After missing Saturday’s 82-75 loss at Duke as a 15.5-point road underdog, SMU (13-4 straight up, 8-9 against the spread) star guard Boopie Miller was back on the court for Wednesday’s home game vs. Va. Tech. He made his presence felt, too.
Miller hit the best of three different buzzer beaters on last night’s college hoops card, draining a heave from halfcourt to lift the Mustangs to a 77-76 win over Va. Tech.
Miller finished with a game-high 24 points, four rebounds, two steals and six assists compared to only one turnover. The Mustangs will host Virginia on Saturday.
In SEC action, we had a pair of game winners at the horn. Kentucky (11-6 SU, 7-10 ATS) trailed by as many as 18 points at LSU before rallying to cut the deficit to two with four seconds remaining. However, after making the first of two free throws to make it a one-point game, UK star Otega Oweh missed the second attempt.
The Wildcats fouled LSU’s Pablo Tamba with 1.9 seconds left, but he missed both free throws. Mark Pope’s team rebounded and called its last timeout with 1.6 seconds left.
Next, Collin Chandler threw a length-of-the-floor pass that resulted in a clean catch for Malachi Moreno, who promptly buried the game-winning jumper from 18 feet out to give UK a 75-74 win.
The Tigers still took the cash as 3.5-point home underdogs, but they fell to 0-4 in SEC play. The defeat will only further intensify the heat on LSU’s fourth-year head coach Matt McMahon, who probably has to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time in his tenure to retain his job.
The loss dropped LSU to 12-5 SU and 10-7 ATS. The Tigers host Missouri on Saturday, while Kentucky plays at Tennessee.
Ole Miss (10-7 SU, 5-12 ATS) was desperate for a Quad-1 win last night at Georgia, and it got one thanks to Patton Pinkins’ putback bucket at the buzzer in overtime. Pinkins’ heroics lifted the Rebels to a 97-95 win as 10.5-point road underdogs, hooking up money-line backers with a generous +485 return.
AJ Storr paced Ole Miss with 27 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals, while Pinkins added 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field and 3-of-3 makes from downtown.
UGA fell to 14-3 SU and 7-10 ATS ahead of its home game Saturday vs. Arkansas.
In Sun Belt action, La. Tech’s D.J. Dudley enjoyed some game-winning heroics, but his go-ahead trey vs. Middle Tennessee came with 4.4 seconds left. Dudley’s 3-ball lifted the Bulldogs to a 59-58 win over the Blue Raiders.