Florida Poised for No. 1

If Duke can’t take care of business today against North Carolina State, Florida could reach new heights Monday.

No. 1 Kansas’ 87-77 loss to UCLA Saturday coupled with a loss by the No. 2 Blue Devils at Raleigh, N.C., would probably allow the No. 3 Gators to move atop the national rankings for the first time since the Associated Press poll started in 1949.

Florida jockeyed for the No. 1 position with a 95-85 victory Saturday over Vanderbilt at Nashville. It was the 13th victory in a row for the Gators, 14-1 overall and 3-0 in the Southeastern Conference.

Matt Bonner’s 28 points led five scorers in double figures for Florida, which came into the game with an average margin of victory of 22.8 points and led by as many as 25 in the second half.

Vanderbilt (10-6, 0-3) lost its 12th consecutive SEC game.

No. 5 Oklahoma 98, Texas Tech 72--Hollis Price had a career-high 27 points at Norman, Okla., as the Sooners (13-1, 2-0 in the Big 12) won their 12th in a row and ended a winning streak at 10 for the Red Raiders (13-2, 2-1).

No. 6 Oklahoma State 69, Iowa State 66--The Cowboys (15-1, 2-1) overcame a career-high 30 points by Tyray Pearson at Ames, Iowa, to end a Big 12 home winning streak at 19 games for the Cyclones (9-8, 1-2).

No. 7 Virginia 71, North Carolina 67--Roger Mason Jr. scored 18 points, four coming on free throws in the final 41 seconds, to lead the Cavaliers (10-2, 1-2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference) at Chapel Hill, N.C. The Tar Heels (5-8, 1-3) matched a school record for home losses in a season with five.

No. 8 Kentucky 51, South Carolina 50--Cliff Hawkins’ driving shot with 3.4 seconds left gave the Wildcats (10-4, 1-2) their 11th consecutive victory over the Gamecocks (10-5, 0-2) and prevented their first 0-3 start in the SEC since 1975-76.

No. 9 Illinois 94, Michigan 70--The Illini (13-4, 2-2 in the Big Ten) shot 68% at Champaign, Ill., to extend their home winning streak to 26. Michigan is 6-7 and 2-2.

No. 10 Cincinnati 83, Houston 62--The Bearcats (15-1, 3-0 in Conference USA) extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 15 and defeated the host Cougars (7-7, 1-2) for the eighth consecutive time.

No. 12 Syracuse 75, West Virginia 69--The Orangemen (15-2, 4-0 in the Big East) overcame 38.7% shooting at Morgantown, W.Va., to increase their winning streak to six. West Virginia is 7-7 and 0-3.

Auburn 59, No. 14 Alabama 56--Marquis Daniels scored six points in the final minute at Auburn, Ala., as the Tigers (9-5, 1-2 in the SEC) defeated the Crimson Tide (14-3, 2-1) for the sixth time in eight games.

Georgetown 70, No. 16 Boston College 43--The Hoyas (10-5, 1-2 in the Big East) ended a losing streak at four games and the Eagles (13-3, 2-2) matched their lowest total point in 13 years at the Conte Forum in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

No. 17 Missouri 81, Kansas State 66--Arthur Johnson had a career-high 23 points to go with 15 rebounds at Manhattan, Kan., to lead the Tigers (12-4, 2-1 in the Big 12) past the Wildcats (6-7, 0-2).

No. 19 Wake Forest 96, Clemson 55--At Winston-Salem, N.C., the Demon Deacons (13-3, 3-0 in the ACC) won their fifth consecutive game overall and seventh in a row over the Tigers (11-6, 2-2).

No. 21 Miami 77, Virginia Tech 68--Elton Tyler scored 20 points at Blacksburg, Va., as the Hurricanes (15-2, 2-2) handed the Hokies (6-10, 0-4) their 13th consecutive Big East loss.

Mississippi 66, No. 22 Mississippi State 59--At Oxford, Miss., the visiting Bulldogs (14-3, 1-2 in the SEC) lost their second game in a row after breaking into the national rankings this week for the first time in six years. Mississippi is 13-3 and 2-1.

Notre Dame 56, No. 23 Pittsburgh 53--David Graves made a go-ahead three-point shot with 54 seconds left and the Irish (12-3, 2-1 in the Big East) scored the final eight points at Pittsburgh to end a win streak at 10 for the Panthers (15-2, 3-1).

No. 24 Butler 68, Youngstown State 50--The Bulldogs (15-2, 2-2 in the Horizon League) held the Penguins (3-11, 1-3) to 20 points in the second half at Youngstown, Ohio.

Wisconsin 64, No. 25 Michigan State 63--Freddie Owens scored the go-ahead basket with 25 seconds left at East Lansing, Mich., as the Badgers (9-8, 2-2 in the Big Ten) ended the nation’s longest home winning streak at 53. Michigan State (9-7, 0-3) had a last chance to win but Kelvin Torbert’s alley-oop layup at the buzzer was disallowed.