Saturday was another big day of action, and many of the matchups on the day gave reason to believe it would be a great day. There were showdowns, games where one team or another really needed a win, and otherwise important games and ultimately results all across the country. The day was as good as advertised on the whole, and as such, there are a lot of games to look back on.
Saturday also marked the completion of the first back-to-back weekend of Ivy League play, and a clear leader has emerged in the early going.
Without further adieu, here are notes from many of Saturday’s games.
Baylor 68, TCU 52: The Bears’ trademark defense largely did this, holding TCU below 36 percent from the field, forcing 15 turnovers and holding a 37-30 rebounding edge. Freddie Gillespie, a real unsung hero on this team, anchored that with 12 points, 11 rebounds and six blocked shots.
Kansas 78, Texas Tech 75: The Red Raiders had a chance, but the Jayhawks managed to hold them off and go to 7-1 in the Big 12, keeping pace with Baylor.
Oklahoma 82, Oklahoma State 69: The Cowboys fall to 0-8 in Big 12 play. Remember when they looked like a team that could contend, back in the NIT Season Tip-Off?
West Virginia 66, Kansas State 57: The Mountaineers avoided a repeat of the first meeting between these two teams in Manhattan and grab sole possession of third place.
Texas 72, Iowa State 68: The Longhorns hang on to get to 4-4 in Big 12 play, but this was more avoiding a bad loss than anything else.
Gonzaga 83, San Francisco 79: The Bulldogs got all they could handle on the road in running their conference winning streak to an incredible 36 games. They trailed by eight at the break, but quickly tied it in the second, and the two were neck-and-neck the rest of the way.
BYU 81, Saint Mary’s 79: The two teams chasing Gonzaga in the West Coast Conference had as good a game as advertised, with T.J. Haws hitting a late three-pointer to give the Cougars the win and tie the two teams at 6-3.
San Diego State 80, Utah State 68: The Aggies led at halftime and early in the second, but as the Aztecs rallied on the night they retired Kawhi Leonard’s jersey, you had a feeling they would gain the lead and that would be all she wrote, and that was basically what happened as they go to 23-0.
Boise State 73, Nevada 64: Quietly, the Broncos are now 7-4 in Mountain West play, tied with Colorado State (who handled UNLV 95-77 at home) for second behind San Diego State.
Xavier 74, Seton Hall 62: The Musketeers badly needed this one, and now that they got it, they can hope to use it as a springboard to get some late momentum going not unlike a year ago.
Creighton 76, Villanova 61: Creighton’s shooting numbers, including going 11-22 from deep, will get a lot of play, but let’s not understate their defense in this big road win – holding Villanova to 36 percent shooting including 7-26 from long range.
Marquette 76, DePaul 72: Markus Howard fortunately didn’t miss a game after going down a few nights earlier, and DePaul is now 1-8 in Big East play at the midway point.
Providence 65, Butler 61: On a day where road teams largely ruled in Big East play, the Friars joined in the fun with a change in the starting lineup and holding the Bulldogs to just 1-14 from long range.
Florida State 74, Virginia Tech 63: This was an opportunity for the Hokies at home, but Devin Vassell (27 points) and the Seminoles took care of business on the road.
Duke 97, Syracuse 88: The recently resurgent Orange continue to have a hard time winning in the Carrier Dome, which might be the most puzzling development of this season.
Boston College 71, North Carolina 70: Cole Anthony returned and had 26 points, but BC held on for the win in Chapel Hill.
Louisville 77, NC State 57: The Wolfpack’s NCAA Tournament hopes are fading all the time, getting handled at home in a quality win opportunity.
Wisconsin 64, Michigan State 63: The Badgers snap an eight-game losing streak against the Spartans after facing a lot of adversity, using a big first half to carry them and drop the Spartans a game back of first place in the loss column.
Michigan 69, Rutgers 62: It’s a sign of how far Rutgers has come that we say the Wolverines really needed this win over them, made even better by the fact that they were designated the home team but it was at Madison Square Garden, much closer to the Scarlet Knights’ home.
Purdue 61, Northwestern 58: The Boilermakers are the latest team the Wildcats have given some trouble, as they trailed at the half and needed a three-pointer in the final seconds to win.
Ohio State 68, Indiana 59: Ohio State needed this one at home, as they stopped the bleeding at Northwestern (barely) but had been through an eight-game stretch where their only wins came against the Wildcats and Nebraska.
Auburn 75, Kentucky 66: An eminently winnable road game for the Wildcats, getting out-rebounded 42-28 and committing five more turnovers went a long way towards dropping it.
LSU 73, Ole Miss 63: The Tigers run their SEC mark to 8-0 with a slightly more comfortable win this time around, and Auburn’s win means they’re two games up in the loss column on everyone else.
