QUENTIN GRIMES

Kemba Walker became the seventh NBA player with a triple-double on Christmas, and the New York Knicks beat the depleted Atlanta Hawks 101-87 for their first win on the holiday in a decade.

Jalen Green is among the top shooting guards in next week's NBA draft.

Jared Butler scored 17 points to lead five Baylor players in double figures, and the Bears roared to a 78-59 victory over Houston in the Final Four.

Yes, Houston is going back to the Final Four for the first time since the famed “Phi Slama Jama” era after Monday night's 67-61 win against Oregon State. And Houston knocked down enough free throws late while holding Oregon State without a basket during a critical 3 1/2 minutes. Fittingly, it was DeJon Jarreau — the American Athletic Conference's defensive player of the year who led the effort that stymied Oregon State star Ethan Thompson — who was named the most outstanding player of the Midwest Region. “It was right there within our grasp with the effort we showed in the second half,” Oregon State coach Wayne Tinkle said. They held the Beavers to 35% shooting in the first half before Oregon State found some openings.

Now it's taken coach Kelvin Sampson's team somewhere new: the program's deepest NCAA Tournament run since the days of Olajuwon, Drexler and the famed “Phi Slama Jama." That sent the second-seeded Cougars through to their first regional final in 37 years, earning a matchup with No. Houston (27-3) came in holding opponents to a national-low 37.3% shooting, and then harassed Syracuse (18-10) into just 28% (14 for 50). “It’s the best defense that that we’ve seen this year and they deserved to win,” coach Jim Boeheim said. Syracuse had shot at least 52% each time while making 29 3-pointers — but there would be no repeat of that unexpected 2016 Final Four run thanks to Houston's defense.

The Cougars play No. By the time the first half ended, and the Scarlet Knights had forged a 30-27 lead, Rutgers and Houston each had two regulars mired in foul trouble. AdChaney took a seat with his fourth with 15:45 left and the Scarlet Knights went on the attack. And by the time there was 10 minutes to go, the Scarlet Knights had meticulously built a 50-40 lead. UP NEXTThe Cougars play the Orange next weekend for a spot in the Elite Eight.

(AP Photo/Chuck Burton, File)Gonzaga and Baylor spent almost the entire season holding down the top two spots in the Top 25. Makes sense they'd hold down a bunch of spots on The Associated Press All-America teams. The Bulldogs' Corey Kispert and the Bears' Jared Butler led the way with first-team nods Tuesday from the national panel of 63 media members that vote each week in the AP Top 25 poll. Just like the first- and second-team All-Americans, their teams also will be playing in the NCAA Tournament this week. ___AP Basketball Writer John Marshall and AP Sports Writers Michael Marot and Stephen Hawkins contributed to this report.

We wanted to be the American Conference champions.”Just more than an hour after the AAC title game ended, the Cougars (24-3) were named the No. The Bearcats won the previous two AAC title game matchups before last year’s tournaments were canceled because of COVID-19 after Houston had won its second consecutive AAC regular-season title. This title game got lopsided, like their only regular-season matchup three weeks earlier, when Houston won 90-52 at home. SMU's 15-point win over Cincinnati in 2017 had been the largest margin in an AAC tournament final. The Bearcats got to their fourth consecutive AAC tournament title game with a 60-59 win over the top-seeded Shockers in their semifinal game Saturday.

Virginia was forced to withdraw from the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament on Saturday because of a single COVID-19 case. They were already missing David McCormack and Tristan Enaruna, who both tested positive before the conference tournament. Pitino is the fifth coach to lead five teams to the NCAA Tournament, joining Lon Kruger and Tuby Smith. The Cougars routed Cincinnati in the AAC final, ending the Bearcats hope of slipping into the NCAA Tournament field of 68 as an automatic qualifier. 7 Houston and Cincinnati, which needs to win to get in the NCAA field.

Houston guard Tramon Mark, right, celebrates his game-winning 3-point basket during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Memphis, Sunday, March 7, 2021, in Houston. 9 Houston a 67-64 win over Memphis on Sunday. The Tigers shot 47%, including 8 of 21 on 3-pointers. AdBIG PICTUREMemphis: The Tigers missed a chance to improve their NCAA Tournament chances with a marquee win. … Memphis shot 10 of 20 from the free-throw line.

East Carolina's Jayden Gardner (1) starts to celebrate during the closing minutes of the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Houston in Greenville, N.C., Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2021. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)GREENVILLE, N.C. – Jayden Gardner and East Carolina didn't get to savor a sea of court-storming home fans after claiming a huge upset. Gardner had 21 points and 15 rebounds to help ECU stun fifth-ranked Houston 82-73 on Wednesday night, securing the Pirates' first win against a ranked opponent in nearly two decades. East Carolina shot 47% and made 11 of 24 3-pointers — and more impressively, the Pirates led for the last 12-plus minutes against a Houston team that struggled to make much of anything after halftime. but we weren't any of those things tonight.”AdECU: East Carolina hadn't won since beating Tulane at home on Dec. 22.

11 Houston used a dominant first half to cruise to a 75-58 win over UCF on Sunday. Houston (11-1, 6-1 American Athletic Conference) won its fourth straight game since its loss to Tulsa. “It was a great game for us,” Houston guard DeJon Jarreau said. “They made a lot of shots to start the first half off and kind of knocked us back,” UCF coach Johnny Dawkins said. Sampson passed former Houston coach Tom Penders.

(AP Photo/Dave Crenshaw)TULSA, Okla. – Brandon Rachal hit two free throws with a tenth of a second remaining and finished with 22 points as Tulsa topped unbeaten No. Rey Idowu made one of two free throws to give Tulsa a 63-62 lead before Mills put the Cougars ahead. Houston shot just 38% in the first half, but had nine offensive rebounds and scored nine second-chance points. The Cougars lead the American Conference in rebounding margin, turnover margin and steals. Houston shot just 35% from the field, including 19% on 3-pointers (4 of 21) and were unable to overwhelm Tulsa with their physicality, as they have most opponents.