Alabama guard Labaron Philon Jr. (0) gets loose for an open look at the basket against Arkansas during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt)
February 18, 2026 - 4:36 PM
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Houston Mallette hit a 3-pointer with 51 seconds remaining in the second overtime and No. 25 Alabama survived one of the best single-game performances of the season to edge 20th-ranked Arkansas 117-115 on Wednesday night.
Arkansas freshman Darius Acuff Jr. scored 49 points — the second most in college basketball this season — while playing all 50 minutes. But Acuff missed jumpers at the end of both extra frames that would have given the Razorbacks (19-7, 9-4 Southeastern Conference) a short-handed road victory.
Arkansas used a seven-man rotation throughout regulation but had four players foul out in overtime. That forced coach John Calipari to turn to two guys who had played a combined 35 minutes all season.
It was the opening the Crimson Tide (19-7, 9-4) needed to pull out a game that will go down as an instant classic.
Labaron Philon Jr. scored 35 points and Aiden Sherrell added 26 — both career highs — to help Alabama win its fifth consecutive game.
Arkansas, meanwhile, lost for the first time in four games. Acuff’s 49 points are the second most by an Arkansas player and the most by an Arkansas player in SEC play.
Alabama trailed by 14 in the second half, but an 18-4 run tied the game. They moved in front in the waning seconds of regulation — until Acuff’s 3-pointer tied the game at 95 and sent it to OT.
Meleek Thomas (24) and Billy Richmond III (20) also scored in double figures for the Razorbacks before fouling out.
NO. 4 ARIZONA 75, NO. 23 68
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Anthony Dell’Orso scored a season-high 22 points after coming off the bench, Ivan Kharchenkov added 18 and Arizona bounced back from its first two losses of the season by beating BYU.
Arizona (24-2, 11-2 Big 12) started the season with 23 consecutive wins, spending nine straight weeks as the nation’s No. 1 team before losing back-to-back games to No. 9 Kansas and No. 16 Texas Tech.
Dell’Orso — a 6-foot-6 Australian — helped the Wildcats get back in the win column after shooting 8 of 15 from the field, including 4 of 8 on 3-pointers.
BYU (19-7, 7-6) was led by freshman star AJ Dybantsa, who finished with 33 points on 12-of-27 shooting. The 6-foot-9 forward topped 30 points for the sixth time this season.
The Cougars were playing their first game without starting guard Richie Saunders, who tore his ACL in a 90-86 overtime victory against Colorado on Saturday. He’s out for the rest of the season.
Arizona never trailed in the second half and slowly pulled away, taking a 66-50 lead on Dell’Orso’s 3-pointer with 6:40 left. BYU cut the deficit 73-68 with 1:05 remaining but couldn’t get any closer.
CREIGHTON 91, NO. 5 UCONN 84
STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Josh Dix scored 13 of his 21 points in the second half, Nik Graves added 18 points and Creighton beat UConn to spoil former Huskies star Emeka Okafor’s number retirement.
Creighton (14-13, 8-8 Big East) handed UConn (24-2, 14-2) its first conference home loss of the season. Creighton coach Greg McDermott became the first coach to beat a Dan Hurley-coached team four times on the road.
Okafor became the third UConn men’s basketball player to have his number retired, with the Huskies honoring the 2004 NCAA champion and national player of the year at halftime. Ray Allen and Richard Hamilton are the only players to have their numbers retired.
The Huskies led by seven points early in the second half, but shot 34% in the half.
Braylon Mullins led UConn with 25 points. Silas Demary Jr. added 17 points and nine assists. Tarris Reed Jr. had 15 points and 11 rebounds, but had just two points in the second half.
Fedor Zugic added 14 points for Creighton, which outscored UConn 27-11 at the foul line.
NO. 8 KANSAS 81, OKLAHOMA STATE 69
STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Freshman Darryn Peterson scored 20 of his 23 points in the first half, sparking Kansas to a win over Oklahoma State.
Peterson, a guard who is expected to be among the first picks in the NBA draft later this year, had shot 13 for 36 from the field combined in his previous three games. He made 7 of 12 field goals against the Cowboys, including 6 of 10 3-pointers.
Tre White scored 16 points and Elmarko Jackson added 14 for Kansas. Bryson Tiller had 10 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists and Flory Bidunga added eight points, 11 rebounds and four blocks for the Jayhawks (20-6, 10-3 Big 12), who made 11 of 24 3-pointers and bounced back from a blowout loss at Iowa State last Saturday.
Parsa Fallah scored 21 points and Anthony Roy added 16 for Oklahoma State (16-10, 4-9), which lost its fourth straight since a win over BYU.
NO. 10 ILLINOIS 101, SOUTHERN CAL 65
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Andrej Stojakovic scored 22 points to lead seven players in double figures and Illinois routed Southern California for its 14th win in 16 games.