Mississippi State 86, Tennessee 73: The Bulldogs have now won five of six and join Florida and South Carolina at 5-3 in SEC play, tied for fourth, and they knock the slumping Volunteers down to 4-4.
Florida 61, Vanderbilt 55: The Commodores’ record losing streak continues in what amounts to a “get well” game for Florida, but they’ll need better wins than this.
Arkansas 82, Alabama 78: The Razorbacks even both teams out at 4-4 in SEC play, getting 26 points from Jimmy Whitt Jr. and coming back from a small halftime deficit on the road.
Stanford 70, Oregon 60: The Cardinal had lost three straight, which naturally had some wondering about this team given that they had not really knocked off anyone of note other than Oklahoma. Well, now they have this one, which also puts five teams right there in the Pac-12 race with three losses apiece.
Colorado 78, USC 57: This result also helps make the Pac-12 race more interesting as both teams are now 6-3, though it’s a very impressive road win for the Buffaloes any way you slice it.
Arizona 66, Washington State 49: As noted before, a couple of teams have been clipped up in Pullman, including the Wildcats’ arch rival the other night, so this was not a game to take lightly and the Wildcats clearly didn’t.
Arizona State 87, Washington 83: The Huskies go down again, and at home, putting them at 1-7 since Quade Green was declared academically ineligible. And as has been the case in most of them, it was a close loss, as only two of the seven have been by double digits.
Cal 69, Oregon State 67: It wasn’t all that long ago that we had to look at the Beavers as a potential NCAA Tournament team. We can put that idea to rest, as their 3-7 mark in Pac-12 play basically means this team is only dancing with a conference tournament title.
Cincinnati 64, Houston 62: The Bearcats stay hot and draw even with the Cougars at 7-2 in American Athletic Conference play, though it took a big second half.
Tulsa 54, Wichita State 51: Your American Athletic Conference leader is the Golden Hurricane, now 7-1 after Elijah Joiner hit a tough three-pointer as time expired, and with his father watching him as a college player for the first time.
Southern Illinois 79, Drake 72: The Salukis keep pace among the leaders by winning on the road, which Northern Iowa also did, for their fifth straight win, getting 28 points from Marcus Domask.
Loyola-Chicago 62, Bradley 51: These two were tied at 6-3 coming in, and it’s the Ramblers who move into a tie for second by pulling away from the Braves.
New Mexico State 72, Grand Canyon 52: Another season, another year of New Mexico State ruling the WAC, as they remain undefeated and are two games up on everyone else.
Little Rock 93, Appalachian State 86: Markquis Nowell posts a big double-double with 17 points and 13 assists to lead the first place Trojans to another win.
East Tennessee State 82, UNC Greensboro 65: A solid bounce-back win for the Buccaneers in a big game to get back in first place at 8-2 in Southern Conference play.
Hofstra 83, William & Mary 60: The road team wins both meetings between these two teams, who are now tied with College of Charleston atop the CAA.
College of Charleston 79, Towson 70: The Cougars complete a good road trip by winning this important matchup to join Hofstra and William & Mary in a tie at the top, with Grant Riller adding 28 more points to a stellar couple of games.
Yale 86, Cornell 71: The Bulldogs are tied atop the Ivy League at 4-0 behind 24 points and 11 rebounds from Paul Atkinson.
Princeton 70, Harvard 69: The Tigers join the Bulldogs at 4-0 by edging the Crimson, who are 2-2 after getting swept on the road this weekend. Princeton was 13-23 from long range in this one.
Penn 54, Dartmouth 46: A weekend sweep puts the Quakers right back in the mix at 2-2, but losing both to Princeton earlier may very well hurt down the road.
Stephen F. Austin 81, Sam Houston State 76: A big road win with first place in the Southland on the line puts the Lumberjacks two games up on everyone else.
Colgate 73, Holy Cross 64: The Raiders stay on top in the Patriot League with a road win behind 25 points and 12 rebounds from Will Rayman, who has four double-doubles in the past five games.
Boston University 77, Bucknell 57: The Terriers go on the road to win in impressive fashion to gain sole possession of second place a game back of the Raiders, with four teams another game back of them.
Winthrop 104, UNC Asheville 71: The Eagles go to 10-0 in Big South play as they score 52 points in each half.
Merrimack 70, LIU 59: The Spartans remain atop the Northeast Conference, now at 9-1, and the great story of the Division I newcomers continues.
North Carolina A&T 74, Norfolk State 68: The Aggies made a 13-point halftime lead stand up by holding off the Spartans to take over first place for the moment and even the teams up in the loss column.
