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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Briefs: Free throw helps No. 1 Ohio State hold off Northwestern

Ohio State’s Dallas Lauderdale, right, looks to pass as Northwestern’s Michael Thompson defends during first-half play. (Associated Press)

College basketball: Jared Sullinger scored 21 and hit the second of two free throws with 3.5 seconds left Saturday night and No. 1 Ohio State (22-0, 9-0 Big Ten) overcame a furious rally by Northwestern (13-8, 3-7) to beat the Wildcats 58-57 in Evanston, Ill., – the unbeaten Buckeyes’ 22nd straight victory.

Michael Thompson, who led the Wildcats with 16 points – 13 in the second half – hit a 3-pointer with 3:51 left that capped a 21-7 run as the Wildcats took a 55-54 lead.

The game was tied at 57 when Ohio State’s David Lighty stole a pass with 17 seconds left, setting up Sullinger’s free throws.

• New Mexico stuns BYU: Freshman Tony Snell scored a career-high 16 points and had a strong defensive effort in the first half against BYU All-American Jimmer Fredette, helping New Mexico (14-8, 3-4 Mountain West) beat the No. 9 Cougars 86-77 at The Pit in Albuquerque, N.M.

Fredette hit six 3-pointers and finished with 32 points, but Snell held the nation’s leading scorer to five points through the game’s first 17 minutes.

• Louisville upsets UConn: Peyton Siva scored 19 points, including two driving layups in the second overtime, and No. 23 Louisville (17-4, 6-2 Big East) pulled off a 79-78 upset over No. 5 Connecticut (17-3, 5-3) in Storrs, Conn.

• Syracuse loses fourth straight: Jae Crowder scored 13 of his 25 points in the second half and Marquette (14-8, 5-4 Big East) handed No. 9 Syracuse (18-4, 5-4) its fourth straight loss, 76-70 in Milwaukee.

• Georgetown tops Villanova: Austin Freeman scored 10 of Georgetown’s final 12 points and finished with 30 to lead the 21st-ranked Hoyas (16-5, 5-4 Big East) to a 69-66 victory over No. 8 Villanova (17-4, 5-3) in Philadelphia.

• Nebraska stops Texas A&M: Jorge Brian Diaz scored 16 points and Nebraska (15-5, 3-3 Big 12) held 13th-ranked Texas A&M (17-3, 4-2) to two field goals over the final 10 minutes in a 57-48 victory in Lincoln, Neb.

• Purdue beats Minnesota: JaJuan Johnson – the Big Tens’ leading scorer – poured in 24 points in leading No. 12 Purdue (18-4, 7-2) to a 73-61 win over No. 16 Minnesota (16-5, 5-4) in West Lafayette, Ind.

• Penn State pulls off upset: Talor Battle scored 20 of his 22 points after halftime and Penn State (12-8, 5-4 Big Ten) turned up the defensive pressure in the second half to post a 56-52 win over No. 17 Wisconsin (15-5, 5-3) in State College, Pa.

It was the Nittany Lions third straight win over a ranked opponent at home.

• Clemson pounds ranked Florida State: Jerai Grant had 14 points, Demontez Stitt added 12 and Clemson (15-6, 4-3 Atlantic Coast) knocked off its first ranked opponent under coach Brad Brownell, rolling to a 62-44 win over No. 22 Florida State (15-6, 5-2) in Clemson, S.C.

• No. 24 Florida falls: Dee Bost scored 24 points, Kodi Augustus and Renardo Sidney each added 16, and Mississippi State (11-9, 3-3 Southeastern) hit 6 of 6 free throws down the stretch in a 71-64 win over No. 24 Florida (16-5, 5-2) in Starkville, Miss.

• Stanford women roll: Kayla Pedersen scored a season-high 21 points and Jeanette Pohlen added 15 points to lead No. 4 Stanford (18-2, 9-0 Pac-10) to a 74-44 victory over Oregon State (7-13, 0-9) in Corvallis, Ore.

Mayo says ‘energy drink’ the culprit

NBA: Memphis Grizzlies guard O.J. Mayo says he believes an “energy drink” he bought at a gas station contained the substance that led to his 10-game suspension for violating the NBA’s drug policy.

“I didn’t know it had any bad substances in it, and it caused a 10-game suspension …,” Mayo said. “It’s not like I went to a GNC and got some Muscle Armor or ordered some supplement off the Internet or anything. It was just a local gas station that kind of got me hemmed up.”

The NBA suspended Mayo on Thursday for testing positive for dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), which is on the league’s list of banned performance-enhancing drugs.

• Spurs cruise at home: Manu Ginobili scored 22 points and the San Antonio Spurs became the NBA’s first 40-game winner, beating the Houston Rockets 108-95 in San Antonio.

Richard Jefferson added 18 points to help the Spurs win their 18th in a row at home.

• Nowitzki, Terry spark Mavericks: Dirk Nowitzki scored 19 points, Jason Terry added 18 points and a season-high 11 assists, and the Dallas Mavericks beat the Atlanta Hawks 102-91 in Dallas.

Jason Kidd had 12 points and eight rebounds for the Mavericks, who have won five of six after a six-game losing streak.

• Minnesota keeps Toronto reeling: Kevin Love had his NBA-leading 42nd double-double of the season with 21 points and 12 rebounds, and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat Toronto 103-87 in Minneapolis to send the Raptors to their 11th straight loss.

The Timberwolves, last in the NBA in defense, held Toronto to 33.7 percent shooting.

• Bulls stomp Pacers: Carlos Boozer had 24 points and 10 rebounds, Derrick Rose scored 20 points despite two stomach ulcers and the host Chicago Bulls beat the struggling Indiana Pacers 110-89.

• League suspends pair of Williams: The Atlanta Hawks’ Marvin Williams has been suspended two games and the New York Knicks’ Shawne Williams one game for throwing punches Friday in the Hawks’ 111-102 win.

Cuche wins second straight downhill

Miscellany: Switzerland’s Didier Cuche won his second straight World Cup downhill – this one in Chamonix, France – positioning himself as a strong favorite in Alpine skiing’s world championships next month.

In perfect race conditions, Cuche clocked 1 minute, 58.91 seconds down the 2.09-mile Verte course, with Dominik Paris of Italy 0.67 back in second.

• Japan wins Asian Cup: Japan won the Asian Cup for a record fourth time, defeating Australia 1-0 in Doha, Qatar, in the final of a soccer tournament that served as an early rehearsal for a country set to hold the World Cup in 2022.

The lone goal was scored by substitute Tadanari Lee in extra time.

• Trafeh wins U.S. Half Marathon: Mohamed Trafeh won the U.S. Half-Marathon championship in Houston, passing American record-holder Ryan Hall in the final mile to beat him by 3 seconds.

Trafeh finished the 13.1-mile race in 1 hour, 2 minutes, 17 seconds.