Jermaine Samuels sank the winning 3-pointer to beat No. 1 Kansas.
MBB Minute -- Sparkling 7-0 Saturday Includes Villanova, St. John's Taking Down Ranked Teams
All seven BIG EAST teams were victorious on Saturday, which pushed the league’s overall record to 95-25 (.792) going into Sunday. It’s a pleasant challenge to cram as much we can into our “Minute.”
Early in the day, Villanova knocked off No. 1 Kansas 56-55 at a sold-out Wells Fargo Center in the BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle. Jermaine Samuels buried a 3-pointer with 15 seconds left and the Wildcats forced an off-balance Kansas shot as time expired. Samuels scored a team-high 15 points. Collin Gillespie, who made a critical steal and layup with 1:06 remaining, added 12 points.
Butler and DePaul defeated local rivals. Butler made all 11 of its free throw attempts in the final 2:19 of a 70-61 victory over Purdue in the Crossroads Classic. Bryce Golden scored a team-high 14 points. The Bulldogs held the Boilermakers to 33.3 percent shooting from the field.
DePaul had to rally to beat Northwestern 83-78 to improve to 12-1. Charlie Moore scored 25 points and dished 10 assists. Jaylen Butz scored a career-high 24 points and pulled down eight rebounds. Paul Reed notched his 10th double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds. All of his points came in the second half.
Creighton did not get its usual scoring production from the backcourt, but others stepped up in a 67-60 victory at Arizona State. Newly-eligible Denzel Mahoney scored 14 points off the bench and Christian Bishop added 12 points and nine rebounds. The Bluejays (10-2) have won six in a row and have 10 wins before Christmas for the fifth time in the last 10 years.
Providence, also in the BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle, found its groove in defeating Texas 70-48. The Friars were in control by halftime 43-28. Alpha Diallo posted 14 points and 12 rebounds. Luwane Pipkins added 13 points, six rebounds and four assists. PC held the Longhorns to 31.7 percent shooting from the field.
Georgetown’s Omer Yurtseven could not be stopped in the Hoyas’ 99-71 win over Samford. He had career highs of 32 points and 17 rebounds. Mac McClung continued his productive play with 25 points, seven rebounds and five assists. The Hoyas are 5-0 in December.
The day ended with St. John’s toppling No. 16 Arizona 70-67 in the Al Attles Classic in San Francisco. After losing a 15-point lead late in the game, Nick Rutherford made a driving layup to regain the edge for St. John’s. L.J. Figueroa scored 21 points and Rasheem Dunn added 14 points. Mustapha Heron remained out with a sprained ankle.
Sunday’s two-game slate completes BIG EAST action before Christmas. Seton Hall hosts Prairie View A&M at 4:30 p.m. ET on FS1. In the final game of the BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle, Xavier visits TCU at 5 p.m. on ESPN2.