LAS VEGAS — Timmy Allen hit a tiebreaking floater with 1:14 left and Utah dodged a comeback try by No. 6 Kentucky for a 69-66 victory Wednesday night.
The Wildcats (8-2) used a 27-10 run to tie it at 68 on Ashton Hagans’ dunk with 1:43 remaining, but Allen put the Utes (9-2) back ahead with his basket.
Kentucky got off three more shots, including two in the final 11 seconds, but none connected.
Allen had 25 points and nine rebounds. Both Gach contributed 14 points and six rebounds, Rylan Jones had 12 points and Riley Battin added 10 for the Utes.
Utah shot a blistering 62.5% (10 of 16) from the floor in the second half and was 23 of 42 (54.8%) for the game, including 53.3% (8 of 15) from 3-point range.
Tyrese Maxey led Kentucky with 18 points, and Hagans added 16.
Maxey had a chance to tie it but was called for an offensive foul when he drove the lane and barreled into Battin, giving the Utes the ball with 22.7 seconds left.
Jones hit 1 of 2 free throws to give Utah a three-point lead.
Maxey missed a 3-pointer, Kentucky scrambled for the rebound, and Immanuel Quickley clanked a 3 off the rim as time ran out.
NO. 2 GONZAGA 94, NORTH CAROLINA 81
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Corey Kispert scored 26 points, Filip Petrusev added 20 and Gonzaga handed North Carolina its fourth straight loss.
One of the most highly anticipated games ever inside Gonzaga’s gym was a party for most of the night for the home team. The Bulldogs (12-1) won their fourth straight since suffering their only loss of the season against Michigan in the final of the Battle 4 Atlantis.
Garrison Brooks led North Carolina (6-5) with 16 points, but the Tar Heels have dropped four straight for the first time since the 2009-10 season. It’s been a brutal stretch for the Tar Heels with the Zags the fifth opponent ranked in the top 10 in North Carolina’s past six games.
Then there’s the injuries. North Carolina learned Monday it would be without star point guard Cole Anthony for four-to-six weeks following surgery to repair a partially torn meniscus in his right knee.
North Carolina also played the second half without Brandon Robinson, who was feeling ill. He played 16 minutes of the first half and didn’t score.
NO. 3 LOUISVILLE 70, MIAMI OF OHIO 46
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Jordan Nwora scored 20 points and No. 3 Louisville pulled away with a 17-0 run to beat Miami of Ohio.
Ryan McMahon added 11 points for Louisville (11-1), and Dwayne Sutton tied a career-high with 15 rebounds.
Mekhi Lairy led the Redhawks (5-6) with 10 points.
While the Cardinals never trailed, it was much closer than the final score indicated. Louisville used a 14-2 first-half run to take a 12-point lead, but the Redhawks cut it to 28-25 on Dalonte Brown’s dunk 1:10 into the second half.
Miami trailed just 44-40 with 9:02 left after Josh Brewer’s 3-pointer. The Cardinals used the 17-0 run over the next 5:17 to finally put away the pesky Redhawks.