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GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Patric Young scored 18 points in his final home game and No. 1 Florida routed 25th-ranked Kentucky 84-65 Saturday, becoming the first team in Southeastern Conference history to go 18-0 in league play.
Fellow seniors Casey Prather (15) and Scottie Wilbekin (13) also reached double figures for the Gators (29-2, 18-0), who have won 23 straight this season and 32 in a row at home.
Coach Billy Donovan called timeout with 36.9 seconds remaining to get his four seniors another standing ovation.
They certainly deserved this one.
Young, Prather, Wilbekin and fellow starter Will Yeguete have now won 113 games in four seasons, four shy of tying the school record held by Walter Hodge.
The latest one seemed a lock early but was in doubt for a while in the second half.
Julius Randle led the Wildcats (22-9, 12-6) with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
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WEST VIRGINIA 92, No. 8 KANSAS 86
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Eron Harris scored 28 points, Juwan Staten added 24 and West Virginia withstood 41 points by Kansas freshman Andrew Wiggins.
The Mountaineers (17-14, 9-9 Big 12) led by as many as 25 points early in the second half before watching Kansas tear into the deficit behind Wiggins, who fouled out in the final seconds after setting a season high in scoring.
Devin Williams, WVU's star freshman, had a season-high 22 points along with 13 rebounds. It marked the first time this season that Kansas had allowed three opposing players to score 20 points.
Perry Ellis added 14 points for Kansas (23-8, 14-4), which clinched its 10th straight regular-season title a week ago and had little riding on the Big 12 regular-season finale.
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No. 2 WICHITA 67, MISSOURI STATE 42
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Cleanthony Early scored 20 points with three 3-pointers and a pair of dunks, and Wichita State improved to 33-0 in the Missouri Valley Conference semifinals.
Tekele Cotton also made three 3-pointers for the top-seeded Shockers (33-0), who matched the start by Larry Bird and Indiana State in 1979 before they lost to Michigan State and Magic Johnson in the NCAA title game. Wichita State will be heavily favored against Indiana State or Southern Illinois to make it 34 in a row, which would match the NCAA-record start by UNLV in 1990-91.
The Shockers, who last won the conference tourney in 1987, took control with a 17-0 run in the first half and topped it with 24 straight points in the second, scoring at will while Missouri State endured droughts totaling more than 15 minutes.
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No. 6 VILLANOVA 77, GEORGETOWN 59
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Darrun Hilliard scored 19 points to lead Villanova to a dominating victory, preserving the Wildcats' hopes of a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
JayVaughn Pinkston added 13 points, and James Bell and Ryan Arcidiacono had 11 apiece for the Wildcats (28-3, 16-2), who won their sixth straight game while tying the 2005-06 team for second-most wins in program history. Villanova's 16 Big East wins are the most in school history.
The 18-point win marked the largest margin of victory for Villanova in a Big East game between the teams.
Markel Starks scored 20 points for the Hoyas (17-13, 8-10), who are in jeopardy of failing to make the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2009. D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera added 14 points and Aaron Bowen had 13 for Georgetown.
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No. 11 LOUISVILLE 81, No. 19 CONNECTICUT 48
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Montrezl Harrell scored 20 points, Russ Smith recorded a career-high 13 assists and No. 11 Louisville claimed a share of the American Athletic Conference championship.
Harrell added 11 rebounds and several thunderous dunks to help the Cardinals (26-5, 15-3) finish tied with No. 15 Cincinnati atop the upstart league. A coin flip gave Cincinnati the top seed in the AAC tournament and Louisville the second seed.
A day in which Smith and fellow seniors Luke Hancock, Tim Henderson and Stephan Van Treese were honored beforehand as the program's winningest class ended with all playing key roles in their 116th win together. Smith topped his previous assist high by two, Hancock added 16 points, Van Treese grabbed 13 rebounds and Henderson added an early basket.
Louisville's defense, meanwhile, frustrated the Huskies (24-7, 12-6) into season-worst 29.4 percent shooting in completing the sweep.
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No. 15 CINCINNATI 70, RUTGRS 66
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) — Sean Kilpatrick scored 24 points and No. 15 Cincinnati clinched at least a share of the American Athletic Conference regular-season title.
Kilpatrick converted a three-point play and drove the lane for a layup in the final 68 seconds as the Bearcats (26-5, 15-3) rallied from a late deficit against the Scarlet Knights (11-20, 5-13).
Justin Jackson had given Cincinnati a 65-64 lead with 1:46 to play, scoring underneath after Kadeem Jack blocked his original shot in the paint.
Kilpatrick pushed the lead to four points with his back-door layup and free throw. The senior closed out the scoring with 17 seconds to play after Kerwin Okoro scored on a goaltending call against Jackson.
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No. 16 IOWA STATE 85, OKLAHOMA STATE 81, OT
AMES, Iowa (AP) — Naz Long forced overtime with a 30-foot 3-pointer at the buzzer, DeAndre Kane scored five of his 27 points in the closing seconds, and Iowa State overcame a 16-point deficit.
Kane hit a layup and a pair of free throws to put Iowa State ahead 82-79 with 11.7 seconds left.
Georges Niang had 22 points for Iowa State (23-7, 11-7 Big 12), which snapped a two-game losing streak and fell behind by as much as 45-29 before rallying.
Markel Brown missed two free throws with 3 seconds left for Oklahoma State (20-11, 8-10). Marcus Smart had 27 points to lead the Cowboys, but he and Cyclones star Melvin Ejim fouled out in regulation.
Brown finished with 26 points and 12 rebounds.
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No. 20 MEMPHIS 67, No. 18 SMU 58
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Joe Jackson scored 15 of his 18 points in the second half to lead Memphis.
Jackson hit his first four shots after intermission as the Tigers (23-8, 12-6 American Athletic Conference) shot 59 percent in the second half while building the lead to as many as 14.
Austin Nichols finished with 14 points and nine rebounds for Memphis.
Nic Moore led the Mustangs (23-8, 12-6) with 16 points. Nick Russell and Markus Kennedy scored 13 each for SMU, which lost its second straight, the first time this season the Mustangs have lost consecutive games.
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