DePaul’s Coleman Gets the Call, and the Roll

All zeros on the clock and two free throws. That’s what faced Willie Coleman as he stood at the free-throw line on Saturday with all eyes on him at the Rosemont (Ill.) Horizon.

Coleman, a 55% free-throw shooter, put the first up and it went in--and then out. But his second seemed to have eyes, crawling up and over the rim and then into the basket, giving DePaul a 61-60 overtime victory over No. 3-ranked Cincinnati.

“I knew I just had to make one. Thank God it went in,” said Coleman, who dropped to his knees after making it. “I had a big chance and I made it.”

Before 15,816, DePaul’s largest crowd at the Horizon in nearly seven years, Coleman stole the ball from Melvin Levett with four seconds left and, while frantically dribbling up the floor, put up an awkward 30-foot shot that didn’t draw iron.

A disbelieving Levett was called for a foul on the play.

“I stole the ball and I looked up and I saw there was one second left and I put up a shot and leaned into it,” said Coleman. “The whistle blew and I was happy.”

Said Levett: “I was just trying to stay in front of him. They called a push. I can’t push him with my hands in the air.”

It was the second time Cincinnati, 21-2 overall and 8-2 in Conference USA, had lost after a controversial call by an official. The Bearcats had a three-point basket disallowed in the final seconds of a loss at North Carolina Charlotte on Jan. 14, with Conference USA officials later admitting the call was in error.

“The players are supposed to decide the outcome,” said Cincinnati Coach Bob Huggins after his team lost to DePaul (12-9, 6-5) for the first time in 17 games.

Freshman Quentin Richardson led DePaul with 24 points, getting 10 in overtime.

Ryan Fletcher scored all 11 of Cincinnati’s points in overtime, with his three-point basket with 48 seconds left giving the Bearcats a 60-58 lead.

Richardson’s tip-in with 24 seconds left tied the game and set the stage for Coleman, who had scored the final points of regulation with two free throws with 13 seconds left--also after a steal.

Coleman, a senior forward, had missed important free throws several times the last two seasons, including two in the final seconds against Saint Louis last year that could have given the Blue Demons a victory.

“It took guts,” said DePaul Coach Pat Kennedy. “To make that steal in overtime when they could call a foul on him and send the game the other way.”

No. 2 Duke 87, Georgia Tech 79--Trajan Langdon broke out of a shooting slump, scoring 23 points at Atlanta for the Blue Devils (23-1, 11-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference) in their 18th consecutive victory.

Langdon made eight of 13 shots, including four from three-point range after Georgia Tech (13-10, 4-7) had taken a 10-point lead in the second half. He was only 16 for 50 in his previous five games.

Alabama 62, No. 5 Kentucky 58--Freshman Sam Haginas had a dunk and a three-point play in the final 19 seconds at Tuscaloosa, Ala., to lead the short-handed Crimson Tide (13-11, 3-8 in the Southeastern Conference) to their first victory over the Wildcats (19-6, 8-3) in eight years. The score was tied or the lead changed 22 times in the second half.

With leading scorer Brian Williams sidelined by an ankle injury, Alabama was led by Doc Martin, who made seven of 11 shots and had a career-high 20 points in his first start.

“I just listened to my mom’s advice,” said Martin, who entered the game averaging 2.3 points. “She just said, ‘Baby, when you get the ball, just shoot.’ ”

Kentucky (19-6, 8-3) lost its second game in a row, having its SEC road win streak end at 15 against Florida on Thursday. The Wildcats shot 39% and had 20 turnovers.

No. 6 Auburn 80, Louisiana State 54--Chris Porter came off the bench for the second consecutive game, getting 23 points, 12 rebounds and five steals for the Tigers (22-1, 10-1 in the SEC) at Auburn, Ala. Porter returned from a three-game suspension on Wednesday against South Carolina.

Auburn tied a school record for victories also accomplished in 1984-85 and ‘85-86.

Louisiana State (10-10, 2-9) had 20 turnovers and made only two of 15 three-point shots.

No. 7 Maryland 88, Virginia 72--The Terrapins (20-4, 8-3 in the ACC) made seven of 10 three-point shots in the first half at College Park, Md., against the tightly packed zone defense of the Cavaliers (13-8, 3-8).

Maryland’s accuracy from the perimeter forced Virginia to adjust after halftime and freshman center Lonny Baxter, making his first start, scored nine of his 14 points in the first five minutes of the second half. Senior Obinna Ekezie, the regular starting center, was benched after subpar play in consecutive Terrapin losses, getting one point against Wake Forest and two rebounds against Duke.

No. 8 Michigan State 95, No. 14 Iowa 81--Reserve Morris Peterson scored a career-high 27 points at Iowa City, Iowa, to lead the Spartans (20-4, 9-1 in the Big Ten) to their ninth consecutive victory.

