Quality win for Memphis
John Calipari knew his Memphis Tigers would need a little jolt right about now. That's why he wanted to play Gonzaga at this point of the season. He got what he hoped for from the Bulldogs.
And his top-ranked Tigers still won.
Chris Douglas-Roberts scored 21 points and Derrick Rose added 19 as Memphis remained undefeated with an 81-73 victory Saturday in Memphis, Tenn.
"You can't make mistakes on a team like Gonzaga," Douglas-Roberts said. "Gonzaga will capitalize on every mistake. That's why we needed a game like this. A lot of teams we've been playing aren't capitalizing on our mistakes, so we didn't know what to do and what not to do."
This was the first time in school history the Tigers got to play on their own court as the top-ranked team, and they trailed for only a little more than a minute late in the first half before a sold-out crowd.
The Tigers (19-0) extended the nation's longest home winning streak to 43 straight by showing off their athleticism and running over Gonzaga (15-5), which had a six-game winning streak.
The Bulldogs took Memphis to overtime before losing in Spokane last season. This time, they had to be happy with keeping within single digits at the end.
"You almost have to be perfect in here, and that's a little hard to pull off," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said.
Jeremy Pargo led Gonzaga with 25 points.
The Bulldogs pulled within 62-55 on a 3-point play by Bouldin with 8:08 left.
Rose answered with 2 free throws, the Tigers forced Gonzaga into a shot clock violation and Douglas-Roberts hit the first of 2 at the line. Rose added a jumper, then Douglas-Roberts dunked for a 69-55 lead with 5:52 to go.
Kansas 84, Nebraska 49: Darrell Arthur scored 18 points and Brandon Rush had 17 points and 8 rebounds for No. 2 Kansas in a win over visiting Nebraska (11-6, 0-4 Big 12). The Jayhawks (20-0, 5-0), who led 44-15 at halftime, kept pace with No. 1 Memphis as the nation's only unbeaten Division I teams.
Tennessee 85, Georgia 69: Chris Lofton hit seven 3-pointers and scored a season-high 27 points for third-ranked Tennessee (17-2, 4-1 SEC) in a win over visiting Georgia (11-6, 2-2).
Washington St. 56, Arizona St. 55: Derrick Low scored 18 points, all on 3-pointers, and No. 6 Washington State rallied from an 11-point deficit against No. 24 Arizona St. in Tempe, Ariz.
The Cougars (17-2, 5-2 Pac-10) survived the upset bid when Arizona State's star freshman James Harden (25 points) missed on a drive to the basket at the buzzer. Arizona State is now 14-5, 4-3.
Georgetown 58 W. Virginia 57: Jessie Sapp hit a 3-pointer with six seconds left, and Patrick Ewing Jr. blocked Da'Sean Butler's layup attempt at the buzzer for ninth-ranked Georgetown in Morgantown, W. Va. The Hoyas (16-2, 6-1 Big East) overcame a 10-point deficit early in the second half and held the Mountaineers (15-5, 4-3) without a field goal over an eight-minute span.