A late basket by sophomore Cody Zeller helped No. 3 Indiana to a 72-71 victory over No. 6 Michigan on Sunday in Ann Arbor, Mich. The win gave the Hoosiers (26-5, 14-4 Big Ten) their first outright Big Ten regular season title since 1993.
After a free throw by freshman Glenn Robinson III gave the Wolverines (25-6, 12-6 Big Ten) a 71-66 lead with 52 seconds left in the game, Zeller scored the final six points, including his game-winning layup with 14 seconds left. Missed layups by Michigan’s Trey Burke and Jordan Morgan sealed the win for Indiana.
Zeller scored 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Hoosiers, keeping him in contention for the NCAA National Player of the Year award. Junior Victor Oladipo also had a big game for Indiana, recording 14 points and 13 rebounds for a double-double. Burke led the way for the Wolverines with 20 points.
The Hoosiers, who received the No. 1 seed and a first round-bye in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament, will play the winner of Illinois versus Minnesota on Friday. Michigan will play Penn State on Thursday in the first round of the conference tournament.
Duke destroys UNC
No. 2 Duke had no problem defeating rival North Carolina on Saturday, thrashing the Tar Heels 69-53 to complete a season sweep.
The Blue Devils (27-4, 14-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) jumped out to a 14-0 lead over North Carolina (22-9, 12-6 ACC) early in the first half, embarrassing the Tar Heels in front of a stunned Chapel Hill crowd.
Leading 42-24 at the half, Duke continued to pour it on, growing its lead to as many as 25 points halfway through the second half.
On a night when the North Carolina seniors were being honored for Senior Night, it was Blue Devils seniors Seth Curry and Mason Plumlee who stole the show, combining for 43 of Duke’s 69 points. Sophomore James Michael McAdoo was the high scorer for the Tar Heels, scoring 15 points.
The Blue Devils have earned a first round bye in the ACC Tournament, and will play the winner of Maryland versus Wake Forest. North Carolina, which also received a first round bye, will face either Florida State or Clemson in the second round of the tournament.
Georgetown ends rivalry in style
No. 5 Georgetown clinched a share of the Big East regular season title Saturday after routing No. 19 Syracuse 61-39 in Washington, D.C.
In the last ever conference regular season meeting between the two rivals, the Hoyas (24-5, 14-4 Big East) stepped up their defense, holding the Orange (23-8, 11-7 Big East) to their lowest total in 558 Big East games.
Up only seven points at halftime, Georgetown went on an 18-9 run to extend its lead to 16, followed by a 9-4 run to put the game out of reach for Syracuse.
Junior Markel Starks was the leading scorer for the Hoyas, recording 19 points, 15 of which came from beyond the arc. Otto Porter, a Player of the Year candidate for Georgetown, chipped in 10 points, as well as eight rebounds and seven assists.
With the Big East Tournament getting started this week, the Hoyas are the No. 1 seed, and will play either Cincinnati or Providence in the quarterfinals on Thursday. As the fifth seed in the upcoming tournament, the Orange faces the winner of South Florida versus Seton Hall on Wednesday.
Jason Kates can be reached at [email protected].
