Buie, Audige help Northwestern beat No. 1 Purdue 64-58 New Mexico State cancels season after sex, harassment allegations No. 1 Gamecocks stay perfect in showdown win over No. 3 LSU New Mexico State players interviewed about alleged hazing 2 New Mexico State players quit day after program suspended UT Arlington fires Greg Young with 6 games left

EVANSTON, Illinois. While the Northwestern have struggled over the last couple of seasons, Boo Buie and Chase Odidge have learned some hard lessons about self-control, strong finishes, and competition.

Here’s how they made it to Sunday and one historic win for the Wildcats.

Buie scored 26 points and Odige scored 15 to lead the Northwestern to a 64–58 win over Zach Edie and No. 1 Purdue.

“We’ve done so much work together and we’ve been through so many ups and downs,” Buie said. “It’s finally starting to show who we really are.”

Led by their seasoned backcourt and backed by a rowdy student section at every pot, Northwestern (18-7, 9-5 Big Ten) added a signature win to its bid for the school’s second NCAA Tournament bid. The Wildcats took their first win in 19 games against the No. 1 team in the AP Poll.

Northwestern’s 18 wins is the most for the school as it went 24-12 in 2016-17, losing to Gonzaga in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. He had gone 32–55 in the previous three years before picking up momentum this season.

“We had a group of guys who stayed true to course, stayed true to the program and fought,” said Northwestern coach Chris Collins, “and we had a great offseason.

“When you have a day like this, you know it can be emotional because you know that a lot of people put in a lot of effort to make it happen.”

Purdue (23-3, 12-3) won 11 in a row against the Northwestern, but the Boilermakers stumbled. They shot just 28.6% (6 of 21) and completed 13 of 16 passes in the second half.

Edie had 24 points, eight rebounds and three blocks, but the 7-foot-4 center flipped him six times. Freshman Braden Smith scored 10 points on 1-of-7 shooting.

“It just needs to show more poise and resilience than we did,” said Purdue coach Matt Painter.

A hook from Edie gave Purdue a 55–47 lead with 3:52 left. But the Northwestern ended the game 17-3.

The decisive stretch began with a powerful offensive rebound by Buie, which resulted in Odizh scoring a three-pointer. Then Odeej had a fast break dunk and just continued from there.

Audige scored 10 points in a dazzling Northwestern finish. He gave the Wildcats the lead forever when he hit a 3-pointer after Edie’s loss.

“When my team needed me, I just went out of my way to be there,” Odige said. “The shot was fired and then the rim looked a little bigger.”

Brooks Barnheiser had a fast break and Bui took two last-minute penalties to help the North West hold on. When it was all over, jubilant student sections stormed the venue to celebrate with the team.

“Hopefully this will give our guys the confidence that they can compete against a team that is second to none in the country,” Collins said.

Painter said that Buie’s offensive rebound was the big moment at the end.

“We have to secure it right here,” Painter said.

Ethan Morton and Mason Gillis scored 3 points each to put Purdue up 26-16 with 9:19 left in the first half. But Buie converted a last-second layup to cut the Boilermakers lead to 37-30 by halftime.

LOOKING AT REFs

Perdue took 12 penalties in the first half and 12 in the second half, resulting in 19 shots per game. Northwestern made four free throws in the first half and 16 in the second, for a total of 14.

Asked if he thought the refereeing of the game had changed in the second half, Painter replied, “Yes. Very different, but this is basketball and it’s on the road and it’s our job to adapt.”

BIG PICTURE

Purdue: Led by Gillis, the Boilermakers went 5 for 9 on three early in the game. They missed their last 13 long range attempts. Overall, they shot 36.2% from the field after shooting at least 50% in their previous five games.

Northwest: Audige activated after a slow start, giving the Wildcats a big boost. Northwestern was also competitive on glass, losing 35-30 in the rebounding battle.

NEXT

Purdue visits Maryland Thursday night. The Boilermakers beat the Terrapins 58-55 on January 22 at Mackey Arena.

On Wednesday night, the Northwest hosts number 18 in Indiana. On January 8, the Wildcats beat the Hoosiers 84–83.

LAS CRUZ, New Mexico. The state of New Mexico has canceled the remainder of the men’s basketball season after reviewing a police report that accused three players of false imprisonment, harassment and criminal sexual contact charges against a teammate.

In a statement, Chancellor Dan Arvizu said that “these actions are clearly needed, especially after receiving more facts and looking at investigative reports related to allegations of hazing involving student-athletes on the team.”

