I Slept On It: Michigan State Tops Sliding Iowa; Cincy Handles Memphis

"I Slept On It" is Blogging the Bracket's nearly daily roundup of the previous night's college basketball action, with a bracketology focus.

American

Sean Kilpatrick scored 34 for Cincinnati (25-5, 14-3) on Senior Night, as the Bearcats defeated Memphis (22-8, 11-6), 97-84, to remain tied atop the AAC with Louisville.

Atlantic 10

VCU (23-7, 11-4) came back from 11 down at Richmond (18-12, 8-7) to win, 56-50. The Rams are now tied for second in the A 10 with St. Joseph's Hawks.

Big East

Villanova (27-3, 15-2) claimed the outright Big East title by holding off a late Xavier (20-11, 10-8) rally in Cincinnati, 77-70. The Musketeers will likely be in the First Four in today's bracket.

Big Ten

Iowa (20-10, 9-8) continues its late slide, as Michigan State (23-7, 12-5) took control in the second half, turning a 41-39 halftime deficit to an 86-76 win. While the Hawkeyes' Roy Devyn Marble led all scorers with 24, five Spartans hit double-figures. Iowa has now dropped four of its last five.

Pac-12

UCLA (23-7, 12-5) won at Washington (16-14, 8-9) for the second season in a row, 91-82. Jordan Adams scored 31 for the Bruins on the night, hitting 11 of his 15 field goals and eight of nine foul shots.

SEC

LSU (18-11, 9-8) was down 16 at one point at Vanderbilt (15-14, 7-10) before rallying to win, 57-51. Johnny O'Bryant III scored 25 on an 11-for-18 shooting night and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Bayou Bengals, who next host surprising Georgia on Saturday.

Atlantic Sun Semifinals

Florida Gulf Coast (22-11, 16-4) is a win a way from its second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. The Eagles will host Mercer (25-8, 16-4) on Sunday afternoon in Fort Myers after defeating ETSU (18-15, 11-9), 69-64. On the other hand, the Bears needed a pair of overtimes to eliminate USC Upstate (19-14, 12-8), 78-75.

MAAC First Round

In Springfield, three teams advanced to Friday's quarterfinals after a long evening of basketball.

No. 8 Rider (14-16, 10-11) defeated No. 9 Monmouth (11-21, 5-16), 71-60
No. 7 St. Peter's (14-16, 10-11) knocked out No. 10 Fairfield (7-25, 4-17), 65-62, after overtime.
No. 11 Niagara (7-25, 4-17) beat No. 6 Marist (12-19, 9-12) for the second time this season, 78-76, to advance.

MVC First Round

No. 9 Evansville (14-18, 7-12) held off No. 8 Drake (15-14, 6-13), 69-61, to earn the right to take on undefeated Wichita State tomorrow at 1 p.m. Eastern.
No. 10 Loyola of Chicago (10-21, 5-14) stunned No. 7 Bradley (12-20, 7-12), which mounted an impressive late comeback attempt with a Milton Doyle three at the buzzer to win, 74-72, setting up a meeting with Indiana State tomorrow evening.

OVC Quarterfinals

No. 4 Morehead State (20-12, 11-6) avenged Saturday's loss to No. 5 Tennessee Tech (17-16, 10-8) to earn a semifinal berth opposite Belmont tomorrow evening.
No. 3 Eastern Kentucky (22-9, 12 -5) will take on in-state rival Murray State in the second semi after defeating No. 6 Southeast Missouri (18-14, 9-9), 84-76.

West Coast Opening Round

No. 10 Loyola Marymount (13-18, 5-14) upset No. 7 Portland (15-16, 7-12), 67-64, to advance to a Saturday quarterfinal against BYU.
No. 9 Santa Clara (14-18, 7-12) rolled by No. 8 Pacific (15-15, 6-13), 81-64, to make the Tigers' return to the WCC Tournament a short one. The Broncos next play Gonzaga on Saturday evening.

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