Colleges

Big East: Ex-coach watches Bearcats' big win

CINCINNATI - Eric Hicks wiped away tears after a pre-game embrace from ousted coach Bob Huggins then scored 18 on Saturday, leading Cincinnati to a 78-75 victory over No.16 West Virginia.

Huggins, invited by interim coach Andy Kennedy on Senior Day, attended a home game for the first time since being forced out in August. He got a standing ovation and hugged the Bearcats' five seniors.

Huggins repeatedly got standing ovations from the capacity crowd, who also chanted for school president Nancy Zimpher to give Kennedy a contract.

After the game, Hicks led the seniors over to Huggins, who embraced each. Hicks wiped away tears with his white warmup shirt after the embrace. Huggins dabbed a tear from the corner of his right eye.

"I thought it took a lot of courage for Coach to come," Kennedy said. "It shows you what kind of man he is. It's a tribute to these seniors. They wanted him to come. I thought it was fitting going against his alma mater in a game that decided our season."

The Bearcats believed they needed a high-profile win to help their NCAA Tournament hopes. West Virginia previously had guaranteed a first-round bye in the conference tournament.

The Bearcats used a 15-2 run to take a 33-23 lead. Then Jihad Muhammad made a jumper and two 3-pointers during an 11-1 spurt that made it 48-35 early in the second half.

A 3-pointer by Mike Gansey cut it to 66-64 with 5:03 to go for West Virginia, who kept it close until the end before Cincinnati made 3 of 5 free throws during the final 12 seconds.

STORRS, Conn. - Marcus Williams went 6-for-6 from the free-throw line during the final 48 seconds as No.2 Connecticut clinched a share of the regular-season title with an 84-80 victory over Louisville.

The Huskies win it outright if Villanova loses to Syracuse today.

Juan Palacios, a sophomore who came in averaging 10.1 points for the Cardinals but scored a career-high 29, tied it at 78 with two free throws with 54 seconds left. Williams, who had 11 points and seven assists, then started his free-throw run, making two with 48 seconds left. Denham Brown stole a pass of Taquan Dean, and Williams added two more with 30 seconds left.

Terrance Farley scored down low for the Cardinals nine seconds later to make it a two-point game. Williams, who was 7-for-7 for the game, made his last two with 15 seconds left. Then Louisville struggled to get off a shot, with Palacios missing a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

[Last modified March 5, 2006, 00:54:10]