Recap a chaotic Tuesday night slate of men’s hoops highlighted by No. 5 Tennessee and No. 7 Purdue falling on the road.
No. 20 Michigan outlasts No. 7 Purdue
Michigan made a statement Tuesday night, taking down the Boilermakers 75-73 for its fifth consecutive win.
Tonight marks Dusty May’s first top-10 win with Michigan since coming to Ann Arbor from Florida Atlantic.
The Wolverines defeated Purdue for the first time since 2022 after falling 91-64 to the Boilermakers just two weeks ago. Michigan (19-5, 11-2 Big Ten) now sits atop the conference standings, one win ahead of Michigan State.
Purdue (19-6, 11-3 Big Ten) held a 37-26 lead with under four to play in the first half, but Michigan closed the first 20 minutes on a 9-0 run to pull within two points as the teams headed to the locker rooms.
The Wolverines trailed by as much as 10 in the second half, but Purdue was unable to put the home team away. Michigan took its first lead of the second half with 5:33 left, powered by a 13-4 run. The Boilermakers quickly regained the lead, but a 7-0 run from the Wolverines with under three to play gave Michigan a 73-67 lead with 39 seconds remaining.
Braden Smith kept the game interesting down the stretch for Purdue, knocking down two contested 3-pointers in the final 20 seconds. Smith had a chance to win the game after two missed free throws from the Wolverines, but he was unable to connect from deep in the closing seconds. Smith finished with a game-high 24 points in the loss.
In total, Michigan led for just 3:14 on the night.
Michigan big man Danny Wolf had another big game for May’s squad, dropping 15 points, nine rebounds and two blocks in the win.
The Wolverines will now travel for a rivalry game against Ohio State, while Purdue will return home to take on No. 16 Wisconsin on Saturday.
Kentucky stuns No. 5 Tennessee with second-half surge
No. 15 Kentucky made a statement Tuesday night, using a commanding second-half stretch to pull away from No. 5 Tennessee for a 75-64 victory at Rupp Arena.
The Wildcats (17-7, 6-5 SEC) hit 12 three-pointers and shot 50% from the field, controlling the game late after the Vols (20-5, 7-5) had tied it at 54-all with just over eight minutes to play. Koby Brea’s go-ahead three-pointer then sparked a 21-10 closing run as Kentucky’s defense held Tennessee to just three field goals the rest of the way.
Kentucky’s win came despite the loss of senior guard Lamont Butler, who exited in the second half after aggravating a shoulder injury while diving for a loose ball. Butler, who had recently missed three games due to the same injury, was ruled out for the remainder of the game and later returned to the bench in a warm-up jacket. He finished with six points, four assists, three rebounds, and three steals before leaving.
Otega Oweh led Kentucky with 13 points and six rebounds, while Ansley Almonor and Trent Noah each added 11 points, combining to shoot 5-for-7 from beyond the arc. The Wildcats also capitalized on Tennessee’s struggles from deep, as the Vols shot just 3-for-18 from three.
Tennessee was led by Zakai Zeigler, who finished with 17 points and six assists. Igor Milicic Jr. added 16 points and nine rebounds. The Vols briefly held a lead midway through the second half but couldn’t sustain their momentum as Kentucky’s hot shooting proved to be the difference.
The Wildcats now turn their attention to a showdown with No. 8 Auburn, while Tennessee looks to bounce back at home against Florida.
Kansas State hangs on to beat No. 13 Arizona
The fans in Bramlage Coliseum enjoyed another night on Cloud Nine, as Kansas State (13-11, 7-6 Big 12) picked up its second straight ranked win at home, upsetting No. 13 Arizona 73-70.
It’s the program’s fourth win against a top-25-ranked opponent in their last six games.
Late-game scoring determined the Big 12 matchup’s winner, as neither team led by more than 10 points or could get the lid of the basket from deep — they shot a combined 3-41 from three. Tied at 62 apiece with three minutes left, K-State made three of its last four shots while Arizona (17-7, 11-2) knocked down only one of its last four.
Kansas State struggled to shut the door on Arizona due to missed free throws, though, holding just a three-point lead in the final seconds, giving Arizona a final chance to send it to overtime.
Hoping to recreate his last-second half-court buzzer-beater from two weeks ago, Arizona guard Caleb Love couldn’t strike gold, missing the three-quarter-court heave to hand K-State its sixth straight conference win.
Indiana upsets No. 11 Michigan State
Indiana hands Michigan State its first home loss of the season, 71-67.
The Spartans won 13 straight over December and January, but Tom Izzo’s squad is in a rough patch after its third loss in its last four games.
Indiana (15-10, 6-8 Big Ten) had lost five straight heading into this matchup, but the Hoosiers got back on track tonight, picking up a much-needed conference win.
The two Indiana big men, Malik Reneau and Oumar Ballo, led the Hoosiers offensively dropping 19 and 14, respectively. Indiana carried a 32-29 lead into the break and Mike Woodson’s squad stayed out in front of the Spartans the entire second half.
Michigan State (19-5, 10-3 Big Ten) pulled within two with 30 seconds to play, but the Hoosiers capitalized on their free throws down the stretch, keeping the Spartans at a distance to close out the game.
Indiana will have a date with UCLA on Friday while Michigan State will go on the road to Illinois looking to right the ship on Saturday.
UConn’s McNeeley explodes for 38, sets freshman record in ranked win
Liam McNeeley is back — the UConn forward showed the Huskies just exactly what they’ve been missing.
The freshman dropped 38 points and 10 rebounds in his return to the starting lineup since the high ankle sprain he suffered in January, helping UConn (17-7, 9-4 Big East) win 70-66 over No. 24 Creighton (18-7, 11-3 Big East). Surpassing UConn legend Rip Hamilton, McNeeley now holds the UConn single-game record for most points in a game by a freshman.
— UConn Men’s Basketball (@UConnMBB) February 12, 2025
After 15 points in the first half, McNeeley shifted into a new gear in the second. He scored 16 of the Huskies’ 18 points between the 12-minute and two-minute marks, including four threes. He finished with 23 of the team’s 41 second-half points.
McNeeley’s performance helped UConn win its first-ever meeting at Creighton.