A campus police report obtained by the Associated Press had the names of the players involved redacted. In a report filed on Friday, the victim detailed to investigators that last Monday, three members of the gang held the victim by “taking off his clothes, exposing his buttocks, and began to ‘slap him (on the buttocks)’.” He also stated that they also touched his scrotum.”

The victim told police that he had no choice but to let it happen “because it’s a 3-on-1 situation.”

The victim said that there had been other incidents since July or August last year, and that inappropriate physical and sexual touching by his teammates occurred in the dressing room and while traveling.

“We must maintain the safety of our students and the integrity of our university,” Arvizu said. “It’s time to restart this program.”

He said he had spoken to the commissioner of the Western Athletic Conference, who said she was reconsidering how to deal with six New Mexico State games that will be taken off the schedule in regards to seeding for next month’s conference tournament. The report said the victim contacted campus police to report a possible attack, but did not yet want to file criminal charges.

On the same day the report was filed, the school announced that it was suspending the season indefinitely and placing coach Greg Heyar and his staff on administrative leave. On Tuesday, the university’s Regents meet to discuss “limited staffing issues relating to individual employees.” The names of the employees involved have not been released.

On Saturday, Arvizu admitted that the suspension was due to allegations of hazing by the team.

Around the time Arvizu revealed the hazing allegations, two players from the team quit. One of them, redshirted freshman Shahar Lazar, said he was leaving because “I don’t think the program I originally took on is in line with my beliefs and core values.”

The allegations come less than three months after the suspension of forward Mike Peake, who is under investigation in the Nov. 19 shooting of a student at a rival University of New Mexico school.

Peake was not charged in this case, in which the state police stopped a command bus on Interstate 25 as he was heading back to Las Cruces shortly after the shooting, and Peake and three of his teammates who took him to hospital with injured leg.

COLOMBIA, South Carolina. Camilla Cardoso scored 18 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, Zia Cook scored 17 points, and South Carolina’s No. 1 beat LSU No. 3 88-64 on Sunday in a tie-up between the last two undefeated teams.

Alia Boston finished with 14 points and nine boards to help the Gamecocks win their 31st consecutive game.

Billed as a showcase between Boston’s current AP Player of the Year and Angel Reese, the game quickly became a testament to South Carolina’s experience, talent and depth. The Gamecocks (25-0. 12-0 Southeastern) took an 18-2 lead to end LSU’s record start (23-1, 11-1).

Boston and Reese made the list with 39 double-doubles this season. Instead, it was the 6-foot-7 backup Cardoso who racked up double-digit points and rebounds.

Reese, a 6-foot-3 dominant, couldn’t handle the Gamecocks’ sizzling inside presence, scoring 5-of-15 shots, 16 points and four rebounds in her first game this season without a double-figure board.

Boston, South Carolina’s 76-game record in double-digit points and rebounds, also fell short of that standard. Not that it mattered, blocking Reese’s shots twice in the third quarter, as South Carolina took control for good.

Reese held her hands up, wondering where the foul had been as she sat on the court.

LSU cut a 10-point halftime deficit to 45-40 due to Reese’s inside bucket midway through the third quarter. But South Carolina ended the period with a 19-8 streak, culminating in Brea Beal’s second 3-pointer.

Her teammates rushed at her after the time was up, celebrating as if they had won the title. The Gamecocks have proven who rules women’s football this year.

The sold-out crowd was loud and raucous from the jump and went wild when the Philadelphia native Staley stepped out in a classic Eagles Randall Cunningham jersey for his team’s Super Bowl warm-up Sunday with LSU.

The Gamecocks then gave them more to shout about as they started 18–2 in the first six minutes, which threatened to knock the Tigers out of the building. Cook scored six points on the shot while Brea Beal made a 3-pointer and a 3-pointer.

Alexis Morris led LSU with 23 points.

Boston and Cardoso each had three blocks for the Gamecocks.

BIG PICTURE

LSU: The Tigers got off to a good start but didn’t face a team like the Gamecocks. Sophomore year coach Kim Mulkey will have to come up with a better plan as it is likely that this team will be playing for the SEC Tournament title in three weeks.

South Carolina: The Gamecocks are just continuing on their way to more titles. In what was considered a crucial leg of the road – UConn last Sunday, LSU a week later – South Carolina once again relied on its defensive superiority to remain perfect.

NEXT

LSU returns home to face Mississippi on Thursday…