNC out of what was often a catch-and-shoot rhythm.

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