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Robert Vaden's last-second 3-pointer didn't fall for UAB, and only after a putback was ruled too late did Memphis survive. (Hal Yeager/Associated Press) |
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Chris Douglas-Roberts and No. 1 Memphis made the shot that counted, then watched Alabama-Birmingham hit the one that didn't.
The result was a down-to-the-wire scare and a still-perfect record.
Douglas-Roberts converted a 3-point play with 6.5 seconds left and the Blazers' final basket was a split-second too late, giving the Tigers a 79-78 road win last night.
Memphis left with its 44-game regular-season and 34-game league winning streaks barely intact, and with Douglas-Roberts's main focal point: A win.
"The winning streak wasn't in my mind at all," said Douglas-Roberts, who scored 32 points. "It was just winning the game. That's all I was thinking about."
After Douglas-Roberts made his shot, the Blazers' Robert Vaden missed badly on an off-balance 3-point attempt and Lawrence Kinnard grabbed the long rebound. He heaved up a shot in the paint that went in, and officials promptly headed to the scorer's table to watch replays.
They ruled with only a brief double-check that Kinnard didn't get the shot off in time.
It wasn't the last scary scene for Memphis players. Several had angry exchanges with UAB fans who rushed the court celebrating what they thought was a win. Then the Tigers (25-0, 11-0 Conference USA) were quickly herded to their locker room.
"They stormed on the court and they realized the time had expired and they got kind of mad," said Memphis's Robert Dozier. "They started spitting at us and stuff. Guys got kind of heated. We got out of there."
UAB (17-8, 7-3) is the last C-USA team to beat Memphis, 715 days earlier.
Antonio Anderson added 27 points for the Tigers. He and Douglas-Roberts combined to make 22 shots; the rest of the team made just six.
The Tigers missed nine consecutive shots before Anderson's 3-pointer from the corner cut the deficit to 77-73 with 1:22 left. After a UAB miss, Douglas-Roberts drilled a 3-pointer with 38 seconds remaining to trim the deficit to 1.
With 15 seconds left, Vaden made one of two free throws to set up the final sequences.
Kansas 69, Colorado 45 - The No. 3 Jayhawks (24-2, 9-2 Big 12) beat the Buffaloes (10-14, 2-8) for the 25th straight time at Allen Fieldhouse. Mario Chalmers had 13 points for Kansas, which held Colorado's top gun, Richard Roby, to just 2 points.
Tennessee 74, Georgia 71 - Chris Lofton scored 19 of his 22 points in the second half to push the No. 4 Volunteers (23-2, 10-1 SEC) past the Bulldogs (12-11, 3-7) in Athens, Ga.
North Carolina 92, Virginia Tech 53 - Tyler Hansbrough scored 23 points in a home blowout for the fifth-ranked Tar Heels (24-2, 9-2 ACC), who hounded the Hokies (14-11, 5-6) into 26 percent shooting from the field.
Stanford 67, Arizona 66 - Brook Lopez tallied 23 points, including the winning free throw with 18 seconds to play, as the No. 7 Cardinal (21-4, 10-3 Pac-10) held off the Wildcats (16-9, 6-6) in Tucson.
Syracuse 77, Georgetown 70 - The host Orange (17-9, 7-6 Big East) picked up a big win for their postseason credentials, getting 22 points from Paul Harris and holding off two late rallies by the No. 8 Hoyas (20-4, 10-3).
Butler 51, Cleveland St. 46 - At Indianapolis, Matt Howard's 17 points paced the No. 9 Bulldogs (24-2, 13-2 Horizon), who avenged last month's loss to the Vikings (17-11, 10-6) by winning their eighth in a row.
Indiana 80, Michigan St. 61 - At Bloomington, Ind., the 13th-ranked Hoosiers (21-4, 10-2 Big Ten) took some of the focus off embattled coach Kelvin Sampson by beating the No. 10 Spartans (20-5, 8-4). Eric Gordon scored 28 points to break Indiana's freshman scoring record (he has 520).
Texas 82, Baylor 77 - The No. 11 Longhorns (21-4, 8-2 Big 12) beat the Bears (17-7, 5-5) for the 22d straight time, getting 19 points and 10 rebounds from Damion James in Waco, Texas.
Drake 65, Northern Iowa 55 - The No. 14 Bulldogs (23-2, 14-1) clinched their first Missouri Valley Conference title since 1971 as Adam Emmenecker scored 13 points against the Panthers (15-11, 7-8) in Cedar Falls, Iowa.
Wisconsin 65, Minnesota 56 - Marcus Landry paced five double-figure scorers with 12 points, and the 15th-ranked Badgers (21-4, 11-2 Big Ten) slipped past the Golden Gophers (15-9, 5-7) in Madison, Wis.
Oklahoma St. 59, Texas A&M 54 - Byron Eaton had 17 points, including a pair of free throws with nine seconds left, as the Cowboys (13-12, 4-7 Big 12) upset the No. 16 Aggies (20-5, 6-4) to break a 19-game losing streak on the road.
UConn 74, South Florida 73 - The No. 17 Huskies (20-5, 9-3 Big East) needed overtime to earn their ninth straight win, edging the Bulls (11-15, 2-11) in Tampa when Craig Austrie dribbled nearly the length of the court and made a 14-foot runner with two-10ths of a second left.
Kansas St. 100, Missouri 63 - Michael Beasley was dominant for the No. 18 Wildcats (18-6, 8-2 Big 12), racking up 40 points and 17 rebounds against the Tigers (14-12, 4-7) in Manhattan, Kan.
Purdue 71, Northwestern 56 - At Evanston, Ill., E'Twuan Moore scored a season-high 28 points and the No. 19 Boilermakers (21-5, 12-1 Big Ten) picked up their 11th straight victory despite blowing a 10-point second-half lead to the Wildcats (7-16, 0-12).
Washington St. 62, Oregon 53 - The No. 21 Cougars (20-5, 8-5 Pac-10) won in Eugene, Ore., for the first time since 1995 as Taylor Rochestie scored 16 of his 21 points in the second half.
Louisville 80, Providence 72 - Earl Clark had 20 points for the 23d-ranked Cardinals (20-6, 10-3 Big East), including a key 3-pointer with 2 1/2 minutes left that quelled a late run by the host Friars (13-12, 4-9).
Vanderbilt 61, Florida 58 - Shan Foster carried the hosts with 19 points, and Alex Gordon gave the No. 24 Commodores (22-4, 7-4 SEC) the lead with four free throws over the final 24 seconds.
Saint Mary's 80, Loyola Marymount 49 - Patrick Mills sank four 3-pointers en route to 22 points for the No. 25 Gaels (22-3, 9-1 West Coast) in Los Angeles.
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