Kofi Cockburn compiled 37 points and 12 rebounds as No. 18 Illinois took over sole possession of first in the Big Ten Conference with an 80-67 victory over No. 11 Wisconsin on Wednesday in Champaign, Ill.
Cockburn, the only NCAA player in both the top 10 in scoring and rebounding, made 16 of 19 shots and wound up one point shy of his career-high point total set Nov. 26 against Texas-Rio Grande Valley.
Jacob Grandison added 14 points for Illinois (16-5, 9-2 Big Ten), which pulled away from a four-point halftime lead.
Johnny Davis had 22 points and 15 rebounds for Wisconsin, offsetting 5-of-19 shooting by making 11 of 14 free throws. Tyler Wahl added 14 points for the Badgers (17-4, 8-3), who hit just 3 of 24 attempts from 3-point range.
No. 4 Purdue 88, Minnesota 73
Jaden Ivey scored 21 points to go with 10 rebounds and Eric Hunter Jr. had a career-high 20 points as the Boilermakers stretched their winning streak to four games with a win against the Golden Gophers in Big Ten play in Minneapolis.
Purdue (19-3, 8-3 Big Ten) shot 55.6 percent while sending the Golden Gophers to their seventh loss in eight games. Payton Willis scored a game-high 24 points on 9-for-14 shooting while matching his career best of 10 assists to pace Minnesota (11-8, 2-8).
Stefanovic scored 15 points and dished seven of the team’s 23 assists, while Zach Edey registered a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds on a night Purdue never trailed. Minnesota shot 46.6 percent while getting outrebounded 39-23. Jamison Battle scored 21 points for the Golden Gophers, while Luke Loewe was next with 11.
No. 5 Kentucky 77, Vanderbilt 70
Davion Mintz tied a career-high with 21 points off the bench as the Wildcats fended off the pesky Commodores in Southeastern Conference play in Lexington, Ky.
Coming off Saturday’s 80-62 triumph at then-No. 5 Kansas, the Wildcats (18-4, 7-2 SEC) won for the seventh time in eight games and third straight overall by building a 10-point halftime to beat Vanderbilt (11-10, 3-6) for the 12th consecutive meeting.
Vanderbilt’s Scottie Pippen Jr. netted a season-high 33 points and added six rebounds and five assists.
No. 6 Houston 73, Tulane 62
Fabian White Jr. scored 21 points and the Cougars held off the visiting Green Wave for their 11th consecutive victory.
Josh Carlton added 14 points, Taze Moore scored 12 and Ramon Walker Jr. had 11 for Houston (19-2, 8-0 American Athletic Conference).
Kevin Cross scored 17, Tylan Pope came off the bench to add 14 and Jaylen Forbes and Jalen Cook scored 11 each to lead Tulane (9-10, 6-4).
No. 24 Marquette 83, No. 12 Villanova 73
Justin Lewis scored 19 points, Tyler Kolek added 18 and the host Golden Eagles defeated the Wildcats in Milwaukee, Wis.
Darryl Morsell contributed 15 for Marquette (16-7, 8-4 Big East), which won both games against Villanova this season.
Justin Moore, who eclipsed 1,000 points in his career, missed all seven 3-pointers and finished with only seven points for Villanova.
No. 21 Xavier 68, Butler 66
Zach Freemantle scored 16 of his 23 points in the second half as the Musketeers held off the visiting Bulldogs in a Big East game in Cincinnati.
Paul Scruggs had nine points and five assists for Xavier (16-5, 6-4 Big East), which shot 46.4 percent from the field and made 3 of 17 from 3-point range.
Chuck Harris and Jayden Taylor each scored 18 points and Aaron Thompson had 12 for the Bulldogs (11-11, 4-7). Butler shot 43.9 percent, including 7 of 22 from behind the arc.
–Field Level Media
