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Late Night Snacks: Memphis bounces back, UNC loses on the road

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GAME OF THE DAY: No. 21 Memphis 73, No. 5 Oklahoma State 68

Revenge is a dish best served ... in Orlando? The Tigers got back at Oklahoma State for a drubbing that they took at the hands of the Pokes in Stillwater two weeks ago, earning Josh Pastner inarguably the most important win of his career. Memphis needed to make a statement, and they did so on Sunday night. Maybe we wrote this team off too early?

Our Raphielle Johnson wrote on this game earlier.

THE OTHER GAME OF THE DAY: No. 12 Wichita State 70, Saint Louis 65

Memphis put together the most impressive win of the day, but Wichita State wasn’t far behind. Saint Louis is a veteran team that is tough defensively, well-coached and very difficult to beat in Chafeitz Arena. Wichita State erased a late six point deficit and knocked off the Billikens. The Shockers might actually be better than they were a season, and this biggest reason why is their back court. The combination of Fred VanVleet and Ron Baker is really, really good, enough so that I regret not having them in my top ten back courts in the country.

IMPORTANT OUTCOMES

1) No. 16 North Carolina lost again. After beating Louisville at Mohegan Sun, it looked like the Tar Heels might have turned a corner, but with Marcus Paige struggling early, James Michael McAdoo struggling always and their trio of young big men remaining largely ineffective, but Tar Heels lost at UAB on Sunday night.

2) George Washington capped off an impressive weekend at the Wooden Legacy tournament by knocking off No. 20 Creighton 60-53. They held Dougie McBuckets to seven points on 2-for-12 shooting from the floor.

3) Looks like this won’t actually be a rebuilding year for San Diego State, as the Aztecs beat No. 25 Marquette to complete their title in the Wooden Legacy.

STARRED

1) Sidney Saunders finished with 23 points, nine boards, nine assists and three steals as Fairleigh Dickinson knocked off Seton Hall less than a week after beating Rutgers. FDU was supposed to be one of the worst teams in Division I basketball this season.

2) Willie Cauley-Stein had 15 points and eight boards, but more importantly blocked nine shots as No. 3 Kentucky beat Providence 79-65 at the Barclays Center.

3) LSU’s three big men -- Jarrell Martin, Jordan Mickey and Johnny O’Bryant -- finished with 41 points and 21 boards in an overtime win over Butler.

STRUGGLED

1) Jahii Carson was 2-for-14 from the floor and sprained his ankle in a loss to Miami (FL), who has been one of the most disappointing high-major teams in the country this season.

2) Siena was outscored 34-15 over the final 15 minutes in a 68-63 loss to Purdue in the consolation bracket of the Old Spice Classic.

3) J.J. Mann had 14 points on 5-for-19 shooting, committing six turnovers as Belmont was on the wrong end of a 22-2 second half run in a loss to VCU at home.

THE REST OF THE TOP 25


  • No. 11 Gonzaga knocked off Coppin State, getting 14 points from Gerard Coleman off the bench.
  • No. 14 Oregon beat Cal Poly 82-61 as five players scored in double figures.
  • No. 18 Baylor beat Hardon-Simmons. They aren’t Division I.

NOTABLES


  • Freshman Billy Garrett had 15 points and 10 assists in DePaul’s win over Oregon State.
  • Ronald Roberts had 21 points and 10 boards for St. Joe’s in a win over Washington State.
  • Tre Bowman had 29 points as Iona knocked off Florida-Gulf Coast.
  • Cornell lost to Notre Dame 101-67, dropping to 0-9.

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