Kentucky bounces back, beats Southern Illinois
LEXINGTON, KY. >> Keldon Johnson and Immanuel Quickley each scored 15 points, Nick Richards grabbed a career-high 19 rebounds and No. 2 Kentucky rallied in the second half to beat Southern Illinois 71-59 on Friday night.
The Wildcats (1-1) bounced back from Tuesday night’s 118-84 shellacking by No. 4 Duke, but had to work hard in the second half to overcome the veteran Salukis.
Richards’ rebounding provided the biggest lift as Kentucky dominated SIU 4819 on the glass. He had as many boards as the (0-1) Salukis’ combined total, surpassing his previous best of 15 last season against Fort Wayne. The Wildcats also shot 47 percent after halftime and limited SIU to 1 of 7 shooting from long range.
(6) TENNESSEE 87, LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE 65 >> Grant Williams scored 31 points, pulled down 10 rebounds and showcased his newfound 3-point range for Tennessee (2-0).
Williams shot 3 of 4 from beyond the arc, matching his 2017-18 season total for 3-pointers. He shot 11 of 15 overall and led five Tennessee players in double figures.
(8) NORTH CAROLINA 116, ELON 67 >> Cameron Johnson and freshman Nassir Little scored 21 points apiece in North Carolina’s rout.
Freshman Coby White added 14 points to help the Tar Heels (2-0) sweep their two-game, season-opening barnstorming tour of regional mid-majors
(12) KANSAS STATE 56, KENNESAW STATE 41 >> Barry Brown and Makol Mawien each scored 15 points, Dean Waded added 13 and Kansas State stumbled through a season-opening win.
The Wildcats won their 24th consecutive non-conference game at Bramlage Coliseum despite playing without Xavier Sneed, who tweaked an ankle in practice Thursday and coach Bruce Weber held him out as a precaution.
(15) VIRGINIA TECH 87, GARDNER-WEBB
59>> Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Isaiah Wilkins scored 21 points apiece as Virginia Tech won its opener.
(18) MISSISSIPPI STATE 95, AUSTIN PEAY
67>> Quinndary Weatherspoon scored
21 points, Nick Weatherspoon added
19 as Mississippi State won its opener. Tyson Carter scored 12 points and Abdul Ado added 11. Aric Holman had
10 points and 10 rebounds. Mississippi State shot nearly 58 percent from the field.
(22) CLEMSON 71, N.C. CENTRAL 51 >> David Skara scored 16 points and Clemson opened with two straight wins for the 17th time in 18 years.
Aamir Simms had 14 points and Shelton Mitchell 11 for Clemson. The team’s leading scorer last season, Marcquise Reed, was held to six points on
1-of-7 shooting.
(23) LSU 97, UNC-GREENSBORO 91 >> Naz Reid scored 29 points and Tremont Waters had 21 points and 10 assists for LSU
(2-0) in the win.