Piscataway, NJ (Sports Network) - Wayne Blackshear scored 19 points, as 11th-
ranked Louisville defeated Rutgers, 68-48, on Wednesday. Blackshear shot 7-
of-11 from the field, including 3-of-5 from behind the arc, for the Cardinals
(19-4, 7-3 Big East), who have won three straight games to pull within a
half-game of Syracuse and Marquette for the top spot in the conference.
Russ Smith recorded 14 points, five rebounds and four assists. Rutgers (12-9,
3-7), which has lost five consecutive games, had trouble shooting
throughout the night and was limited to 32.0 percent shooting from
the field. Eli Carter had a team-high 13 points in the setback.
Final Score: (12) Michigan State 61, (18) Minnesota 50
East Lansing, MI (Sports Network) - Garry Harris played with a bad back. Keith
Appling hurt his shoulder. Despite all of the ailments, Michigan State looked
plenty healthy in the second half. Harris scored 15 points, Appling added 14
and the 12th-ranked Spartans downed No. 18 Minnesota, 61-50, behind a big 43-
point second half. Adreian Payne chipped in with 11 points and seven
rebounds for the Spartans (19-4, 8-2 Big Ten), who have won eight of nine
since a New Year's Eve loss to these Golden Gophers in Minneapolis. Andre
Hollins led Minnesota (17-6, 5-5) with 11 points and Trevor Mbakwe added nine
points and 14 points in the loss. The Golden Gophers saw a two-game
winning streak fall by the wayside.
Final Score: (14) Butler 77, St. Bonaventure 58
Indianapolis, IN (Sports Network) - Rotnei Clarke had 17 points, five rebounds
and five assists in No. 14 Butler's 77-58 win over St. Bonaventure. Andrew
Smith added 13 points and seven boards for the Bulldogs (19-4, 6-2 A-10),
who have won back-to-back games after dropping two of their previous three.
Demitrius Conger netted 18 points to lead the Bonnies (10-11, 3-5), who have
gone 3-2 on the heels of a six-game skid.
Final Score: Indiana State 76, (16) Creighton 57
Terre Haute, IN (Sports Network) - Jake Odum scored a game-high 22 points and
dished out five assists to lead Indiana State to a 76-57 drubbing of 16th-
ranked Creighton at Hulman Center. Odum, who finished 7-of-10 from the
field, has reached double digits in four straight games. Manny Arop finished
with 13 points and seven rebounds and RJ Mahurin added 17 points for the
Sycamores (15-8, 8-4 MVC), winners in three of their last four. Indiana State
took down then 15th-ranked Wichita State on Jan. 29, but fell to Drake in
overtime on Feb. 2. Doug McDermott, the Bluejays' leading scorer, struggled
from the field all night. The 2012 MVC Player of the Year converted on just
3-of-10 field goal attempts and finished with just eight points, his lowest
scoring output since posting just five points on Nov. 14. Will Artino led
Creighton (20-4, 9-3) with 13 points while Gregory Echenique, Grant Gibbs and
Nevin Johnson tallied eight points apiece in the setback.
Final Score: (22) Oklahoma State 69, Baylor 67 (OT)
Stillwater, OK (Sports Network) - Mike Cobbins made a key block in the closing
seconds of overtime, leading to Markel Brown's fastbreak layup with less than
a second remaining to lift No. 22 Oklahoma State over Baylor, 69-67, on
Wednesday. Brown finished with 13 points and five rebounds, while
Marcus Smart contributed 14 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for the
Cowboys (16-5, 6-3 Big 12), who have won four straight. Pierre Jackson scored
a game-high 24 points to go along with eight assists for Baylor (14-8, 5-4),
but he also committed 11 of the Bears' 16 turnovers. Cory Jefferson had 18
points and 11 rebounds in Baylor's third consecutive loss.
Final Score: (24) Marquette 70, South Florida 47
Tampa, FL (Sports Network) - Vander Blue and Todd Mayo each scored 13 points
to lead the 24th-ranked Marquette Golden Eagles over the South Florida Bulls,
70-47, on Wednesday. Junior Cadougan added 11 points for the Golden Eagles
(16-5, 7-2 Big East), who bounced back from a 70-51 loss to former No. 1
Louisville on Sunday. Jamil Wilson tallied 10 points. Zach LeDay ended with 14
points for the Bulls (10-12, 1-9), who have lost five in a row. Victor Rudd
donated eight points.
The Sports Network