Alabama missed 19 shots from the field in a row at one point but trailed by only six points when forward Thalamus McGhee's follow shot with 12:51 left ended the drought.
No. 15 Virginia Tech 71, La Salle 55--Reserve guard Troy Manns, a transfer from George Mason, scored 15 of the final 19 points for the Hokies (9-1, 2-0) in an Atlantic 10 game at Radford, Va.
The game was played at Radford University because two feet of snow on the roof at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg created a hazardous condition.
La Salle is 3-10 and 0-2.
Auburn 89, No. 19 Georgia 86--The Tigers (14-3, 2-2) successfully used a perimeter game designed to offset a decided height disadvantage in a Southeastern Conference game at Auburn.
Auburn attempted 29 three-point shots, making 12, and made nine of 10 free throws in the final five minutes. Guard Katu Davis missed a three-point shot at the buzzer that could have sent the game into overtime for Georgia (10-3, 1-2).
No. 20 Penn State 83, Northwestern 74--Forward Glenn Sekunda scored nine of his career-high 30 points in overtime as the Nittany Lions (13-0, 4-0) ran the longest Division I winning streak to 14 games in a Big Ten game at Evanston, Ill.
Guard Geno Carlisle scored 31 of his career-high 36 points in the second half to allow Northwestern (5-7, 0-3 and a 13-game Big Ten losing streak) to rally from a 14-point deficit. A reverse layup by Carlisle with 9.2 seconds accounted for the final points of regulation.
Penn State was without top scorer Pete Lisicky, who injured his right Achilles' tendon Thursday against Minnesota. Northwestern was without leading rebounder Matt Moran, who quit the team before Saturday's game.
Indiana 85, No. 21 Illinois 71--The slumping Illini (11-5, 0-4) managed only two field goals in a second-half stretch of 11:45 at Champaign, Ill. The last time Illinois started conference play with four losses was the 1930-31 season.
The Hoosiers (10-6, 3-1) were dominant at the forward position with Andrae Patterson (20 points, 11 rebounds) and Brian Evans (19 points, 11 rebounds).
No. 23 Michigan 76, Michigan State 54--The Wolverines (13-4, 3-1) were in control throughout the game at East Lansing, Mich. as the Spartans (8-7, 2-1) missed 10 of their first 11 shots.
Michigan had a 42-30 rebounding advantage in handing Michigan State its most lopsided home loss since 1990. Quinton Brooks accounted for half of the Spartans' points (27) and made nine of 15 shots from the field, compared to 11 of 47 (24%) by his teammates.
Wyoming 61, No. 25 New Mexico 58--Forward Sly Johnson, after missing two free throws with 18 seconds left, made two for the final points of the Western Athletic Conference game for the Cowboys (7-7, 1-3) at Laramie, Wyo.
Freshman Kenny Thomas (18 points) was the only double-figure scorer for New Mexico (13-2, 3-2).
BIG WEST CONFERENCE
Utah State (8-7, 2-1) overcame a 20-point deficit in the second half at Logan, Utah, and posted a 73-71 victory over Pacific (6-7, 1-2). It was the second overtime victory this week for Utah State, which got 27 points from forward Silas Mills. . . . UC Santa Barbara (6-6, 3-1), with a 60-56 victory over New Mexico State (4-8, 1-3), ended a losing streak at 10 games to the Aggies at Las Cruces, N.M.
WEST COAST CONFERENCE
Santa Clara (11-3, 2-2) made its first eight three-point shots of an 86-66 home-court victory over Portland (10-4, 1-1). . . . Visiting Gonzaga (10-4, 1-1) shot 72% from the field in an 81-71 victory over St. Mary's (6-7, 0-2), which got only five points from the WCC's leading scorer, guard David Sivulich.
OTHER GAMES
Oklahoma (10-4, 2-0) made all 14 free throws in the third overtime of a 117-100 victory over Nebraska (12-4, 1-1) in a Big Eight game at Norman, Okla. Guard Jaron Boone, the Cornhuskers' leading scorer, missed three shots in the final 1:13 of regulation, had a basket disallowed with 2.1 seconds left in the first overtime because it was shot behind the backboard, and had a shot blocked as time ran in the second overtime. Forward Ryan Minor, the Sooners' leading scorer, had 33 points, Boone 18.
George Washington Coach Mike Jarvis threatened not to have his team play a game against Missouri at Columbia, Mo., when officials said he would be assessed technical fouls for not submitting his starting lineup in time. Missouri Coach Norm Stewart asked officials to waive the NCAA rule that requires lineups to be submitted to the official scorer 10 minutes before the game and they obliged. NCAA rules call for a technical foul against each of the five starters whose names were not submitted by the deadline. Missouri (11-4) shot 35 more free throws than George Washington (8-3) in a 92-77 victory that ended the Colonials' win streak at six. Missouri had a 39-15 advantage in free throws made.
