Top two teams survive scares
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| Gonzaga's Robert Sacre (00) dunks against Michigan State's Delvon Roe, right, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2009, in East Lansing, Mich. (AP Photo/Al Goldis) |
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Cole Aldrich had 18 points, 11 rebounds and blocked five shots, helping top-ranked Kansas overcome a sloppy night to hold off Memphis 57-55 in a rematch of the 2008 national championship game Tuesday in St. Louis.
Kansas (2-0) led most of the night despite 21 turnovers, but could never shake the scrappy and supposedly overmatched Tigers.
Memphis (1-1) closed within three on Doneal Mack’s 3-pointer with a minute left, then cut the lead to 56-55 on Elliot Williams’ long 3 with 16.7 seconds left. Williams had 21 points to lead Memphis.
No. 2 Michigan State 75, Gonzaga 71: Durrell Summers hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 3:02 left in East Lansing, made two at the line with 5.7 seconds to go and finished with 21 points to help No. 2 Michigan State rally for a win.
The Spartans (2-0) won their 41st straight game at home against a nonconference team.
Robert Sacre matched a career high with 17 points for the Bulldogs (1-1).
No. 9 Duke 101, Charlotte 59: Nolan Smith scored a career-high 24 points in his return to Duke’s lineup, and the ninth-ranked Blue Devils routed Charlotte in the second round of the NIT Season Tip-Off in Durham, N.C.
Jon Scheyer added 20 points and Kyle Singler had 17 for the Blue Devils (3-0).
Shamari Spears had 20 points to lead the overmatched 49ers (2-1).
No. 10 Tennessee 124, UNC Asheville 49: Scotty Hopson had a career-high 25 points in Knoxville and No. 10 Tennessee set a school record for points in a game.
It was coach Bruce Pearl’s 100th win with the Volunteers.
J.P. Primm led UNC-Asheville (2-0) with 13 points.
No. 12 Connecticut 76, Hofstra 67: Jerome Dyson scored 23 points in Storrs, Conn., and No. 12 Connecticut rallied for a victory over Hofstra in the second round of the NIT Season Tip-Off.
Kemba Walker had 16 points, Stanley Robinson had 15, and Gavin Edwards 10 for the Huskies (3-0).
Jenkins scored 21 of his 25 points in the second half for Hofstra (1-2).
No. 17 Oklahoma 72, Louisana-Monroe 61: Willie Warren scored 24 points in Norman, Okla., Tony Crocker added 13 and No. 17 Oklahoma notched the 1,500th win in the program’s history.
Oklahoma (2-0) struggled early with ULM’s zone pressure, but eventually took the lead for good with a 9-0 run with about 14 minutes remaining.
Tony Hooper scored 17 points for the Warhawks (1-2).
No. 19 Georgetown 46, Temple 45: Greg Monroe scored on a driving layup with 6.5 seconds to play, rescuing No. 19 Georgetown from a lackluster performance to give the Hoyas a win over Temple in Washington.
Chris Wright had 15 points, and Monroe had 11 points and nine rebounds for the Hoyas (2-0). Lavoy Allen had 12 points and 14 rebounds for the Owls (1-1).
No. 20 Louisville 96, Arkansas 66: Reginald Delk scored 20 points in a reserve role to double his previous career high and sparked key surges in both halves, helping No. 20 Louisville give coach Rick Pitino his 750th career win in its season opener in St. Louis.
Rotnei Clarke had 16 points for Arkansas (1-1), four days after scoring an SEC-record 51 points with 13 3-pointers in the opener against Alcorn State.
No. 22 Clemson 79, Liberty 39: David Potter scored a career-high 17 points and hit five of Clemson’s 10 3-pointers in Lynchburg, Va.
The Tigers (2-0), who needed to rally late last year to beat the Flames at Clemson, had no such issues in the game that began at 10 a.m. They led 17-1 before the Flames made their first field goal – with 13:02 left in the first half – and by a wide margin throughout.
Jesse Sanders led the Flames (1-2) with seven points but also had nine of their 28 turnovers.
No. 25 Maryland 71, Fairfield 42: Eric Hayes scored 14 points in College Park, Md., and No. 25 Maryland celebrated its return to the AP poll with a victory.
Landon Milbourne had 10 points and eight rebounds, and Sean Mosley scored 13 for the Terrapins (2-0).
The Terrapins took control against Fairfield (2-1) with a 15-0 run in the first half.
