LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Hunter Dickinson scored 20 points to lead four Kansas players in double figures as the No. 8 Jayhawks beat No. 4 Houston 78-65 on Saturday.
Kansas (18-4, 6-3 Big 12) got 17 points each from Kevin McCullar and Johnny Furphy, and KJ Adams added 10 points as the Jayhawks became the first team this season to score more than 72 points against the Cougars.
Houston (19-3, 6-3) was led by L.J. Cryer with 24 points. J’Wan Roberts and Emanuel Sharp each scored 11 points.
Houston came into the game with the nation’s best scoring defense at 52.9 points per game allowed. The Jayhawks hit 53 points with 14:17 left in the second half on a layup by Dickinson.
Kansas extended its 15-point halftime lead to 20 in the second half. Houston closed within 10 at at 68-58, but could not get closer.
NO. 1 UCONN 77, ST. JOHN'S 64
NEW YORK (AP) — Cam Spencer scored 23 points, freshman Stephon Castle had a season-best 21 and UConn pulled away from St. John’s at Madison Square Garden.
Tristen Newton added 18 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists as the defending national champion Huskies (20-2, 10-1 Big East), playing without injured forward Alex Karaban, won their 10th straight game.
The winning streak began Dec. 23 with a 69-65 victory over St. John’s at home.
Daniss Jenkins scored 19 for the scuffling Red Storm (13-9, 5-6), who have dropped five of six after opening 4-1 in conference play during their first season under Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino. Leading scorer Joel Soriano was held to six points on 2-of-6 shooting and four rebounds — well below his season averages.
NO. 9 MARQUETTE 91, GEORGETOWN 57
WASHINGTON (AP) — Kam Jones scored a career-high 31 points, Tyler Kolek had 17 points and eight assists and Marquette won its sixth straight game.
David Joplin scored 15 points and Oso Ighodaro added 10 points and 10 rebounds. Marquette (17-5, 8-3 Big East) forced 19 turnovers and outscored the Hoyas 35-5 in points off turnovers.
Rowan Brumbaugh scored 12 points to lead Georgetown (8-13, 1-9), which lost its sixth straight game. The 34-point loss is the largest home Big East defeat for the Hoyas.
SAN DIEGO STATE 81, NO. 17 UTAH STATE 67
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Jaedon LeDee had 16 points and nine rebounds to lead San Diego State past Great Osobor and Utah State, pulling the defending Mountain West champion Aztecs within one game of the Aggies.
LeDee scored nine points in the second half of the showdown between the top two scorers and rebounders in the league. Osobor had 17 points and seven rebounds.
The Aztecs (17-5, 6-3 Mountain West) beat the Aggies (19-3, 7-2) for the fifth straight time. Jay Pal scored 16 points, Micah Parrish added 14 and Darrion Trammell 12.
Mason Falslev scored 16 and Darius Brown II 13 for Utah State.
UCF 74, NO. 23 OKLAHOMA 63
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Jaylin Sellers shot 13 for 14 from the line and scored 20 points, Antwann Jones hit three early 3-pointers and finished with 15 points and UCF coach Johnny Dawkins earned his 300th coaching victory.
Darius Johnson added 14 points and eight assists for UCF (13-8, 4-5 Big 12), which never trailed and built a 17-point lead in the game. The Knights shot 28 for 32 from the line in the game and blocked 12 shots in the win.
Le’Tre Darthard hit four 3-pointers and scored 14 points, Rivaldo Soares added 11 and Jalen Moore 10 for the Sooners (16-6, 4-5).
TEXAS 77, NO. 25 TCU 66
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Max Abmas scored 19 of his 21 points after halftime, including the last 13 for Texas in a win over TCU.
Abmas put the Longhorns (15-7, 4-5 Big 12) ahead to stay with a three-point play with 3:25 left that broke a 64-all tie. That layup and free throw started a personal 11-0 run that included two 3-pointers, and he added a pair of free throws in the final minute.
Dylan Disu had 15 points for Texas, which snapped a two-game losing streak. Dillon Mitchell had 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Emanuel Miller had 15 points for the Horned Frogs (16-6, 5-4). Avery Anderson added 13, while Trevian Tennyson and Jakobe Coles each had 10.
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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
