VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Justin Moore scored 24 points and helped No. 10 Villanova capture the Big East title with a 72-60 win over a No. 14 Creighton team playing with Coach Greg McDermott under fire for using language evocative of slavery.
McDermott, who had apologized for urging his players to "stay on the plantation" in a postgame locker room talk following a loss over the weekend, said on Creighton's pregame radio show that he offered to resign. McDermott said had a long meeting with players on Sunday night and said he saw "pain in their face[s]" and hoped "one mistake doesn't define you."
McDermott said he wanted to make sure the Bluejays wanted him to remain as coach and apologized for the "distraction that I brought to this team for the choice that I made."
"Our guys wanted me to coach and that's my job," McDermott said.
McDermott has been Creighton's coach since 2010. McDermott, who is white, acknowledged saying: "Guys, we got to stick together. We need both feet in. I need everybody to stay on the plantation. I can't have anybody leave the plantation."
The coach added that he apologized directly to Creighton's president, the Rev. Daniel Hendrickson, and Athletic Director Bruce Rasmussen.
Creighton assistant coach Terrence Rencher, who is Black, tweeted that he was "deeply hurt" by McDermott's words.
The school said any disciplinary action would remain confidential.
McDermott's racially insensitive remarks overshadowed what was expected to be a fantastic showdown between the top two teams in the Big East. The Wildcats instead raced to a 19-point lead and clinched their seventh regular-season title under Coach Jay Wright in the last eight seasons.
The Wildcats lost Collin Gillespie, their star senior guard averaging 14.4 points, to a left knee injury in the first half. He writhed in pain on the court and immediately needed help to the locker room.
Mitch Ballock led Creighton with 14 points.
NO. 11 FLORIDA STATE 93,
BOSTON COLLEGE 64
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- MJ Walker scored 18 points, hitting six three-pointers, and RaiQuan Gray added 16 points to help No. 11 Florida State win its 25th consecutive ACC home game.
Gray scored 10 or more points for an 11th consecutive game for the Seminoles (15-4, 11-3), who are in position to win the league's regular-season title with a win at Notre Dame on Saturday.
Jay Heath scored a career-high 28 points and Makai Ashton-Langford added 14 points for Boston College (4-14, 2-10). Heath shot 8 of 14 from three-point range.
NO. 19 SAN DIEGO STATE 71,
UNLV 62
LAS VEGAS -- Matt Mitchell scored 19 points and Jordan Schakel added 16 for No. 19 San Diego State, which beat UNLV to clinch the Mountain West Conference regular-season title for the second consecutive year.
Nathan Mensah scored 14 points for the Aztecs (20-4, 14-3), who used a 14-0 run spanning halftime to take control and win their 11th consecutive game. They get a week of rest before returning to Las Vegas as the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament.
David Jenkins Jr. scored 32 points for UNLV (11-13, 8-9), while leading scorer Bryce Hamilton was held to nine points, nine under his average, and fouled out with 1:41 to go.
SEC MEN
MISSOURI 72, FLORIDA 70
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Dru Smith scored the game-winner, banking a baseline drive reverse layup off the glass with 0.7 seconds on the clock and Missouri held on to defeat Florida for the Tigers' first-ever win in Gainesville.
Florida had been 4-0 against Missouri at home, and had made up a 10-point gap by fighting through the entirety of the second half to close on an 8-0 run and tie at 70-70 with 18 seconds left.
Smith scored 17 points and had 9 assists and a season-high 6 steals to lead Missouri (15-7, 8-7), Mitchell Smith (Van Buren) scored 14 and Mark Smith 11. Xavier Pinson scored 14, making four three-pointers, and Jeremiah Tilmon added 12 points.
Tilmon's fifth foul sent Florida's Colin Castleton to the line, where he sank the tying free throws. Castleton scored 10 points, all in the second half, for the Gators (13-7, 9-6), making 4 of 4 at the line.
