On the 50th anniversary of the “Game of the Century,” Houston pulled another upset.
Rob Gray scored 24 points, and the host Cougars beat a top-10 team for the first time in 22 years, sending No. 7 Wichita State to its second straight loss Saturday, 73-59.
Saturday marked the 50th anniversary of the “Game of the Century” between No. 1 UCLA and No. 2 Houston in the Astrodome before a crowd of 52,693. Houston won 71-69 behind Elvin Hayes’ 39 points and 15 rebounds, topping a team led by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, then Lew Alcindor. Hayes, players from the game and staff were honored at halftime.
Wichita State (15-4, 5-2 American Athletic Conference) fell to SMU 83-78 on Wednesday. The Shockers shot a season-low 33 percent and committed 18 turnovers in this latest loss.
“I know everybody wants to see us win every game, but we’re going through something right now,” Wichita State forward Markis McDuffie said.
Gray was 10-for-21 from the field for the Cougars (15-4, 5-2), whose previous win over a top-10 team came against No. 3 Memphis, 69-67 on Jan. 6, 1996. Corey Davis Jr. added 17 points and eight rebounds and Devin Davis had 12 points and seven rebounds.
After being dominated in an 81-63 loss at Wichita State on Jan. 4, Houston coach Kelvin Sampson focused this time on shutting down the Shockers’ three-point scoring. The Shockers finished 4-for-20 on three-pointers.
“They are the number one three-point shooting team in the league,” Gray said. “We know that is a big part of their offense. If we can slow them down there, then we can slow them down overall.”
#1 Villanova 81, Connecticut 61: Jalen Brunson scored 23 points and Donte DiVincenzo added 17 points for the visiting Wildcats (18-1), who improved to 13-0 against nonconference opponents. Jalen Adams scored 19 for the Huskies (10-9), who have lost five games this season by at least 20 points.
#3 Purdue 87, Iowa 64: Carsen Edwards scored 22 points and Vincent Edwards had 19 to lead the visiting Boilermakers (19-2, 9-0 Big Ten) to their 15th straight victory. Luka Gazra had 19 points for the Hawkeyes, (10-11, 1-7).
Oklahoma State 83, #4 Oklahoma 81: Trae Young scored 48 points, but missed a deep three at the buzzer in overtime as the host Cowboys (13-6, 3-4) held off the Sooners (14-4, 4-3). Young, a freshman guard who leads the nation in scoring, had 34 points after halftime. Jeffrey Carroll had 23 points and 13 rebounds and Kendall Smith added 20 points for Oklahoma State. Smith’s three with eight seconds left in regulation tied it at 73-73.
#5 Duke 81, Pittsburgh 54: Wendell Carter Jr. had 21 points on 9-for-10 shooting and fellow freshman Marvin Bagley III added 20 points as the host Blue Devils (17-2, 5-2 ACC) beat the Panthers (8-12, 0-7).
#6 West Virginia 86, Texas 51: Jevon Carter scored 22 points and led a big second-half run that propelled the host Mountaineers (16-3, 5-2 Big 12) to victory over the Longhorns (12-7, 3-4). James “Beetle” Bolden added 19 points, Daxter Miles Jr. scored 15 and Sagaba Konate had 10 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks for West Virginia, which had lost its previous two games.
Iowa State 70, #8 Texas Tech 52: Freshman Cameron Lard scored 18 points and the Cyclones (11-7, 2-5 Big 12) handed the Red Raiders (15-4, 4-3) their second straight loss to an unranked opponent on the road.
#11 Xavier 73, #19 Seton Hall 64: J.P Macura scored 27 points and the Musketeers (18-3, 6-2 Big East) handed the Pirates (15-5, 4-3) to their first loss at home by rallying from a 10-point second-half deficit.
#12 Cincinnati 86, East Carolina 60: Jacob Evans and Kyle Washington each scored 17 points, and Gary Clark had 14 points and 14 rebounds for the host Bearcats (17-2, 6-0 American Athletic), who have won 10 straight.
#15 North Carolina 80, Georgia Tech 66: Luke Maye had 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Theo Pinson added 11 points and 10 rebounds for the host Tar Heels (16-4, 5-2 ACC). Josh Okogie led the Yellow Jackets (10-9, 3-3) with 18 points.
#20 Clemson 67, Notre Dame 58: Gabe DeVoe hit a crucial three-pointer with 3:18 to go and scored 17 points as the host Tigers (16-3, 5-2 ACC) got their first-ever win over the Fighting Irish (13-7, 3-4). TJ Gibbs led Notre Dame with 18 points, but the Irish lost their fourth straight.
#22 Ohio State 67, Minnesota 49: Keita Bates-Diop had 17 points and 12 rebounds for the Buckeyes (17-4, 8-0) in the first part of a two-sport Big Ten doubleheader at Madison Square Garden in New York. At night, Minnesota and Michigan State met in hockey.
Kansas State 73, #24 TCU 68: Dean Wade scored 20 points for the host Wildcats (14-5, 4-3 Big 12), who were coming off a win over No. 4 Oklahoma earlier in the week. Vlad Brodziansky scored 15 points for the Horned Frogs (14-5, 2-5).