CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — Andrej Stojakovic scored 17 points and No. 5 Illinois made 17 3-pointers in an 84-44 win over Northwestern on Wednesday night.
Keaton Wagler, Zvonimir Ivisic and Ben Humrichous each had 13 points for Illinois (20-3, 11-1 Big Ten), which won its 12th straight game. David Mirkovic had 12 points and Tomislav Ivisic had 12 rebounds.
Six players made 3s for Illinois, which shot 17 of 38 from behind the arc and had just two turnovers.
Wagler, whose 19th birthday was Tuesday, has scored in double figures in 15 straight games and 20 times this season.
He banked in a 3 from halfcourt with four seconds left the first half, giving Illinois a 47-19 lead at halftime.
Northwestern (10-13, 2-10), which shot 29% from the field including 4 of 25 on 3-pointers, did not have a player score in double figures.
Nick Martinelli, the Big Ten’s leading scorer, had just four points, 19 under his average. He was 2 of 10 from the field while playing 27 minutes. Tre Singleton led the Wildcats with eight points.
NO. 8 HOUSTON 79, UCF 55
HOUSTON (AP) — Kingston Flemings had 18 points and six assists, Chris Cenac Jr. added 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Houston beat Central Florida.
Cenac and Flemings combined for 22 points on 10-of-17 shooting in the first half as Houston (20-2, 8-1 Big 12) took a 33-19 lead into halftime. The duo finished 15 of 25 from the field.
Milos Uzan scored 12 points for the Cougars, who shot 55% from the floor despite going 3 for 19 from 3-point range. Houston had a 40-29 advantage in rebounds and outscored the Knights 42-14 in the paint.
The Cougars won their 17th straight at home and have won 50 of their last 51 home games. Houston also won its 11th straight over UCF.
The victory gave the Cougars their 11th straight 20-win season under coach Kelvin Sampson.
Riley Kugel had nine points for UCF (17-5, 6-4), which had won three in a row. The Knights shot 31% and were 6 of 21 on 3-pointers.
MINNESOTA 76, NO. 10 MICHIGAN STATE 73
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Jaylen Crocker-Johnson had 22 points and seven rebounds to help Minnesota fend off a late surge by Michigan State and secure a upset.
Cade Tyson scored 17 points and Langston Reynolds added 14 points and eight assists for the Gophers (11-12, 4-8 Big Ten), who broke a seven-game losing streak despite being outscored 22-9 over the final four minutes in a game in which they were 7 1/2 point underdogs according to MGM Sportsbook.
Coen Carr had 10 of his 16 points for the Spartans (19-4, 9-3) in the last three minutes, including a layup with 34 seconds left that cut the lead to 72-68, their closest margin since 7-3.
No. 24 LOUISVILLE 76, NOTRE DAME 65
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Ryan Conwell scored 12 points, including seven during a 15-1 second-half surge, and Khani Rooths added 12 off the bench to help Louisville put away Notre Dame.
The Cardinals (16-6, 6-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) overcame another cold start to lead 38-28 just before halftime but needed much of the second half to gain another double-digit cushion against the stubborn Fighting Irish.
Louisville made it 64-54 on Conwell’s steal and three-point play with six minutes remaining, and Rooths added five during the surge over 4:26 that Conwell capped with four more points.
Cole Certa scored 18 points with five 3s for Notre Dame (11-12, 2-8), which dropped its third in a row and ninth of 11 contests.
The Associated Press