Peterson, who led Michigan State with 19 points in an 80-65 victory over Iowa (15-6, 6-5) on Jan. 21, made nine of 12 shots. Peterson’s previous high in points was 24 against Duke on Dec. 2.

No. 9 St. John’s 88, Pittsburgh 60--The Red Storm (18-6, 9-3 in the Big East), which had lost three of its last four games by 11 total points to ranked teams, led by as many as 35 points at Pittsburgh.

Erick Barkley had 21 points for St. John’s, and seldom-used Chudney Gray, who entered the game with 22 points, had 15.

Pittsburgh (11-11, 2-9) played without injured leading scorer Vonteego Cummings, and it was the first home game for Coach Ralph Willard since he announced his resignation effective at the end of the season.

Illinois 53, No. 11 Wisconsin 51--Cory Bradford made seven of 11 three-point shots and scored a career-high 26 points, including a three-point play with 7.9 seconds left that was decisive for the Illini (10-13, 2-9 in the Big Ten) at Champaign, Ill.

Sean Mason, an 83% free-throw shooter, missed the front end of a one-and-one for Wisconsin (19-5, 7-4) before Bradford’s decisive play.

In a bizarre play with 38 seconds left in the first half, Illinois’ Cleotis Brown rebounded a missed free throw by Mason and then--forgetting what end of the court he was on--put it back in the basket for Wisconsin.

“My mind just went blank. I wondered why I was so open,” said Brown.

No. 15 Ohio State 80, No. 18 Purdue 69--The Buckeyes (17-6, 7-3 in the Big Ten) led the entire game and by as many as 24 points at West Lafayette, Ind., to complete a regular-season sweep of the Boilermakers (16-7, 4-5).

Michael Redd had 20 points for Ohio State, which made eight of 19 three-point shots.

Villanova 75, No. 16 Syracuse 60--Starting guards Jason Hart and Allen Griffin did not score for the Orangemen (16-7, 7-6 in the Big East) at Syracuse, N.Y.

Hart was 0 for 8 in not scoring for the first time in 90 games at Syracuse. He had scored a career high of 24 points in two of his previous three games.

John Celestand scored seven consecutive points to give Villanova (18-6, 9-5) the lead for good at 41-38 with 12:37 left. He had 11 points and 11 assists.

No. 22 College of Charleston 60, Citadel 39--Sedric Webber scored 25 points at Charleston, S.C., to lead the visiting Cougars (21-2, 12-0 in the Southern Conference) to their 18th consecutive victory.

The Citadel (8-14, 2-10) shot 26%.

Vanderbilt 73, No. 23 Arkansas 69--James Strong was fouled after rebounding a missed free throw, then made two of his own with 6.4 seconds left for the Commodores (12-10, 3-7 in the SEC) at Nashville, Tenn.

Vanderbilt made seven of its first eight three-point shots to take a 23-point lead midway through the first half, prompting Arkansas Coach Nolan Richardson to pull all his starters at one point. The Razorbacks (16-7, 5-5) cut the deficit to 18 at halftime, then used pressure defense to force turnovers and took their first lead at 63-60 on Pat Bradley’s three-point shot with 5:15 left.

Nebraska 69, No. 24 Missouri 61--Center Venson Hamilton had 16 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and three blocked shots to lead the Cornhuskers (15-8, 7-3 in the Big 12) past the Tigers (16-5, 7-3) at Lincoln, Neb.

With Nebraska leading 55-51 with 6:25 left, Hamilton blocked a shot, got down court quickly for a three-point play that started with a dunk. On the Cornhuskers’ next possession Hamilton made a 15-foot jumper and followed that with another blocked shot.

No. 25 Miami (Fla.) 71, Georgetown 58--Tim James scored six of his 21 points in a 14-2 second-half run at Miami as the Hurricanes (15-5, 9-3 in the Big East) recorded the most-lopsided victory over the Hoyas (10-12, 3-10) in a 22-game series.

Georgetown, which shot 29%, hasn’t won at Miami since Dec. 7, 1993, and is 3-6 since John Thompson resigned as coach and was replaced by Craig Esherick. Thompson sat on the Hoya bench Saturday.

OTHER GAMES

Justin Gainey made all of his shots--seven from the field and 10 free throws--in scoring a career-high 28 points to lead North Carolina State (15-8, 5-6 in the ACC) to an 84-71 victory over Clemson (13-10, 2-8) at Raleigh, N.C. . . . Keith Carter scored 20 points for the fifth consecutive game for Mississippi (17-7, 7-4 in the SEC) in a 79-64 victory over Florida (16-5, 7-4) in Gainesville, Fla. . . . Tony Williams had 18 points and 12 rebounds for Louisville (12-7, 7-4 in Conference USA) in an 81-77 home-court victory over Marquette (11-12, 3-8) one day after the NCAA reversed a decision to ban the Cardinals from postseason play.