A flair for the dramatic has defined a thrilling start to Saturday's men's college basketball slate, as Kansas suffered a shocker on the road at West Virginia, Texas' Tyrese Hunter stunned Baylor with a buzzer-beater and Creighton outlasted Seton Hall in a three-overtime odyssey.
Here's a look back at all the biggest storylines from Saturday.
West Virginia shocks No. 3 Kansas
Through 16 games of a new era in Morgantown, a rebuilding West Virginia had totaled just six wins and just one triumph against a KenPom top-100 foe. But with 35 seconds remaining and a slim one-point lead against visiting No. 3 Kansas, the Mountaineers executed like seasoned winners down the stretch, nailing their final eight free throws as WVU stunning the Jayhawks 91-85 Saturday.
West Virginia's most efficient shooting night ramped up quickly after a slow start. After taking a 2-0 lead, West Virginia would fall behind and finally reclaim their advantage at 30-29 late in the first half thanks to a Quinn Slazinski triple, one of 12 on the afternoon for West Virginia. Continuing to heat up, the Mountaineers would hit seven of their final 10 shots heading into the locker room, and a high-octane affair was deadlocked at 51 after a half.
The teams remained near attached at the hip to start the second period, with eight lead changes and three ties in the first ten minutes of the second half alone. RaeQuan Battle continued a hot night, leading the Mountaineers with 23 points, nailing a triple to extend WVU's lead to two possessions out of the under-8 timeout. An and-one extended the home lead to 77-70, and while a prompt 11-3 run from Kansas saw K.J. Adams temporarily retake the lead, West Virginia's superior late-game execution — the Mountaineer rebounded their only missed free throw of the final stretch — secured a stunning victory.
Shorthanded Duke suffers historic loss to Pitt
With Mark Mitchell and Tyrese Proctor — Duke stars that combine to average more than 30 points per game — ruled out before Saturday's game against Pitt, the Panthers found themselves with a golden opportunity, not just to notch a much-needed ACC win after a 1-5 start, but to vanquish a near half-century old demon and secure their first win at Cameron Indoor since 1979. Duke's lack of depth flared in the second half, suffering a five-minute field goal drought that, along with a stunning shot-making display from Blake Hinson, powered Pitt to a historic 80-76 win over No. 7 Duke.
Hinson, who was a perfect 7-7 from three-point range Saturday, found his stroke early to give Pitt a 5-0 lead out the gate. Pitt's edge would swell to double-digits, as a Guillermo Diaz Graham layup put the Panthers up 21-10, but Duke roared back to tie the game before the under-8 timeout. Duke's first lead of the game followed thereafter, and the two teams battled closely as Pitt took a four-point lead into the locker room.
Duke would take the lead twice in the second half, first off a pair of Jaylen Blakes free throws and later a gutsy and-one finish from Kyle Filipowski, but each time Hinson would immediately respond with a dagger three-point basket. A Jared McCain basket slimmed the Pitt advantage to 72-71 with 1:07 remaining, but freshman Jaland Lowe continued to shoot with remarkable poise in front of the Cameron Crazies on a 16-point night, drilling Pitt's 10th triple of the night to shut out a potential Blue Devils comeback.
Texas' Hunter stuns No. 9 Baylor at buzzer
HERE COMES HUNTER 😤🤘 |
— Texas Men’s Basketball (@TexasMBB)
Texas fans erupted into cheers as Tyrese Hunter charged across the court to sink a buzzer beater victory over No. 9 Baylor. The Longhorns exhausted all their three point magic in the first half, shooting 82% for 9-11 from outside the arc — snapping a 25-year-old school record for highest 3-point percentage in a half — before battling a physical Baylor defense in the second that prevented any Longhorn triples.
After a painstakingly low-scoring second half, Texas led 71-68 with less than a minute left on the clock — and the action wasn’t over yet. A Baylor perimeter rocket leveled the scoreboard with seconds left over and just as the crowd prepared for an overtime debacle, a quick give and go with Dylan Disu gave Hunter an open lane to net. With the upset, Texas earns its first win over a ranked opponent this season and improves to 13-5 while No. 9 Baylor moves to 14-4.
Alexander leads Creighton past Seton Hall in 3OT
The ranked reaper residing in Seton Hall's Prudential Center ensured once again on Saturday that winning at "The Rock" is a near impossibility, helping Seton Hall snatch life from the jaws of certain defeat. Trailing by two possessions with 30 seconds remaining in both the first and second overtimes, free-throw fortune and a Kadary Richmond steal respectively powered the Pirates to a third OT session. Trey Alexander would finally slay this specter, however, nailing a clutch three late to reclaim Creighton's advantage to see out a 97-94 epic over Seton Hall.
With wins over No. 5 Connecticut and No. 7 Marquette on home wood already, the Pirates were unfazed by a strong 13-6 start for Creighton and its center Ryan Kalkbrenner, who starred for the Jays with 28 points, nine boards and seven swats. SHU battled closely into the locker room, and a 9-0 run to start the second half gave Seton Hall its first lead in more than ten minutes at 40-35.
Richmond appeared to have the game won for the Hall, but a last-second layup from Creighton's Steven Ashworth forced overtime. Seton Hall actually took a four-point lead in the final overtime period, but Alexander's jumper combined with free-throw perfection from Ashworth and Baylor Scheierman finally sunk the Pirates.
Iowa State survives late rally against No. 19 TCU
With seven minutes remaining in Fort Worth Saturday, No. 24 Iowa State seemed to have their first quality road win of the year emphatically secured, as Milan Momcilovic drilled a deep three to put the Cyclones up 67-52. But after a spirited TCU charge left the Frogs down just four with the ball inside the final 30 seconds, it was Iowa State's interior defense, which has been among the best in college basketball all season, that turned away a pair of TCU opportunities near the rim and ultimately secured a 73-72 win over No. 19 TCU.
Iowa State's very first possession, a Keshon Gilbert bucket off a Curtis Jones steal, set the table marvelously for a dominant Iowa State afternoon — Gilbert led all scorers with 20 points, while Jones' seven steals paced a handsy Iowa State defense that totaled a whopping 27 turnovers. Unsurprisingly, the Cyclones would lead just about the entire afternoon and entered halftime with a then game-high 44-26 lead. Iowa State would build a 19-point second half edge, immediately prompting a 10-0 TCU run — which dragged the Frogs within single-digits as the clock ticked inside of ten minutes.
A later 8-0 run, capped off by a Trevian Tennyson layup, pulled TCU within four and forced an Iowa State timeout, but a string of crucial Iowa State stops aided its free-throw woes and proved just enough to lock up a nervy victory.
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