Men’s College Basketball | T25 | Wednesday
No. 17 North Carolina 100, No. 10 Tennessee 92
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — RJ Davis scored 27 points while No. 17 North Carolina built a huge lead and then held off a second-half push by No. 10 Tennessee for a win in the inaugural ACC/SEC Challenge.
Armando Bacot added 22 points and 11 rebounds for the Tar Heels (6-1), who dominated the opening 20 minutes to lead by as many as 23 and score 61 points by halftime.
The Volunteers (4-3) flirted with a comeback behind a huge performance from Northern Colorado transfer Dalton Knecht. The 6-foot-6 guard scored 22 of his career-best 37 points after halftime, though he was injured while being fouled on a drive with 1:39 left. He did not return.
Josiah-Jordan James added 20 points for Tennessee, which shot 56% for the game while making 8 of 16 3s after halftime to get back in this one.
Harrison Ingram added 20 points for North Carolina, which made 32 of 38 free throws compared to 13 of 16 for Tennessee.
Arkansas 80, No. 7 Duke 75
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Trevon Brazile had 19 points and 11 rebounds, Khalif Battle scored 21 off the bench and Arkansas held on to beat Duke.
The Razorbacks stayed in the game early with defense, ultimately limiting Duke to 36% shooting. But it was a scoring run midway through the second half that finally broke things open.
Preseason All-American Kyle Filipowski was held to three points for the Blue Devils (5-2) in the first half. He played a key role in the late rally, though, finishing with 26 points and 10 rebounds.
Chandler Lawson had seven points, eight rebounds and six blocks for Arkansas (5-3).
Virginia 59, No. 14 Texas A&M 47
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Andrew Rohde scored 13 points and Virginia took command with a 17-2 run spanning the halves to beat Texas A&M.
Rohde, a transfer from St. Thomas and the Summit League’s top freshman last year, made three of Virginia’s nine 3-pointers, including one he banked in to beat the shot clock during the surge. All five starters for Virginia (6-1) scored in double figures, with Reece Beekman, Ryan Dunn and Jake Groves all scoring 12.
Henry Coleman III led Texas A&M (6-2) with 16 points and 14 rebounds. The Aggies’ point total was their lowest this season; they arrived averaging 79.3.
St. Joseph’s 78, No. 18 Villanova 65
VILLANOVA, Pa. — Erik Reynolds II scored 24 points, Xzayvier Brown added 16 to lift Saint Joseph’s over Villanova.
Rasheer Fleming had 12 points and 11 rebounds and Lynn Greer III scored 15 for St. Joe’s (5-2), which advanced to the first-ever Big 5 Classic championship game on Saturday night. The Hawks will play the winner of Wednesday’s contest between La Salle and Temple.
Justin Moore scored 17 and Eric Dixon had 14 for the Wildcats (6-2), who struggled on offense all night. Villanova shot 22 of 56 and committed 17 turnovers.
Villanova was playing for the first time since reentering the Top 25 following its title in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in the Bahamas, with wins over Texas Tech, North Carolina and Memphis in the championship game on Friday.
No. 20 Colorado St. 88, Colorado 83
FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Isaiah Stevens scored 18 of his 20 points in the second half and added 11 assists to help Colorado State beat Colorado.
Jalen Lake added 16 points and Nique Clifford and Joel Scott had 15 each for the Rams (7-0), who ended a three-game losing streak against their in-state rivals. Students rushed the Moby Arena court to celebrate with the players after the final horn.
KJ Simpson had 30 points and freshman Cody Williams added 21 for the Buffaloes (5-2), who couldn’t overcome a poor first half when they made just 7 of 26 from the field, missed all five of their 3-point attempts and had nine turnovers. Colorado shot 20 of 29 in the second half with just six turnovers.
No. 22 James Madison 81, Buffalo 66
HARRISONBURG, Va. — TJ Bickerstaff scored 18 points and James Madison remained unbeaten with a victory over Buffalo.
Terrence Edwards added 15 points as the Dukes (7-0) cruised to their second straight blowout victory. Bickerstaff finished with seven rebounds and four assists.
Sy Chatman scored 19 points for Buffalo (1-6).