Connecticut Survives Scare

Coach Jim Calhoun had a sick feeling.

His third-ranked Connecticut team was headed toward an apparent rout of unranked Notre Dame on Tuesday night when it suddenly unraveled at Hartford, Conn. The Fighting Irish showed why they were the best three-point shooting team in the conference and made four of them in a 25-2 run to erase a 19-point second-half deficit.

Then it was the Huskies’ turn to rely on their strength: the inside game. Connecticut finished with a Big-East record 19 blocked shots, pounded the ball inside down the stretch and after Marcus Williams’ bank shot sent the game into overtime, the Huskies escaped with a 75-74 victory.

“[Notre Dame] had every right to win that game just as much as we did,” said Calhoun, whose Huskies improved to 24-2 overall and 11-2 in the Big East Conference. “We had to will our way back in. Thank God it was here at the Civic Center. I’m not sure we could win that game on the road.”

Williams finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists. Josh Boone had 12 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks for Connecticut, and Rudy Gay had 17 points and three blocked shots.

Hilton Armstrong blocked seven shots and made two free throws late in overtime to put Connecticut ahead for good. Gay rebounded a miss by Notre Dame’s Chris Quinn as time expired.

Colin Falls scored 23 for Notre Dame (13-11, 4-9).

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Michigan 72, No. 8 Illinois 64 -- Daniel Horton scored 23 of his career-high 37 points in the second half, leading the Wolverines (18-7, 8-6 Big Ten) past the Fighting Illini (22-5, 8-5) at Ann Arbor, Mich.

Michigan ended an 11-game losing streak against Illinois, dating to January 2000.

James Augustine scored 23 for the Illini.

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Virginia 72, No. 11 Boston College 58 -- J.R. Reynolds scored 28 points, and the Cavaliers (14-10, 7-6 Atlantic Coast Conference) made 12 of 21 three-point shots and never let their 10-point halftime lead shrink at Charlottesville, Va., in ending the Eagles’ five-game winning streak. Craig Smith had 22 points for Boston College (21-6, 8-5).

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No. 16 Kansas 76, Baylor 61 -- Freshman Julian Wright had a season-high 20 points on 10-for-11 shooting at Lawrence, Kan., to help the Jayhawks (20-6, 11-2 Big 12) win their 10th in a row. Freshman Curtis Jerrels had 17 points for Baylor (2-10).