EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — C.J. Cox scored 21 of his 27 points in the second half, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 48 seconds left that helped No. 15 Purdue edge Nick Martinelli and Northwestern 70-66. Cox outlasted Martinelli in a memorable duel in the final minutes, sending Purdue to a sorely needed victory. The 23-7 Boilermakers had lost two in a row and three of four overall. Trey Kaufman-Renn added 11 points and 10 rebounds, shaking off a shoulder injury in the second half. Martinelli, a senior playing his final home game, scored 19 of his 28 points in the second half. The Big Ten’s leading scorer moved into seventh on the school’s career list with 1,687 points, passing Northwestern assistant coach Bryant McIntosh.
SEATTLE (AP) — Washington rolls past Southern California 91-72 behind big nights from Zoom Diallo and Hannes Steinbach. On Wednesday night, Washington grabs control late and takes the lead for good with about 12 minutes left. The Huskies then pull away with a 13-0 run in the final minutes to turn it into a rout. Diallo scores a career-high 26 points and adds nine rebounds. Steinbach posts 22 points and a career-best 24 rebounds. Washington sweeps the season series. USC drops its sixth straight loss despite 19 points from Alijah Arenas.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Reserve Braeden Carrington scored 18 points, John Blackwell scored 14 points and Wisconsin poured it on in the second half to dismantle Maryland 78-45. Andre Mills scored 14 points and Elijah Saunders scored 11 for Maryland. Wisconsin turned an already commanding 34-21 first-half stranglehold into a 21-point lead 5 1/2 minutes into the second half. The Badgers shot 48% and made 42% from 3-point range. The Badgers scored 44 second-half points.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Indiana ends a four-game skid with a commanding 77-47 win over Minnesota as Sam Alexis sparks an early blowout. On Wednesday night, Alexis scores 23 points, with 17 coming before halftime. Indiana shoots 57% and holds a double-digit lead for the entire second half. Lamar Wilkerson adds 16 points and hits his 100th three-pointer of the season during a key first-half run. Minnesota struggles badly after the break and shoots 26% in the second half. Cade Tyson leads the Golden Gophers with 21. Indiana plays at Ohio State on Saturday. Minnesota hosts Northwestern.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Katie Fiso scored 20 points, Ehis Etute had 16 points and 12 rebounds and Oregon defeated Purdue 82-64 in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. Mia Jacobs had 14 points and nine rebounds for 11th-seeded Oregon. Lana McCarthy had 14 points and nine rebounds before fouling out, and Hila Karsh and Tara Daye each scored 11 points for Purdue, the 14th seed. Oregon plays No. 6-seed Maryland on Thursday with the winner moving on to play third-seeded Michigan in the quarterfinals.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Berry Wallace scored 22 points, Destiny Jackson added 21, and Illinois beat Wisconsin 82-70 in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. The Illini play seventh-seeded and No. 18 Michigan State in the second round Thursday. Cearah Parchment scored 14 points for Illinois (20-10) and Lety Vasconcelos — the tallest player in program history, listed at 6-foot-7 — scored a career-high 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting. Wisconsin (13-17) has lost 10 in a row, including a 92-60 loss at Illinois on Feb. 11. Gift Uchenna tied her season high with 24 points on 10-of-16 shooting, Kyrah Daniels scored 17
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Shay Ciezki had 22 points and seven assists, Nevaeh Caffey scored nine of her 13 in the fourth quarter, and No. 13 seed Indiana overcame a 20-point deficit to beat Nebraska 72-69 in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. The Hoosiers play 11th-ranked and fifth-seeded Ohio State in the second round on Thursday. Indiana has won four in a row and is 7-2 following its 0-10 start in Big Ten play. No. 12 seed Nebraska has lost seven of its last nine games and may have seen its NCAA Tournament bubble burst. Amiah Hargrove led the Cornhuskers with 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting and Britt Prince had 20 points and eight assists.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — UCLA coach Mick Cronin warns the transfer portal is pushing college players to change schools too often and miss out on graduating. The men’s Division I portal opens April 7 for a short 15-day window. Cronin says the churn often leaves players without a degree or a resume. He wants schools to be able to exceed the new revenue-sharing cap so they can retain their players. Otherwise, Cronin says, players are bouncing from school to school and not graduating. He says the money they make on name, image and likeness deals isn't enough to retire on. As a result, they're often looking for jobs in the real world when they're done playing basketball in college or overseas.
