The scoreboard did most of the talking Tuesday. Iowa State squeezed past Houston 70-67 in the night’s tightest headline result, while Duke turned its game into a track meet and never let Syracuse breathe in a 101-64 rout. Add Michigan’s 91-80 road win at Purdue and Villanova’s 92-89 escape at Xavier, and Feb. 17 delivered a slate that swung from coin-flip finishes to outright demolition.
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Duke 101, Syracuse 64: a statement-level margin
Duke didn’t just win — it erased the competitive portion of the night early and kept accelerating. A 37-point final is the kind of result that reshapes the postgame conversation from “what happened late?” to “how quickly did it get out of hand?” Syracuse never found a counterpunch, and Duke’s 101-point output underscored a game played on Duke’s terms from the opening stretch through the finish.
Iowa State 70, Houston 67: three points, full control of the margins
The night’s marquee nail-biter ended with Iowa State on top by a single possession. In a three-point game, every empty trip and every late stop becomes the story, and Iowa State had enough answers to close. Houston kept it within one shot, but the final horn confirmed Iowa State’s ability to win the kind of game that comes down to execution rather than aesthetics.
Michigan 91, Purdue 80: Wolverines win with offense on the road
Michigan walked into Purdue and hung 91 points — a road number that usually travels only when the offense is clean and confident. Purdue scored 80, but it wasn’t enough to keep pace. The gap shows up in the simplest place: Michigan won the scoring race, and it did it away from home, where points are supposed to be harder to find.
Villanova 92, Xavier 89: a late-game shootout breaks Nova’s way
In a game that lived in the 90s, Villanova survived by one bucket, 92-89. That’s a classic possession-by-possession finish where shot-making is the currency and a single defensive stand can be worth as much as a made three. Xavier got to 89, but Villanova got to 92 — and that was the difference.
Best finishes: one-possession pressure tests
Several games came down to the final sequence — the kind of endings that expose decision-making, composure, and late-game shot quality.
- Tarleton 65, Abilene Christian 62: Tarleton held on in a three-point grinder.
- Marshall 84, South Alabama 80: Marshall closed a four-point game that stayed tight into the final minutes.
- N. Carolina Central 80, Morgan State 76: Another four-point finish, with NCCU doing enough to protect the margin.
- Prairie View A&M 68, Grambling St. 63: Prairie View managed the final possessions in a five-point win.
- Stony Brook 72, Drexel 69: Stony Brook edged a one-possession game.
- Houston Christian 72, Nicholls State 68: Houston Christian landed the closing punches in a four-point result.
- Texas Southern 74, Southern Univ. 73: The night’s thinnest margin — a one-point escape.
- Iowa State 70, Houston 67: The headline thriller ended in a three-point decision.
Blowouts and big margins
While the slate offered plenty of drama, it also featured games that were effectively decided long before the final minute.
- Duke 101, Syracuse 64: The largest margin of the night, with Duke reaching triple digits.
- Howard 91, Delaware State 59: Howard controlled from start to finish.
- Alabama State 92, Miss. Valley St. 55: A 37-point win matching Duke’s margin, with Alabama State cruising.
Notable road wins
Winning away from home is its own skill set — and Tuesday’s slate produced several road teams that left with the result.
- Michigan 91, Purdue 80
- Villanova 92, Xavier 89
- Florida A&M 86, Alcorn State 78
- Stephen F. Austin 78, Texas A&M-CC 68
- New Orleans 78, Incarnate Word 64
- McNeese State 75, Northwestern St. 64
- Norfolk State 70, Md.-East. Shore 66
- Northern Illinois 72, Buffalo 70
Full results (Feb. 17, 2026)
- Tarleton 65, Abilene Christian 62
- LIU Sharks 83, Wagner 65
- Charleston Southern 75, Gardner Webb 66
- Marshall 84, South Alabama 80
- N. Carolina Central 80, Morgan State 76
- Prairie View A&M 68, Grambling St. 63
- Norfolk State 70, Md.-East. Shore 66
- Duke 101, Syracuse 64
- Howard 91, Delaware State 59
- Alabama State 92, Miss. Valley St. 55
- Jackson State 91, Bethune-Cookman 86
- New Orleans 78, Incarnate Word 64
- McNeese State 75, Northwestern St. 64
- UTRGV 70, Lamar 65
- Florida A&M 86, Alcorn State 78
- Texas Southern 74, Southern Univ. 73
- Alabama A&M 82, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 70
- Houston Christian 72, Nicholls State 68
- Stony Brook 72, Drexel 69
- Stephen F. Austin 78, Texas A&M-CC 68
- Iowa State 70, Houston 67
- Florida State 80, Boston College 72
- Northern Illinois 72, Buffalo 70
- Eastern Michigan 66, Central Michigan 54
- Michigan 91, Purdue 80
- Villanova 92, Xavier 89
On a night with 26 finals, the extremes stood out: Duke’s 101-point avalanche at one end, and a cluster of one-possession finishes at the other. The middle was still busy — road wins, late pushbacks, and enough high-scoring games to make Tuesday feel like a week’s worth of outcomes compressed into one slate.