Hokies remain unbeaten with upset win
BLACKSBURG, Va. – Erick Green scored 28 points and hit eight critical free throws in the final 76 seconds Saturday to help Virginia Tech remain unbeaten with an 81-71 win over No. 15 Oklahoma State.
Robert Brown added 18 points and Jarell Eddie had 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Hokies (7-0) and first-year coach James Johnson.
Le’Bryan Nash and Marcus Smart scored 18 each to lead the Cowboys (5-1), who lost to the Hokies for the fourth straight time, all in past three seasons.
Green played only nine minutes in the first half after drawing two quick fouls, but scored the Hokies’ first 10 points of the second half on a pair of 3-pointers, two free throws and a long fadeaway.
No. 2 Duke 88, Delaware 50
Ryan Kelly scored 15 of his 18 points in the decisive first half and No. 2 Duke routed Delaware 88-50 on Saturday.
Mason Plumlee added 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Blue Devils (8-0). They never trailed, shot 52 percent, led by 46 and enjoyed a rare breather after a challenging run of games against nationally ranked opponents.
No. 3 Michigan 74, Bradley 66: Freshman Nik Stauskas scored 22 points in his first start and Michigan survived a late run to get the win.
Stauskas started for Matt Vogrich and had eight first-half points to help the Wolverines (7-0) to a narrow 34-30 lead at the break.
Walt Lemon Jr. led Bradley (5-2) on a late run to close to 70-65 in the final minute. But the Braves were forced to foul and the Wolverines held on to win.
No. 4 Ohio St. 70, Northern Kentucky 43: LaQuinton Ross scored a career-high 22 points to lead cold-shooting Ohio State past Northern Kentucky.
Ohio State (5-1) rebounded from a 73-68 loss to No. 2 Duke on Wednesday night in which the Buckeyes led most of the way but faded at the finish. They had another bad shooting game against the Norse (0-5), making only 38 percent of their shots.
No. 5 Louisville 69, Illinois St. 66: Russ Smith scored 24 points and Peyton Siva added 20, including four 3-pointers, to lead Louisville to the win.
Down three, Illinois State’s Tyler Brown airballed a 3-pointer with 8 seconds left that was saved by Bryant Allen to Jackie Carmichael. Carmichael found Brown for another chance at overtime, drawing considerable contact from Louisville’s Chane Behanan as the buzzer sounded. But no foul was called and the shot was off, giving Louisville (6-1) the win.
Baylor 64, No. 8 Kentucky 55: Kentucky’s 54-game winning streak at Rupp Arena is over.
Pierre Jackson scored 17 points and Isaiah Austin and A.J. Walton each added 11 for the Bears (5-2). Brady Heslip and Cory Jefferson each added 10 points and Baylor beat the Wildcats for the first time in eight tries.
No. 11 Creighton 80, St. Joseph’s 51: Doug McDermott scored 18 of his 23 points in the first half, helping Creighton to the easy win.
Gregory Echenique added 16 points and six rebounds for the Bluejays (7-1), who bounced back after being upset by Boise State on Wednesday.
No. 13 Michigan State 84, Nicholls State 39: Keith Appling scored 13 points and Michigan State used a big run in the first half to grab control in the victory.
Michigan State (6-2) led 10-9 eight minutes into the game before outscoring the Colonels 27-4 during the rest of the opening half.
No. 14 North Carolina 102, UAB 84: Leslie McDonald scored a career-high 24 points in his first career start, powering North Carolina to the win.
James Michael McAdoo added 15 points and 12 rebounds as part of a balanced offensive showing for the Tar Heels (6-2).
No. 16 Missouri 72, Appalachian State 56: Laurence Bowers matched his career high with 23 points despite taking just one shot in the second half, leading Missouri to the victory in its first game since embattled guard Michael Dixon announced he would transfer.
No. 17 Cincinnati 58, Alabama 56: Cashmere Wright’s fadeaway jumper at the buzzer gave Cincinnati the victory in a matchup of stingy unbeaten teams.
No. 21 Minnesota 87, North Florida 59: Rodney Williams had 15 points and eight rebounds to power Minnesota to the win.
Austin Hollins added 12 points for the Gophers (8-1), winners of four straight. Trevor Mbakwe and Joe Coleman had 11 points each.
Parker Smith led the Ospreys (3-5) with 22 points, but was 6 for 19 from the field, including a 3-for-11 mark from the 3-point line. Travis Wallace added 17.
The Gophers blocked a season-high 13 shots, including a career-high four from Hollins and three from Mbakwe. Minnesota also tied a season high with 15 steals.
NO. 25 New Mexico 77, Indiana State 68, OT: Kendall Williams scored a season-high 24 points to help New Mexico beat Indiana State in overtime.
Hugh Greenwood scored eight of his 14 points in OT and Chad Adams added 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Lobos (8-0), who squandered a 19-point lead in the second half, then outscored the Sycamores 13-4 in the extra period.
New Mexico won despite shooting 20 percent from the field in the second half. The Lobos outscored the Sycamores 28-18 from the free-throw line.
Jake Odum led Indiana State (4-2) with 25 points.