Blue and orange-clad fans were out in force for the Fighting Illini’s first game against the Trojans in Los Angeles since 1975. The Illini (22-5, 13-3 Big Ten) didn’t disappoint, leading all the way to maintain a hold on second place in the conference standings behind No. 1 Michigan.
The Illini were up by 22 at halftime, and poured it on to start the second half. They outscored the Trojans 21-10, hitting five 3-pointers and extending the lead to 75-42. Stojakovic capped the spurt with a steal and one-handed slam that drew cheers.
Stojakovic was 6 of 7 from the floor and made all nine of his free throws. David Mirkovic added 14 points. The Illini hit 24 of 26 free throws while sending USC to its biggest loss of the season.
NO. 11 GONZAGA 80, SAN FRANCISCO 59
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Graham Ike had 22 points and Gonzaga cruised to a victory over San Francisco.
Ike, the leading scorer in the West Coast Conference, has scored 20 or more in eight consecutive games. That matches the school record shared by Adam Morrison and Derek Raivio, both in 2006.
Mario Saint-Supery added 14 points and six assists for Gonzaga (26-2, 14-1), which holds a one-game lead in the league standings over Saint Mary’s and Santa Clara. Emmanuel Innocenti had 12 points and eight rebounds, while Jalen Warely scored 11.
The Bulldogs beat the Dons for the 35th straight time, dating to 2012.
Tyrone Riley IV had 16 points for San Francisco (15-14, 7-9) in the final regular-season matchup between the programs before Gonzaga moves to the revamped Pac-12 next season.
NO. 14 VIRGINIA 94, GEORGIA TECH 68
ATLANTA (AP) — Thijs De Ridder scored 22 points, Malik Thomas added 17 and Virginia won its seventh straight game and eighth in a row on the road, beating Georgia Tech.
The Cavaliers (23-3, 11-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) raced to a 42-9 lead in the opening 13:24. Virginia’s 59-27 advantage at the half was its largest in an ACC game since February 2001.
Jaeden Mustaf led Georgia Tech (11-16, 2-12) with 18 points. Baye Ndongo had 13 points and eight rebounds. The Yellow Jackets have lost eight straight.
Virginia was 36 of 79 from the field and 14 of 37 from 3-point range. Georgia Tech was 24 of 64 from the field and 4 of 19 on 3s.
Cavaliers forward Devin Tillis had six points and a rebound before leaving in the second half because of a lower-body injury.
NO. 17 ST. JOHN'S 76, MARQUETTE 70
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Bryce Hopkins had 23 points and 10 rebounds as St. John’s defeated Marquette to earn its 12th straight victory and move atop the Big East standings.
St. John’s (21-5, 14-1) rallied from a six-point deficit in the second half after squandering an 11-point lead. The Red Storm took over the conference lead from No. 5 UConn, which lost 91-84 at home to Creighton earlier Wednesday.
UConn (24-3, 14-2) hosts the Johnnies on Feb. 25 in the second meeting between the teams. St. John’s beat the Huskies 81-72 at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 6.
St. John’s has won its last 11 Big East road games dating to last season.
Marquette freshman Nigel James Jr. made a three-point play that cut the St. John’s lead to 72-70 with 27.5 seconds left, but Zuby Ejiofor and Hopkins each made a pair of free throws to seal the victory.
James had 18 of his 25 points in the second half for Marquette (9-18, 4-12). Royce Parham added 13 for the Golden Eagles, who have lost three straight.
Oziyah Sellers scored 12 and Ejiofor added 10 for St. John’s.
MISSOURI 81, NO. 19 VANDERBILT 80
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Jayden Stone had 19 points, Trent Pierce and T.O. Barrett each added 16 and Missouri held off Vanderbilt after squandering a big lead.
Anthony Robinson II scored 13 points, and Mark Mitchell had 11 points and a career-best nine assists for Missouri (18-8, 8-5 Southeastern Conference). The Tigers have won four of five and improved to 9-0 against Vanderbilt in Columbia.
Tyler Tanner scored 27 points for Vanderbilt (21-5, 8-5), which entered play having won five of six. Devin McGlockton added 13 points.
Vanderbilt’s Tyler Nickel hit a 3-pointer with two seconds remaining after Barrett hit a pair of free throws. Tanner then intercepted Mitchell’s inbound pass and heaved a half-court shot that rattled around the rim and bounced out.
Vanderbilt rallied after falling behind 66-45 with 8:43 remaining after McGlockton was called for his second flagrant 1 foul. Tigers coach Dennis Gates used a challenge to review contact on a rebound on Vanderbilt’s offensive possession after Tyler Harris was called for a foul on Mitchell as he attempted a layup. Vanderbilt coach Mark Byington unsuccessfully challenged that Missouri’s Anthony Robinson II committed a flagrant foul on the same play.
News from © The Associated Press, 2026