CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Trevor Thompson scored 16 points and Ohio State survived a furious comeback by Illinois to win in overtime Thursday night, 68-63.
JaQuan Lyle hit a pair of free throws with 14 seconds left in overtime to put the Buckeyes (14-8, 6-3 Big Ten) up 66-63 and Mickey Mitchel followed with a layup to ice the game.
The Illini (10-11, 2-6) trailed by 13 with 6:34 to play but fought back and tied the game at 58-58 on a 3-pointer by Jalen Coleman-Lands with 56.9 seconds left in regulation.
But Illinois scored just five points in overtime.
Keita Bates-Diop finished with 15 points and 12 rebounds for Ohio State and Marc Loving scored 11 with 10 boards.
Kendrick Nunn led Illinois with 24 points, including five 3-pointers.
Cincinnati 58, UConn 57
HARTFORD, Conn. — Gary Clark’s 3-point play with 12 seconds left lifted Cincinnati (16-6, 6-3 American Athletic) to a 58-57 win over Connecticut (14-6, 4-3).
No. 8 Maryland 74,
No. 3 Iowa 68
COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Robert Carter Jr. and Rasheed Sulaimon each scored 17 points, and Maryland (18-3, 7-2 Big Ten) used a late charge to beat No. 3 Iowa (16-4, 7-1), ending the Hawkeyes’ nine-game winning streak.
No. 12 Michigan St. 76,
Northwestern 45
EVANSTON, Ill. — Denzel Valentine made five of Michigan State’s season-high 16 3-pointers and the Spartans (18-4, 5-4 Big Ten) clamped down on cold-shooting Northwestern (15-7, 3-6).
No. 23 Oregon 83,
No. 18 Arizona 75
TUCSON, Ariz. — Dillon Brooks scored 24 points and Oregon (17-4, 6-2 Pac-12) ended a 49-game home winning streak by Arizona (16-5, 4-4).
Syracuse 81,
No. 25 Notre Dame 66
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Trevor Cooney scored 22 points to lead four Syracuse players in double figures, and the Orange (14-8, 4-5 ACC) beat Notre Dame (14-6, 5-3).
Women’s roundup
No. 7 Ohio State 76,
Northwestern 73
COLUMBUS — Kelsey Mitchell scored one point in the first half of Ohio State’s win over Northwestern on Thursday night.
She finished with 27.
Nobody on the Scarlet and Gray’s sideline seemed concerned in the meantime.
“She’s so good I knew she’d turn it on when we needed it,” said Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff.
His message to her after she went 0 for 8 from the floor in the first half was, “Just stay confident. Stay aggressive. She kind of felt like she was playing a little too fast so I said, ‘Go ahead and slow down but stay aggressive.’”
That turned out to be good advice.
Twice the Big Ten’s leading scorer made 3-pointers to give Ohio State one-point leads in the fourth quarter, but Northwestern quickly jumped back in front.
Then the sophomore point guard had 3 points and a steal during a 7-0 run that gave the Buckeyes the lead for good in the final two minutes.
“People like (teammate Cait Craft) and the coaches say keep shooting and they’ll fall,” said Mitchell, who ended up 8 for 23 from the field, including 4 for 13 from 3-point range. “You can’t stop shooting or you’ll never get in a rhythm.”
Northwestern (13-8, 2-7 Big Ten) led by as many as nine in the third quarter, but the teams traded the lead five times in the fourth.
Craft and Alexa Hart scored 14 points apiece for Ohio State (16-4, 8-1) while Ameryst Alston added 11.
Craft made all five of her field-goal attempts, including a trio from 3-point range, and was part of the chorus encouraging Mitchell when her shot wasn’t falling.
“I truly believe whoever we play or wherever we’re at, Kelsey’s the best player on the court,” Craft said. “She can miss a few shots but she’s not going to be off the entire game. And if she is, she’s going to find other ways to contribute. She made two huge 3s in the fourth quarter. She didn’t care. She just let it go. I just want her to know I’m always going to pass her the ball.”
Nia Coffey led Northwestern with 23 points while Christen Inman had 18 and Maggie Lyon scored 14.
After Lyon gave Northwestern a 67-66 lead with a pair of free throws at the 2:01 mark, Mitchell put the Buckeyes back on top with a layup.
Craft scored off an Asia Doss steal, then Mitchell made a steal at midcourt, drew a foul and made one of two free throws.
After a defensive stop, Ohio State stretched its lead to six on a putback by Hart, and Northwestern did not get closer than three the rest of the way.
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