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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, February 28, 2010

Top-ranked Kansas, No. 2 Kentucky fall


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Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Oklahoma State's Matt Pilgrim buries two of his 18 point s over Kansas' Sherron Collins, left, and Cole Aldrich during last night's game.

SUE OGROCKI | Associated Press

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STILLWATER, Okla. — Students rushed onto the floor, jumping up and down and hoisting Keiton Page as they celebrated a historic win for Oklahoma State.

The bottom line for the Cowboys: "We're a tournament team now," forward Obi Muonelo said.

James Anderson scored 27 points, Page was perfect on four 3-point tries at crucial times and Oklahoma State denied a bid by No. 1 Kansas to go undefeated through Big 12 play with an 85-77 victory last night.

The Cowboys (20-8, 8-6) moved to 3-1 against top-ranked teams all time at home and likely removed any doubt of whether they would make the NCAA tournament for a second straight season. Despite entering the game in seventh place in the Big 12, OSU had an RPI of 33.

It was OSU's first win against a No. 1 team and its first road win over a top 10 team in 52 years.

Teammate Fred Gulley headed toward the safety of the scorer's table as fans spilled out of the student sections along both baselines. But Page was right in the middle of it all.

"That was a great feeling," Page said. "I was claustrophobic. I was getting hot, so when they picked me up, I got a little breather. I was pretty excited when they did that. I thought I was going to pass out there for a little while."

The Jayhawks (27-2, 13-1) had won their last 13 games since losing at Tennessee to close nonconference play and suffered their second loss of the season just hours after No. 2 Kentucky also lost to the Volunteers.

The last time the top two teams lost on the same day was Jan. 21, 2006, when No. 1 Duke lost to Georgetown and No. 2 Florida lost to Tennessee. Both of those teams were 17-0 at the time.

Sherron Collins had 22 points to lead Kansas, but also matched his season-high with six turnovers. Freshman Xavier Henry added 17 points and Cole Aldrich scored 11 but had little impact on the boards with only five rebounds.

NO. 19 TENNESSEE 74, NO. 2 KENTUCKY 65

J.P. Prince scored 20 points and Scotty Hopson added 15, helping the host Volunteers (21-7, 9-5 Southeastern Conference) turn back a late rally by the Wildcats (27-2, 12-2).

The Wildcats trailed by 19 early in the second half but managed to tie the game at 65 with just over two minutes left before Prince and Hopson scored the final nine points to clinch the victory.

"That was a mature win," Prince said. "We had a big lead, let them come back, but didn't panic."

NO. 4 SYRACUSE 95, VILLANOVA 77

Rick Jackson scored 19 points and Arinze Onuaku had 17, helping the host Orange (27-2, 14-2) rout the Wildcats (23-5, 12-4) and clinch at least a tie for Big East Conference title before an NCAA on-campus record crowd of 34,616.

NO. 6 KANSAS STATE 63, MISSOURI 53

Curtis Kelly had 10 points and 10 rebounds, Jamar Samuels scored 14 points and Jacob Pullen hit a 3-pointer for a 30-29 lead with 16:51 left to play and the host Wildcats (24-4, 11-3 Big 12) never trailed again in beating the Tigers (21-8, 9-5).

NO. 8 WEST VIRGINIA 74, CINCINNATI 68

Kevin Jones scored 15 points, including a 3-pointer for a 62-60 lead with 6:19 left as the host Mountaineers (22-6, 11-5 Big East) rallied from a 10-point deficit after intermission to beat the Bearcats (16-12, 7-9), who went nearly nine minutes without a field goal in the second half.

NO. 9 OHIO STATE 66, MICHIGAN 55

William Buford scored 24 points and Evan Turner added 18 points and 11 rebounds as the host Buckeyes (23-7, 13-4) beat the Wolverines (13-15, 6-10) to remain in the thick of the Big Ten race heading into the final week.

NO. 10 NEW MEXICO 83, NO. 13 BYU 81

Dairese Gary scored 23 points and Darington Hobson blocked a shot in the paint by Noah Hartsock with one second left as the visiting Lobos (27-3, 13-2) held off the Cougars (26-4, 11-3) to clinch the top seed in the Mountain West tournament and a share of the regular-season title.

NOTRE DAME 78, NO. 11 GEORGETOWN 64

Ben Hansbrough scored 21 points, Tim Abromaitis had 19 and the visiting Fighting Irish (19-10, 8-8 Big East) opened the second half with a 10-3 run for a 41-30 lead to stun the Hoyas (19-8, 9-7) for their second straight win over a Top 25 team.

NO. 12 PITTSBURGH 71, ST. JOHN'S 64

Nasir Robinson and Gilbert Brown each scored 13 points, and the Panthers (22-7, 11-5) made their 31-23 halftime lead stand up in beating the Red Storm (15-13, 5-11) to remain in the running for a double-bye in the Big East tournament.

NO. 16 VANDERBILT 89, ARKANSAS 72

Jeffrey Taylor scored 18 points as the visiting Commodores (22-6, 11-3 Southeastern Conference) led 45-35 at halftime and were never threatened in the second half in beating the Razorbacks (14-15, 7-7) to move within one game of first-place Kentucky in the Eastern Division.

NO. 18 GONZAGA 75, SAN FRANCISCO 69

Elias Harris scored 17 points, Steven Gray added 15 points, and the host Bulldogs (24-5, 12-2) held off the Dons (12-17, 7-7) to win their 10th straight West Coast Conference title.

NO. 22 TEXAS A&M 74, NO. 21 TEXAS 58

Donald Sloan scored 19 points and the host Aggies (20-8, 9-5 Big 12) never trailed in beating the Longhorns (22-7, 8-6), who lost J'Covan Brown to an apparent neck injury when the guard fell hard to the floor after driving to the basket late in the game.

NO. 24 BAYLOR 70, OKLAHOMA 63

Ekpe Udoh had 20 points and seven blocked shots, helping the visiting Bears (22-6, 9-5 Big 12) to their first win over the Sooners (13-15, 4-10) in Norman since December 1977 and first since the Big 12 came into existence with the 1996-97 season.

NO. 25 NORTHERN IOWA 61, ILLINOIS STATE 55

Center Jordan Eglseder returned from a three-game suspension to score 13 points, helping the Panthers (25-4, 15-3 Missouri Valley) beat the Redbirds (21-9, 11-7) for their first unbeaten season at home in 46 years.

WAC

LOUISIANA TECH 60, IDAHO 49

Jamel Guyton scored 16 points and Olu Ashaolu added 10 points and 12 rebounds as the host Bulldogs (22-7, 9-5 Western Athletic Conference) swept the two-game season series with the Vandals (13-15, 4-10). Louisiana Tech led 29-23 at halftime, and by as many as 15 in the second half.

NEW MEXICO STATE 95, BOISE STATE 92

Jonathan Gibson scored 24 points and the host Aggies (19-9, 11-3 WAC) led by 20 with 12:18 to play, but the Broncos (13-16, 3-11) nearly came all the way back before an Anthony Thomas' 3-pointer at the buzzer fell short.

SAN JOSE STATE 72, FRESNO STATE 45

Robert Owens scored 20 points, Mac Peterson added 16, and the host Spartans (14-14, 6-8 WAC) finished the first half with an 18-3 run for a 33-16 lead, then opened the second period with an 18-4 surge in cruising past the Bulldogs (14-16, 6-8).

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