Mississippi State forward Cameron Matthews scores against Tennessee during a Southeastern Conference quarterfinal Friday in Nashville, Tenn. John Bazemore/Associated Press
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The fifth-ranked Tennessee Volunteers are out of time to fix issues costing them games before the NCAA Tournament.
Mississippi State likely has played its way into that field with its latest big win.
Cameron Matthews and Josh Hubbard each scored 18 points and the ninth-seeded Bulldogs dominated Tennessee 73-56 Friday in the Southeastern Conference quarterfinals.
Mississippi State, which ended the regular season on a four-game skid, never trailed against the SEC’s top seed. This victory should push the Bulldogs (21-12) firmly off the bubble, with their second win over the Vols (24-8)this season.
Tennessee’s Dalton Knecht was held to 14 points after he averaged 25.5 points in league play during the regular season.
South Portland’s J.P. Estrella grabbed two rebounds but didn’t score in eight minutes for Tennessee.
(2) UCONN 95, ST. JOHN’S 90: Tristen Newton had 25 points and nine assists as the top-seeded Huskies (30-3) advanced to the Big East championship game with a victory over St. John’s (20-13) at Madison Square Garden.
Cam Spencer added 20 points and nine assists.
It’s the 11th appearance in the Big East final for Connecticut, and first since Kemba Walker carried the team to its most recent title in 2011. UConn had been 0-3 in conference semifinals since rejoining the league for the 2020-21 season.
(3) PURDUE 67, MICHIGAN STATE 62: Zach Edey had 29 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks, and the Boilermakers (29-3) recovered from a blown 12-point lead to beat the Spartans (19-14) in a hard-nosed quarterfinal at the Big Ten Tournament in Minneapolis.
(12) AUBURN 86, (15) SOUTH CAROLINA 55: Johni Broome had 18 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Tigers (25-7) to a romp over the Gamecocks (26-7) in the Southeastern Conference quarterfinals in Nashville, Tennessee.
Chaney Johnson scored 11 points and K.D. Johnson added 10 for Auburn, which won by 40 when these teams met in the regular season. The second-seeded Tigers will play in the semifinals Saturday against Mississippi State.
n The South Carolina board of trustees announced before Friday’s game that it has approved a contract extension for Coach Lamont Paris that will pay him more than $26 million through 2029-30.
In his second year as head coach, Paris was chosen as The Associated Press SEC coach of the year. The Gamecocks have tied the school record with 26 wins.
MICHIGAN: Juwan Howard was fired after five seasons as head coach, as the Wolverines parted ways with the former Fab Five star whose return to his alma mater included a Big Ten title before closing with two straight disappointing seasons.
Howard finished with an 82-67 record. He won a conference regular-season championship and was a win away from the Final Four in 2021, when he was named The Associated Press coach of the year.
But the Wolverines lost a school-record 24 games this season as they plummeted to a last-place finish in the Big Ten for the first time since 1967.
BIG EAST: Big East and Madison Square Garden officials announced a contract extension that will keep the league tournament in New York through at least 2032.
FOOTBALL
CFP: The nine Bowl Subdivision conferences and Notre Dame reached an agreement on a six-year deal to continue the College Football Playoff through the 2031 season, a significant step that establishes a revenue-sharing plan and allows the CFP to finalize a media rights agreement.
Executive Director Bill Hancock said the agreement doesn’t lock in a format for the CFP for 2026 and beyond, but it guarantees at least a 12-team field and five conferences having annual access to the playoff through 2031.
The number of teams in the CFP could grow after the current contract with ESPN expires after the 2025 season, but for now there is no plan in place and no urgency to make a decision, Hancock said.
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