UNC ends its ACC tourney skid vs. Duke

Luke Maye scored 17 points, including North Carolina's last field goal with 5 minutes, 33 seconds remaining, and No. 12 North Carolina held off a late rally by No. 5 Duke to advance to the Atlantic Coast Conference men's basketball tournament championship game with a 74-69 victory on Friday in New York.

The sixth-seeded Tar Heels (25-9) will face top-seeded Virginia on Saturday at Barclays Center in a rematch of the 2016 final, won by North Carolina.

North Carolina led by 15 on Maye's final shot and looked like it would cruise into the title game. But second-seeded Duke went on a 13-0 run, drawing within three on a three-pointer by Apple Valley's Gary Trent Jr. with 50 seconds left.

The Tar Heels turned the ball over on consecutive possessions, but an offensive foul by Grayson Allen and then a missed three by Allen, trying to draw contact on Maye, stymied Duke (26-7).

Theo Pinson made two free throws with 3.2 seconds left to seal it and the Tar Heels ended a six-game losing streak in the ACC tournament to their most heated Tobacco Road rivals.

No. 1 Virginia 64, No. 19 Clemson 58: Kyle Guy scored 15 points and the Cavaliers (30-2) got several crucial plays from role player Jack Salt down the stretch. The Tigers (23-9) are the lone original member of the ACC that hasn't won the conference tournament.

No. 2 Villanova 87, Butler 68: Mikal Bridges had 18 points and the Wildcats (29-4) scored the first 19 points and cruised toward their fourth consecutive trip in the Big East tournament championship game by routing the Bulldogs (20-13) in New York.

No. 9 Kansas 83, Kansas State 67: Malik Newman scored 22 points and the top-seeded Jayhawks (26-7) cruised into the Big 12 tournament championship game by beating the shorthanded Wildcats (23-10) for the eighth consecutive meeting.

The fourth-seeded Wildcats learned Friday morning they would be without All-Big 12 forward Dean Wade, who hurt a foot Thursday. Then they lost starting guard Barry Brown early vs. Kansas when he was accidentally poked in the eye.

No. 18 West Virginia 66, No. 14 Texas Tech 63: Daxter Miles Jr. had 22 points and the Mountaineers (24-9) advanced to the Big 12 title game for the third year in a row, holding off the Red Raiders (24-9).

Miles had a chance to clinch from the foul line with 6 seconds left, but he only made the first of two free throws. Texas Tech's Niem Stevenson tried a half-court heave at the buzzer, but it bounced harmlessly off the iron.

Alabama 81, No. 16 Auburn 63: Collin Sexton scored 31 points and the Crimson Tide (19-14) used a strong second half to defeat the Tigers (25-7) in the quarterfinals of the Southeastern Conference tournament in St. Louis.

Alabama came into the SEC tournament on a five-game losing streak and in danger of falling out of NCAA contention. But after dominating Auburn, the Tide appears to be in safer territory.

Kentucky 62, Georgia 49: PJ Washington scored 18 points and the Wildcats (22-10) felt right at home with a sea of blue fans in Missouri vs. the 12th-seeded Bulldogs (18-15). Kentucky won for the fifth time in six games following a four-game losing streak.

No. 13 Tennessee 62, Mississippi State 59: Lamonte Turner scored 15 points and the second-seeded Volunteers (24-7) locked down on defense against the Bulldogs (22-11). Mississippi State guard Nick Weatherspoon was taken off on a stretcher after being stepped on in the second half.

No. 15 Arizona 78, UCLA 67 (OT): Deandre Ayton scored seven of his 32 points in overtime and grabbed 14 rebounds, leading the Wildcats (26-7) past the Bruins (21-11) in the Pac-12 tournament semifinals in Las Vegas.

Arizona labored offensively before Ayton got hot in the second half. UCLA matched Arizona nearly shot for shot, tying the score with about 5 minutes to go.

Southern California 74, Oregon 54: The Trojans (23-10) routed the Ducks (22-12) to advance to the conference championship game for the first time since 2009.

No. 8 Cincinnati 61, Southern Methodist 51: Kyle Washington had 15 points and the top-seeded Bearcats (28-4) beat the injury-depleted Mustangs (18-16) to advance to the American Athletic tournament semifinals in Orlando.

No. 11 Wichita State 89, Temple 81: Landry Shamet had 24 points and the second-seeded Shockers (25-6), aching for a rematch with Cincinnati, beat the Owls (17-14) in the AAC quarterfinals.

No. 25 Rhode Island 76, Virginia Commonwealth 67: Rhode Island (24-6), the top seed in the Atlantic 10 tournament in Washington, D.C., won its opener vs. VCU (18-15), which will miss the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2010.

San Diego State 90, No. 22 Nevada 73: The Aztecs (21-10) beat the Wolf Pack (38-8) in Las Vegas to advance to the Mountain West tournament final for the eighth time in 10 seasons, facing New Mexico. San Diego State last won the title in 2011.

• The Atlantic Coast Conference is declaring its two-year run in Brooklyn a success and expects to make New York a regular destination for the league's men's tournament.

• Arkansas-Little Rock fired coach Wes Flanigan after his team lost a school-record 25 games. He was hired two years ago to replace Chris Beard, who left for Texas Tech following a 30-5 season.