Tre Mann scored 21 points to lead Florida, Tyree Appleby (Jacksonville) added 12 with five assists and Noah Locke scored 11. The Gators committed 18 turnovers, leading to 25 Missouri points, and saw a three-game win streak end.
Missouri led 36-29 half, taking the lead on a Dru Smith jumper and closing the half on a 15-4 run. Mitchell Smith pushed the Tigers lead to 10, opening the second half with a three-pointer.
MISSISSIPPI STATE 63,
TEXAS A&M 57
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Iverson Molinar scored 18 points and D.J. Stewart added 14 as Mississippi State fended off Texas A&M.
The Aggies were playing their first game in 32 days, having postponed all seven games they were scheduled to play in February due to covid-19 issues within the program.
Abdul Ado added 8 points, 6 rebounds and 5 blocked shots for Mississippi State (14-12, 8-9), which shot 53% for the game (26 of 49) with 18 assists and eight three-pointers. Tolu Smith also scored eight points and added five assists.
Emanuel Miller scored 24 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for Texas A&M (8-8, 2-7). Quenton Jackson added 13 points and Savion Flagg 12.
Flagg reached 1,000 career points with a layup off his own steal at 14:33 of the second half, pulling the Aggies to within 40-36. Flagg scored five points and Jay Jay Chandler dunked as the Aggies cut a late 10-point gap down to 59-55 with 3:16 remaining.
TOP 25 WOMEN
NO. 10 INDIANA 89, IOWA 80
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Grace Berger, Mackenzie Holmes, and Ali Patberg each scored 22 points as 10th-ranked Indiana rallied from a seven-point deficit in the third quarter for a Big Ten home victory over Iowa.
The Hoosiers (17-4, 15-2 Big Ten) pulled to within a half-game of No. 8 Maryland (19-2, 15-1) for the regular-season conference crown. Indiana has one game remaining while the Terrapins have two.
Iowa freshman guard Caitlin Clark, the nation's second-leading scorer at 26.9 points per game, led all scorers with 32 points before fouling out late in the fourth quarter. Manika Czinano added 20 points for the Hawkeyes (14-8, 10-8).
Berger scored eight of her points in the pivotal third quarter, when Indiana outscored Iowa 27-16. That's when Indiana clamped down defensively on Iowa's one-two punch as Clark had just four shots and Czinano missed 5 of 7 shots.
NO. 20 WEST VIRGINIA 72,
KANSAS STATE 64
MANHATTAN, Kan. -- Esmery Martinez scored 23 points on 11-of-15 shooting and grabbed 12 rebounds to help No. 20 West Virginia beat Kansas State.
Kysre Gondrezick added 14 points, Kirsten Deans and 13 points and 9 assists, and Jasmine Carson scored 11 points for West Virginia (19-4, 13-4 Big 12).
Kansas State (8-16, 3-14) scored 10 consecutive points to take its first lead at 20-19 with 49 seconds left in the first quarter, but Martinez answered with a layup 30 seconds later and the Mountaineers led the rest of the way.
SEC WOMEN
FLORIDA 69, AUBURN 62
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Kiki Smith scored 19 points, Danielle Rainey added 13 and 12th-seeded Florida opened the SEC tournament with a victory over 13th-seeded Auburn after blowing an 18-point third quarter lead.
Both teams had a pair of double-digit runs in the second half, the Gators getting the last one that was enough to propel them into the quarterfinals against fifth-seeded and 17th-ranked Kentucky today.
Auburn, trailing by 18, closed third quarter with a 12-0 run and scored another 11 in a row after a Florida basket to open the fourth quarter, taking a 57-54 lead.
Kristina Moore then hit a three-pointer and Rainey two more as the Gators scored 12 in a row for a 66-57 lead with 3:51 to go and that was enough.
Moore finished with 11 points for the Gators (11-11), who ended a four-game losing streak. Smith also reach 1,002 points for her career.
Alaina Rice led Auburn (5-19) with 15 points. Unique Thompson scored 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Honesty Scott-Grayson added 12 points.