No. 3 Missouri appeared destined to rout No. 2 Memphis after leading by 24 points early in the second half. But Memphis pulled as close as six points and seemed on the cusp of pulling off a stunning comeback. However, the Tigers ran out of time, and Missouri advanced with a 102-91 win.

Senior guard Levance Fields delivered a 60-55 victory to No. 1 Pittsburgh after No. 4 Xavier appeared to have the Panthers on the ropes. Trailing 54-52 with less than a minute to go and the shot clock winding down, Fields stutter-stepped and lifted above the defender to drain a go-ahead three-pointer. At the other end, Fields stole the ball from B.J. Raymond and sprinted in for a layup that gave Pittsburgh a three-point lead.

No. 1 Connecticut’s size and power outmatched No. 5 Purdue, propelling the Huskies to a 72-60 win. Junior center Hasheem Thabeet had 15 points, 15 rebounds and four blocks for the Huskies, and senior guard Craig Austrie led Connecticut with 17 points.

No. 3 Missouri had an answer for every big shot that No. 6 Marquette made, and the Tigers found a way to beat the Golden Eagles 83-79. Tied at 78, Marquette’s Jerel McNeal made only 1-of-2 free throws, setting up an unusual play in which Tiller drove to the basket, drew a foul but couldn’t take the free throws because he was injured on the play. Freshman guard Kim English, a 68 percent free throw shooter, stepped in and calmly drained both free throws, which proved to be the winning points for Missouri.

After watching an eight-point lead evaporate, No. 1 Louisville responded in the final minutes with a 15-4 run, fueled by senior swingman Terrence Williams, to help the Cardinals beat No. 9 Siena 79-72. Williams helped Louisville survive the Saints’ best shot by scoring 24 points, including seven during the decisive run with seven minutes remaining, and grabbing 15 rebounds.

No. 2 Michigan State’s defense shut down No. 10 USC in the closing minutes to eek out a 74-69 win. The Trojans went scoreless in the final three minutes as the Spartans inched ahead at the free throw line.

No. 12 Arizona dodged potentially disastrous foul trouble to beat No. 13 Cleveland State 71-57. The Wildcats’ five starters scored all but two of the team’s points, led by junior point guard Nic Wise’s 21 points. Wise and junior forward Jordan Hill finished with four fouls, and the other three starters had three fouls.

After a frenetic first half, No. 1 Pittsburgh clamped down on defense in the second half of an 84-76 win against No. 8 Oklahoma State. Senior swingman Sam Young had a sensational game for the Panthers with 32 points and seven rebounds. Oklahoma State led much of the first half by shooting 62 percent from the field and hitting 10 three-pointers.

No. 3 Kansas junior point guard Sherron Collins and sophomore forward Cole Aldrich took control of a second consecutive game to deliver a 60-43 win against No. 11 Dayton. Collins and Aldrich combined for 38 points, which was nearly enough to beat the cold-shooting Flyers.