N.C. State stuns Arizona in Battle 4 Atlantis
PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas — Freshman Braxton Beverly scored a season-high 20 points and sparked the decisive late run that helped North Carolina State upset No. 2 Arizona 90-84 in Wednesday’s first round at the Battle 4 Atlantis.
Allerik Freeman scored 24 points to lead the Wolfpack (5-0).
Beverly hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 4:19 left, part of a stunning 13-1 run that put the Wolfpack up 86-76 with 1:48 left. He also hit six free throws and assisted on another basket during the spurt.
NO. 5 VILLANOVA 66, WESTERN KENTUCKY 58
Jalen Brunson scored 18 points for Villanova in the opening round of the Battle 4 Atlantis.
The Wildcats (4-0) found themselves in a close game until early in the second half. That’s when they ran off a 13-2 burst to push ahead by double figures.
Villanova made 15 of 24 shots (63 percent) after halftime after shooting just 33 percent to lead 27-24 at the break. The Wildcats also got a spark from sophomore Donte DiVincenzo, who scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half.
NO. 8 KENTUCKY 86, FORT WAYNE 67
In Lexington, Ky., Nick Richards had career highs of 25 points and 15 rebounds, and Kentucky shot 70 percent in the first half.
Kentucky’s 19-of-27 shooting before halftime countered the Mastodons’ eight 3-pointers that kept them close for a while. Once Fort Wayne started missing, it couldn’t match the length or speed of the young Wildcats (5-1), who eventually led 78-48 with 6:50 remaining on the way to their most decisive win this season.
Kentucky shot a season-best 33 of 55 (60 percent) and dominated the rebounding 44-21.
NO. 11 MIAMI 57, LA SALLE 46
In Reading, Pa., prized freshman Lonnie Walker IV struggled in his return home, but Dewan Huell scored 16 points and Miami remained unbeaten.
Part of Miami’s recruiting pitch for the projected NBA lottery pick was a game in his hometown.
Walker was held to five points and 2-of-8 shooting, and his woes were contagious. Miami (4-0) shot 37 percent from the field and the Explorers were 0 of 15 from 3-point range.
B.J. Johnson scored 16 points on 6-of-20 shooting for La Salle (3-3) in its third straight loss.
NO. 12 CINCINNATI 78, WYOMING 53
In George Town, Cayman Islands, Gary Clark scored 17 points and Kyle Washington had 16 points and 11 rebounds as Cincinnati won the inaugural Cayman Islands Classic.
Clark was named the MVP of the three-game event with 49 points, 28 boards and seven assists.
Clark scored the first nine points of the game and Cincinnati (6-0) extended it to 20-2 after 9 minutes.
TENNESSEE 78, NO. 18 PURDUE 75 (OT)
Grant Williams scored all 22 of his points after halftime and hit the go-ahead shot with 14.5 seconds left in overtime to lift Tennessee in the opening round of the Battle 4 Atlantis.
After P.J. Thompson missed a jumper for the lead, James Daniel hit two free throws with 2.0 seconds left to push the margin to three. The Boilermakers had one more chance to tie, but Kyle Alexander intercepted Dakota Mathias’ long inbounds heave to end it.
Tennessee (3-0) shot just 36 percent but dominated the boards and finished with 21 second-chance points.