College basketball: Syracuse upsets Duke on buzzer-beating shot; Butler knocks off Villanova

John Gillon made a three-pointer from 25 feet at the buzzer and Syracuse upset No. 10 Duke, 78-75, on Wednesday night as the Orange kept alive their postseason hopes.

With only 7.5 seconds left after a Duke miss, Gillon drove toward the top of the key and banked in a desperation shot to send the huge crowd into a frenzy as they stormed the court.

Syracuse (17-12, 9-7 Atlantic Coast Conference) had lost three in a row and needed another signature victory to go with its two top-10 wins to bolster its resume for a berth in the NCAA tournament. The Orange have two games remaining, at Louisville on Sunday and at home against Georgia Tech on March 4.

Duke (22-6, 10-5 ACC) had won seven consecutive and entered the game tied for second in the ACC with Louisville, which later lost to first-place North Carolina.

Gillon finished with 26 points and Tyus Battle had 18 for Syracuse in a game that featured 11 ties, half of them in the closing minutes.

Luke Kennard led Duke with 23 points, Jayson Tatum had 19 points and 13 rebounds for his second double-double of the season. They combined for 11 of Duke’s 16 assists. Grayson Allen finished with eight points.

No. 22 Butler 74, at No. 2 Villanova 66: Kelan Martin scored 22 points and fueled a stunning second-half rally to lead the Bulldogs to a win over the Wildcats, who had their on-campus home winning streak end at 48 games.

Kamar Baldwin added 15 points for the Bulldogs (22-6, 11-5 Big East), who have handed the defending national champion Wildcats two of their three losses this season.

Jalen Brunson scored 24 points and Josh Hart had 18 for Villanova (26-3, 13-3), which came into the game having already clinched at least a share of their fourth straight Big East regular-season championship.

The game marked the first time Hart and fellow seniors Kris Jenkins and Darryl Reynolds lost a game at the Pavilion in their four-year careers.

at No. 3 Kansas 87, Texas Christian 68: Frank Mason III scored 20 points, Carlton Bragg provided a big lift off the bench and the Jayhawks pulled away in the second half to clinch a share of its 13th consecutive Big 12 title.

Devonte Graham added 17 points and seven assists, and Bragg and Josh Jackson scored 15 points apiece, as the Jayhawks (25-3, 13-2) cruised to their NCAA-leading 60th conference title.

Alex Robinson had 15 points for the Horned Frogs (17-11, 6-9), who have lost four straight and still have never won in Allen Fieldhouse. Jaylen Fisher added 11 points and JD Miller had 10.

at No. 8 North Carolina 74, No. 7 Louisville 63: Justin Jackson scored 21 points and the Tar Heels pulled away after halftime in a matchup of Atlantic Coast Conference leaders.

Kennedy Meeks added 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Tar Heels (24-5, 12-3), who strengthened their hold on first place in the league. UNC entered the night leading both Louisville and No. 10 Duke by a game, but stretched the lead by beating the Cardinals after the Blue Devils lost at Syracuse earlier in the evening.

The Tar Heels took over with a 13-3 second-half run to break a 40-all tie and led by 17 points late. Donovan Mitchell scored 21 points for the Cardinals (22-6, 10-5), who didn’t shoot well after halftime and struggled to make much of anything outside the paint.

Providence 68, at No. 23 Creighton 66: Kyron Cartwright made a three-pointer with 2.2 seconds left to give the Friars the win.

Cartwright’s shot from the right wing was the Friars’ first field goal in more than five minutes and gave them their first lead since the opening four minutes of the second half. Khyri Thomas’s three-point try ahead of the buzzer for Creighton bounced off the rim.

Emmitt Holt scored all 18 of his points in the second half for the Friars (17-11, 7-8 Big East), who won their third straight and avenged a 78-64 home loss to Creighton on Jan. 7. Marcus Foster had 18 points and Justin Patton added 17 for the Bluejays (22-6, 9-6).

Minnesota 89, at No. 24 Maryland 75: Dupree McBrayer scored 14 of his 18 points in the second half as the Gophers won their sixth in a row.

Minnesota (21-7, 9-6 Big Ten) is undefeated since losing to Maryland (22-6, 10-5) on Jan. 28. It was Minnesota’s third consecutive road win, its longest run in the conference since 1989-90.