Florida State staves off Tar Heels

TALLAHASSEE, FLA. » Braian Angola scored 20 points and C.J. Walker added 18 as 24thranked Florida State held off No. 12 North Carolina for an 81-80 victory on Wednesday night.

The Seminoles (12-2, 1-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) led most of the game but almost squandered it as they didn’t make a field goal in the last 2:57 and missed their last four free throws.

They were up 81-77 on Angola’s free throw before Joel Berry II made a 3-pointer off a turnover to bring the Tar Heels within 81-80 with 30 seconds remaining. After Phil Cofer missed both free throws, North Carolina (123, 1-1) had a chance to win. Berry drove the lane and missed a jumper which was rebounded by Terance Mann. Mann missed his free throws with 1.7 seconds remaining but North Carolina’s last second desperation 3 was no good, allowing Florida State to snap a seven-game losing streak to the Tar Heels.

Mann added 17 points and nine rebounds as Florida State extended its home winning streak to 28, which is currently the third-longest in Division I.

Berry led the Tar Heels with 28 points and Williams added 18.

North Carolina trailed by 11 at halftime but would rally back to tie it at 58 with a 14-2 run that featured five Florida State turnovers. The Tar Heels took a 65-63 lead on a dunk by Theo Pinson before the Seminoles regained the lead with a 13-2 run.

Purdue 82, Rutgers 51

WEST LAFAYETTE, IND. » Isaac Haas scored 14 points and Dakota Mathias finished with 13 on Wednesday night to help No. 13 Purdue pull away from Rutgers 82-51.

The Boilermakers (14-2, 3-0 Big Ten) have won 10 straight overall and 17 consecutive home games.

Geo Baker had 11 points to lead the Scarlet Knights (106, 0-3), who have lost three straight. Mike Williams added 10.

Purdue made it look easy against the nation’s fourthbest scoring defense.

It shot 49.1 percent from the field, went 10 of 23 on 3-pointers, seized control quickly and never let Rutgers become a serious threat again.