Villanova gets gritty road victory
With late FTs, Wildcats send Texas to 1st loss of season
After opening the season in a Connecticut “bubble,” Villanova went all the way down to Texas to get a big win.
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl and Justin Moore each scored 19 points and No. 12 Villanova held on late to beat No. 17 Texas 68-64 on Sunday in Austin, handing the Longhorns their first loss after a strong start.
“Road attitude is something we talked about,” Robinson-Earl said. “We just tried to stay after it.”
It took some physical play against an experienced Texas lineup, some late free throws and some grit to close it out.
Collin Gillespie made four free throws over the final 15 seconds to secure the win for the Wildcats (4-1). Jermaine Samuels, who sat out practice this week because of a sprained finger, collected a game-high 12 rebounds.
Courtney Ramey and Matt Coleman III each scored 17 points to pace the Longhorns (4-1). Texas had won the Maui Invitational in the program’s best start in six years under coach Shaka Smart.
Ramey fouled out to send Gillespie to the line and he calmly stroked both shots to put the Wildcats up by four. After Coleman made a twisting layup, Gillespie was again back at the line and swished two more. Gillespie finished with 12 points.
Ramey made a long 3-pointer to tie the game at 57 before Villanova answered with a 3-pointer from Cole Swider with 1:58 to play and the Wildcats held the lead to the end.
Kentucky loses 3rd in row: Moses Wright scored 21 points and Georgia Tech recovered from a poor start to the season to beat No. 20 Kentucky 79-62, giving the Wildcats their third straight loss.
Georgia Tech (1-2) rebounded with a strong performance following losses to state rivals Georgia State and Mercer. The Yellow Jackets won with defense, with 15 steals leading to a dominant 33-4 advantage in points off turnovers.
Georgia Tech outscored the Wildcats 36-20 in the paint.
After opening the season with a win over Morehead State, the Wildcats (1-3) lost to Richmond and Kansas before seeing their losing streak stretched to three games.
Freshman Terrence Clarke had 22 points for Kentucky. B.J. Boston, who had 11 points, was the Wildcats’ only other scorer in double figures.
Washington’s Carter leaves program:
Nahziah Carter left Washington’s program last week after being suspended by the university following investigation of two sexual assault allegations against him.
Carter announced Friday he was leaving Washington to begin his professional career. Carter, who was expected to be Washington’s top player this season, hadn’t taken part in any basketball activities for the program since October.
Washington athletics said Oct. 15 that Carter was suspended for violating the school’s intercollegiate athletics student code of conduct and was suspended from all team activities.
University spokesman Victor Balta said Saturday that two students reported accusations of sexual assault by Carter to Washington’s Title IX office earlier this year. In each case, an administrative hearing officer determined Carter had violated the school’s policy against sexual assault.
Carter’s suspension was finalized earlier this week following unsuccessful appeals of both cases. The suspension from was for three quarters, through next summer. Balta said the first complaint against Carter came in January and the second in March.
The 6-foot-6 guard averaged 12.2 points last season as a junior.