Missouri Upsets Oklahoma State

Rickey Paulding and Arthur Johnson picked the right time to live up to the preseason hype.

Paulding, a preseason All-American, scored 31 points and Johnson had 29, including two free throws with 30.3 seconds left in the second overtime, to give Missouri a 93-92 victory over No. 6-ranked Oklahoma State on Tuesday at Columbia, Mo.

A last-second jumper by Oklahoma State’s John Lucas, who finished with 30 points, bounced off the rim.

The Tigers, 14-10 overall and 8-5 in the Big 12 Conference, won their fifth in a row and ended an 11-game winning streak for Oklahoma State (21-3, 11-2), which dropped into a first-place tie in the Big 12 with Texas.

“I think the seniors stepped up,” Oklahoma State Coach Eddie Sutton said of Missouri. “All of a sudden they looked around and said, ‘God, this is going to be over and we’re not going to go to the big dance.’ And now I think they’re in a position where they can go.”

No. 3 Pittsburgh 68, Georgetown 58 -- Carl Krauser scored 19 of his career-high 26 points in the second half, and the Panthers (25-2, 11-2) overcame 23 turnovers and a 10-point second-half deficit in a Big East game at Washington.

Gerald Riley scored 25 points for Georgetown (13-11, 4-9).

No. 8 Connecticut 71, St. John’s 53 -- Emeka Okafor had 22 points and 18 rebounds and the Huskies (22-5, 10-3 Big East) cruised at New York. Daryll Hill had 21 points for St. John’s (6-18, 1-12).

Virginia 74, No. 12 North Carolina 72 -- Todd Billet made his third decisive three-point basket in four games, connecting with 13 seconds left at Charlottesville, Va.

Devin Smith scored 20 points for the Cavaliers (15-10, 5-9 Atlantic Coast Conference) and Sean May led North Carolina (16-8, 6-7) with 20 points.

No. 13 Providence 73, Notre Dame 59 -- Ryan Gomes scored 23 of his 25 points in the second half for the Friars (19-5, 10-3 Big East) at South Bend, Ind. Chris Thomas had 23 points for Notre Dame (13-11, 7-7).

No. 16 Southern Illinois 68, Creighton 60 -- Darren Brooks had 14 points at Carbondale, Ill., to lead the Salukis (23-2, 16-0 Missouri Valley) to their 15th consecutive victory. Creighton dropped to 19-6, 11-5.

No. 19 Memphis 74, Southern Mississippi 56 -- Sean Banks scored 22 points and the host Tigers (20-4, 11-2 Conference USA) won their 11th in a row. Jasper Johnson and Charles Gaines each had 14 points for the Golden Eagles (12-12, 5-8), who lost for the fourth time in five games.

Nebraska 72, No. 25 Texas Tech 44 -- Nate Johnson had 17 points to lead the Cornhuskers (15-9, 5-8 Big 12) at Lincoln, Neb.

It was the worst beating for the Red Raiders (19-8, 7-6) since Kansas rolled over them, 90-50, in the 2002 conference tournament.

*

WOMEN

No. 14 Colorado 75, Kansas 56 -- Kate Fagan scored 20 points to lead the Buffaloes (21-5, 10-4 Big 12) at Boulder, Colo., and Coach Ceal Barry earned her 500th victory. Kansas (9-16, 2-12) was led by Larisha Graves with 15 points.