It was a Saturday for champions as several major men’s college basketball conferences crowned their champions today, deciding a handful of automatic enrollments into the NCAA tournament.
The Big Ten took center stage first with two semifinals games starting with regular-season winner Purdue versus Ohio State and Penn State versus Indiana. Purdue and Penn State will play for the championship on Sunday.
Elsewhere, Texas clinched the Big 12 title to a packed crowd in Kansas City, and Marquette became the Big East champion after a comfortable win at Madison Square Garden.
Finally, Arizona secured the Pac-12 title with a comfortable win over UCLA. It was the first time the Wildcats won consecutive Pac-12 tournaments since 2017-18 and their fifth conference title in the last eight tournaments played.
Here are the top moments from Saturday’s chalkboard!
Arizona 61, UCLA 59 (Pac-12 Finals)
Live Las Vegas!
It rocked at T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada on Saturday as the Bruins and Wildcats battled it out for the Pac-12 title. Both teams went back and forth in the early moments of the game, which quickly heated up.
The Arizona defense fired from all guns early and held UCLA at bay just in front of goal.
neck and neck
Both teams continued in the first half. At the break, UCLA had a one-point lead, 34-33.
heavyweights
Saturday’s incline certainly lived up to the hype. The 1st and 2nd seeded powerhouses left everything on the pitch in the second half.
Securing the W
In the end, Arizona had a little more in the tank and edged out UCLA by two points, 61-59, in a statement win.
Marquette 65, Xavier 51 (Big East Finals)
Hot start
Marquette star Kam Jones got that first points for the Golden Eagles, who started a 10-0 run early in the first half.
Marquette kept pouring it as the first half dragged on. Sean Jones made a stellar spinning move just before refining a two-point jumper to extend the Golden Eagles’ lead over Xavier, who quickly fell into a double-digit hole.
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style points
Marquette was a force to be reckoned with as the first half drew to a close. Exhibit A:
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rain 3s
Musketeers guard Adam Kunkel secured the first 3 of the evening for Xavier, who closed the gap just before the break.
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Make a statement!
The Golden Eagles picked up right where they left off when the second half started and drove to a comfortable win.
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Texas 76, Kansas 56 (Big 12 Finals)
Warm up
The Jayhawks turned on all cylinders early, but Texas kept Kansas within reach with ease.
have a high flight
Texas put on a 10-0 run in the last two minutes of the first half and secured a 39-33 lead at the break.
no stop
The Longhorns kept their foot on the gas to the end and ran away with a dominant double-digit win, 76-56.
Penn State 77, Indiana 73 (Big Ten)
Early action
Indiana’s Trayce Jackson-Davis started the action by picking up his own rebound and finishing the job, as well as dunking in the opening minutes of the game.
Fear inspires fear
Myles Dread scored points for the Nittany Lions to put them 14-12 ahead.
Don’t mess around
Jalen Pickett showed himself ready to play ball and led Penn State to a 10-point lead over the Hoosiers, 24-14.
Glam Slam
Race Thompson stunned the crowd with a one-handed slam for the Hoosiers in the closing minutes of the first half that ended with Penn State leading 34-26.
win country
From the corner of the court, Tamar Bates sank a 3-pointer to spur the Hoosiers to action in the second half and help Indiana close the deficit to just 38-35.
tight game
Indiana stayed close to Penn State, not allowing the Nittany Lions to build a big lead thanks to some dunks from Kebba Njie and Jackson-Davis.
Funk answers
Andrew Funk stopped the Hoosier’s momentum with a 3-pointer in transition to keep Penn State ahead 52-47.
Wynter time
Camren Wynter kept the Nittany Lions busy with an outside clutch shot and extended their lead to 10 points, 61-51.
One point away!
Indiana fought hard in the last minute of the game to catch Penn State and got close enough to make it a 1-point game. But the Nittany Lions finished with a final score of 77-73 to advance to the Big Ten Finals.
Purdue 80, Ohio State 66 (Big Ten)
First hit
Purdue prevailed in the opening minutes with a strong start from big man Zach Edey.
retribution
Roddy Gayle Jr. finished 19-19 thanks to a cross-court setup from Isaac Likekele, who added another to the tally to put the Buckeyes ahead.
Just commute
Eugene Brown drove through traffic right through the middle to knock down that bucket and extend Ohio State’s lead to 23-19. The Buckeyes shot accurately from deep while the Boilermakers struggled with turnovers.
Edey eats it up
Edey leads the Boilermakers back into contention with 10 points and 2 assists, keeping the Buckeyes scoreless for several minutes and closing in on their lead. The effort paid off, and Purdue took a 42-34 lead just before halftime.
impetus
Braden Smith led the Boilermakers to their biggest advantage of the game with multiple 3-pointers en route to the 55-40 lead.
surprise attack
Newcomer Bruce Thornton slides into the gap for a layup to minimize the Boilermakers’ lead with seven minutes left.
fight to the end
Purdue guard Brandon Newman makes a push in the final minutes of the game to maintain the Boilermakers’ lead. Purdue reigns victorious 80-66 to advance to Big Ten finals.
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