Strong second half fuels Illini
Michael Finke scored 22 points and teammate Aaron Jordan added 16 to lead Illinois over North Carolina Central 86- 73 on Friday in Champaign.
The Illini ( 6- 0) looked lackluster early, allowing the Eagles ( 2- 5) to mount an 8- 0 run midway through the first half to take a 35- 34 lead at the half.
After the break, Finke and Jordan traded three- pointers, with Finke tossing in a couple of dunks for good measure, as the Illini put together their own 8- 0 run to coast to the victory.
Scottie Lindsey had 19 points, six rebounds and four assists, Vic Law added 15 points and Northwestern used a strong second half to pull away for an 81- 50 victory over Sacred Heart at Allstate Arena.
Northwestern ( 4- 2) won comfortably despite shooting 9- for- 27 from three- point range. Bryant McIntosh ( nine points) was just 1- for- 5 on three- pointers.
The Wildcats held Sacred Heart to just 19 points on 6- for- 18 shooting in the second half.
Payton Pritchard made seven of Oregon’s 15 three- pointers, scoring a career- high 29 points and leading the Ducks to an 89- 79 overtime win over DePaul in the consolation bracket of the PK80 Invitational in Portland, Oregon.
Marin Maric led DePaul ( 1- 4) with 22 points, and Eli Cain added 19. But the Blue Demons scored just 10 points over the final three minutes of regulation and overtime combined.
Aundre Jackson scored a career- high 25 points on 10- for13 shooting, Marques Townes added 23 points and Loyola stayed unbeaten with a 102- 78 win over UNC Wilmington in a Savannah Invitational contest in Savannah, Georgia.
Loyola ( 6- 0) is off to its best start since going 7- 0 to begin the 2010- 11 season.