Top 25 roundup: Brandon Miller plays, leads No. 2 Tide to OT win

 

[February 23, 2023]  Brandon Miller overcame an inhospitable reception to score the winning basket with 0.9 seconds left in overtime while pouring in a career-best 41 points to lead No. 2 Alabama to a 78-76 victory over South Carolina on Wednesday in Columbia, S.C.

Miller was booed every time he touched the ball by South Carolina fans one day after a Tuscaloosa (Ala.) police detective testified that the star freshman transported a gun to then-teammate Darius Miles that was used in the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Jamea Harris on Jan. 15. Miller hasn't been charged with a crime and the school announced hours before Wednesday's game that Miller would play against the Gamecocks.

Charles Bediako added 10 points and nine rebounds as the Crimson Tide (24-4, 14-1 Southeastern Conference) won for the 15th time in 17 games. Miller also had eight rebounds, six 3-pointers, three steals and two blocked shots for Alabama, which leads second-place Texas A&M by one game in the SEC race.

Gregory "GG" Jackson Jr. scored 19 points for South Carolina (10-18, 3-12), which lost for the 10th time in 12 games. Meechie Johnson and Jacobi Wright added 18 points apiece for the Gamecocks.

No. 1 Houston 89, Tulane 59

J'Wan Roberts scored 26 points and Marcus Sasser added 22 as the Cougars rolled past the visiting Green Wave.

The first-place Cougars (26-2, 14-1 American Athletic Conference) won their eighth consecutive game and clinched at least a share of the league's regular-season title. Tramon Mark scored 13 points as the Cougars matched their highest point total in an AAC game this season.

Jalen Cook scored 23 points, 21 in the second half on 7-of-8 shooting, and Jaylen Forbes finished with 14 points for Tulane (17-8, 10-4).

Boston College 63, No. 6 Virginia 48

Makai Ashton-Langford scored a team-high 16 points and the Eagles turned in their best defensive effort of the season in a victory over the Cavaliers at Chestnut Hill, Mass.

Feb 22, 2023; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide forward Brandon Miller (24) dribbles the ball against the South Carolina Gamecocks in the second half at Colonial Life Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports

Jaeden Zackery and DeMarr Langford Jr. each added 12 points for Boston College (14-15, 8-10 Atlantic Coast Conference), which shot 52 percent from the field. It was the first time Boston College defeated a top-10 opponent since the Eagles knocked off top-ranked Duke in 2017.

Virginia (21-5, 13-4) shot 32 percent from the field, including 4 of 21 from behind the 3-point arc. It was the Cavaliers' lowest offensive output of the season and ended the team's four-game winning streak. Jayden Gardner, who scored 16 points, was the lone Virginia player to reach double figures.

No. 18 UConn 87, No. 20 Providence 69

Jordan Hawkins scored a team-high 20 points and the Huskies used a 14-point run in the middle stages of the second half to pull away from the Friars for a win in Storrs, Conn.

Hawkins and Nahiem Alleyne hit three 3-pointers apiece to help UConn (21-7, 10-7 Big East) earn its fifth win in six games. Adama Sanogo and Alex Karaban had 16 points apiece for the Huskies, and Tristen Newton added 12 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.

Bryce Hopkins scored 16 points and Jared Bynum contributed 14 for Providence (20-8, 12-5), which was outrebounded 40-20.

--Field Level Media

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