Zakai Zeigler scored 20 points as No. 8 Tennessee held off regular-season champion and third-ranked Auburn 70-65 on Saturday to reach the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship for the first time since 2022.

The fourth-seeded Volunteers (27-6) got revenge for their Jan. 25 loss at Auburn and their 2019 loss to the Tigers in this tournament’s title game.

The Vols and will likely wind up with a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament — only fitting for the nation’s best league.

Jordan Gainey added 15 points for the Vols, and Chaz Lanier had 12.

The Tigers (28-5) go home losers of three of their last four games.

SEC player of the year Johni Broome led Auburn with 23 points, Miles Kelly added 13 and Denver Jones had 10.

Auburn led 33-32 at halftime thanks to a late 10-0 spurt. The Tigers last led at 48-47.

Tonje scores 32 as Wisconsin tops Michigan St. : Jon Tonje scored 32 points and grabbed seven rebounds to help No. 18 Wisconsin beat No. 7 Michigan State 77-74 on Saturday in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament.

John Blackwell added 14 points as the Badgers (26-8) won for the third time in four days.

Jase Richardson had 21 points and seven rebounds for the Spartans (27-6). Jeremy Fears Jr. had 14 points and six assists, but he had the ball knocked away in the waning seconds as he tried to tie the score with a heave from near the midcourt logo.

Michigan State, the league’s regular-season champs, had won eight in a row.

Evans, Timberlake power Bryant to America East Tournament title: Barry Evans scored 19 points, Earl Timberlake added 17 and top-seeded Bryant cruised to the America East championship, defeating No. 3-seed Maine 77-59 on Saturday.

The Bulldogs advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the second time, having made their other trip when they won the Northeast Conference in 2022.

Bryant led by 11 points at halftime and maintained control through the first 11 minutes of the second half, outscoring Maine 23-13. Evans hit a 3-pointer for a 19-point lead and his layup on Bryant’s following possession made it 61-40 with nine minutes remaining. The Bulldogs then went cold for several minutes. They had four missed shots and three turnovers before Timberlake converted a three-point play with about five minutes left and another Evans 3-pointer on the next possession made it 67-50. A 3-pointer from Connor Withers made it 75-54 with 1:23 remaining.

Ings hits go-ahead free throw, and Norfolk State claims MEAC championship : Christian Ings scored 16 points, including the go-ahead free throw with eight seconds left, and top-seeded Norfolk State held off a wild rally by No. 2-seed South Carolina State for a 66-65 victory in the MEAC Tournament title game on Saturday.

With the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, Norfolk State will be making its third tournament appearance since 2021 and its fourth overall.