Thursday's Shootaround: UConn and UNC continue to slide, but Richmond, Dayton, and New Mexico get big wins

Syracuse 72, UConn 67: Once again, the Huskies lost to a good team, on the road, in a close game. For the first 30 minutes, this one went just how most expected it to go. UConn was sloppy offensively, they couldn't figure out the Syracuse zone, and they couldn't get a stop on the other end of the floor.

But the Huskies flipped a switch once Andy Rautins went out with his fourth foul. They immediately went on a 14-2 run, getting the lead t0 52-48. Rautins would come back in, but UConn would continue to surge, eventually tying the game at the 2:33 mark on a three pointer by Jerome Dyson. The difference in the final 10-12 minutes was the way UConn attacked the Syracuse zone. They passed the ball quickly, they got the ball into the high post, there was some high-low movement, and perhaps most importantly, Kemba Walker started attacking gaps and hitting 12-15 foot pullups.

With the game tied at 67 late and after a controversial call that went against the Huskies, Wes Johnson knocked down two free throws for the lead. At the other end, Jerome Dyson missed a three. Syracuse got a runout, Ater Majok committed an offensive foul, and that was it.

The loss makes it very difficult for UConn to get a bid to the dance. They still get Villanova and West Virginia this season, but will need a sweep of those two if they plan on dancing.

Duke 64, UNC 54: This was as ugly of a Duke-Carolina game as you are going to see. UNC played the first 32 minutes of this one with an energy and effort level we have yet to see from them this season. But that doesn't mean it was pretty. Neither team was scoring the ball, Duke could not do anything offensively, and still took a 28-27 lead into the break.

How bad was it? In the first half, Duke shot 9-40 from the field. They were 6-12 from three, which means they made just 3-28 two-point field goals in the half. UNC record nine first half blocks, and Duke grabbed 14 offensive boards. Like I said, this was not the kind of game you expect to see when Duke and UNC play.

Duke went ahead for good in the second half when Mason Plumlee grabbed an offensive rebound and threw down a reverse dunk in traffic for a 47-45 lead. The next possession, Jon Scheyer, who finished with 24 points, hit a tough runner over Marcus Ginyard and followed that up with a contested three ball off the dribble. UNC never really had a chance after that.

New Mexico 76, UNLV 66: New Mexico moved into sole possession of first place in the MWC by knocking off streaking UNLV in Vegas. The win avenged a win the Rebels get in the Pit last month. New Mexico was hot in the first half, opening up a 40-28 lead at the break while keeping guys like Tre'Von Willis and Oscar Bellfied from getting going. In the second half, New Mexico continued their hot shooting from the perimeter, going up as much as 61-43. But UNLV rallied and went on a 20-4 to cut the lead to 65-63. Willis and Bellfield had 13 of those points, but it wasn't enough. New Mexico closed out the win by scoring 11 of the last 14 points.

Darington Hobson scored 16 points and added 13 boards for the Lobos. Roman Martinez had 19 and Dairese Gary added 13 in a game they shot 11-21 from deep.

Richmond 69, Rhode Island 67: Richmond got 19 points from David Gonzalvez as they pulled out a thriller in RI. Rhody was up 65-60 late, but Richmond scored back-to-back baskets before a Gonzalvez three put the Spiders up 67-66. Two free throws later, they had a 69-66 and fouled URI's Stevie Mejia. He missed the second, and Richmond knocked the ball out of bounds. But URI missed a three that would have won the game at the buzzer. With the win, and Charlotte's loss, Richmond moves into a three-way tie atop the A-10. Rhode Island falls a game back of the pack. Currently, there are seven teams within a game of first place in the A-10.

Dayton 75, Charlotte 47: For the second straight game, Dayton has hosted the leader of the A-10. For the second straight game, they put a hurting on the leader. Chris Wright went for 30 points and 9 boards as Dayton was just too much for Charlotte.

Bubble Watch

• Miami FL 64, Georgia Tech 62: The Yellow Jackets are horrendous on the road. Tech probably isn't in danger of missing the tournament just yet, but they need to start stringing together some wins, especially on the road, if they want any kind of seed. James Dews hit a three at the buzzer for the win.
• Clemson 77, Florida State 67: The ACC just gets more and more muddled. Clemson held court against Florida State, getting 19 points each from David Potter and Andre Young, as both teams moved into a tie with Ga Tech at 5-5 in the league.
• South Carolina 77, Florida 73: Devan Downey had 24 points, but it was Florida's inability to protect the ball in a game-changing 14-4 run in the final six minutes that cost Florida the win. It was a nice win for the Gamecocks, who were looking for revenge for the buzzer-beater that Chandler Parson hit against them earlier this season.
• UTEP 62, SMU 51: UTEP got 18 points from Randy Culpepper and 15 from Derrick Caracter as they stayed in the hunt for an at-large.
• Iowa 78, Northwestern 65: Well, there goes the dream. Northwestern had a shot at earning their first ever at-large bid, but after struggling through a difficult schedule early in the season, the Wildcats could not afford a loss like this.
• Virginia Tech 72, NC State 52: Virginia Tech made their first 10 shots and jumped out to a 26-7 lead in this one. Dorenzo Hudson scored 23 to lead the Hokies.
  

Other notable scores

• Ohio State 69, Indiana 52: The Buckeyes got 21 points from William Buford and won despite just 10 points, 7 boards, and 6 assists from Turner.
• Northern Iowa 57, Drake 48: The Panthers pulled away late in this one as they picked up at least a share of the MVC title.
• Missouri 65, Iowa State 56: JT Tiller scored 17 points to lead the tigers to the win.
• Arkansas 87, LSU 52: The Razorbacks moved to 6-3 in the SEC with the win.
  
• Baylor 55, Nebraska 53: Ekpe Udoh scored with 25 seconds left on the clock, finishing with 8 points, 9 boards, and 6 blcoks, as the Bears picked up the win.
• San Diego State 88, Wyoming 57: The Aztecs picked up a must win for their at-large hopes. Kawhi Leonard had a career-high 26 points.

Wednesday's Best

• Chris Harris scored 40 points in a win by Navy.
• Chris Wright had 30 points and 9 boards as Dayton cruised to a win over Charlotte.
• Auburn's Lucas Hargrove had 24 points and 11 boards to help the Tigers overcome 19 points andd 17 boards from Travis Leslie.
• Gani Lawal had one of his best games of the season, going for 17 points and 18 boards in a loss to Miami.