TOP 25 BASKETBALL
(1) Gonzaga 103, Creighton 92
Zach Norvell Jr. scored 23 of his career-high 28 points in the second half, and top-ranked Gonzaga wiped out an early double-digit deficit and beat Creighton 103-92 on Saturday. The Bulldogs (8-0), who took over the No. 1 ranking this week after beating Duke in the Maui Invitational, overcame a boisterous crowd of more than 18,000 at the CHI Health Center to win in their first true road game. Norvell was held in check the first 20 minutes but came out strong after halftime as he did in last year’s win over Creighton in Spokane, Washington.
(5) Nevada 73, USC 61
Jordan Caroline scored 22 points and No. 5 Nevada took control with a dominant second half to beat Southern California and equal its 8-0 start from last season. Tre’Shawn Thurman added 14 points and nine rebounds and Caleb Martin had 12 points for the Wolfpack, who outscored USC 39-26 over the final 20 minutes. It marked a major turnaround from the first half, when the Trojans shot 50 percent from the field and led by as many as seven points.
(7) Michigan 76, (19) Purdue 57
Jordan Poole scored 21 points as part of a balanced offense and Michigan was stingy on defense as it routed a third ranked team this season.
The Wolverines (8-0) are off to their best start since winning the first 16 games of the 2012-13 season. They were coming off an 8467 win over No. 11 North Carolina, and they beat then-No. 8 Villanova 73-46 on its home court last month.
(10) Kentucky 78, UNC Greens. 61
Reid Travis scored 22 points, Keldon Johnson added six of his 13 points during a 14-2 second half run and Kentucky won its seventh straight. The Spartans seemed poised to take control with a 55-50 edge with 13:08 remaining before Kentucky (7-1) had consecutive threepoint plays by Travis and Ashton Hagans for a 56-55 lead.
Marquette 83, (12) Kansas State 71
Markus Howard scored 45 points and went 19 of 21 from the foul line, and Marquette used tight defense to hand Kansas State its first loss.
(13) Virginia Tech 94, CCSU 40
Ahmed Hill scored 24 points to lead Virginia Tech past Central Connecticut State.
Hill’s game was part of a record-setting evening for the Hokies (6-1), who set a school record by making 18 3-pointers against the Blue Devils (4-5). Kerry Blackshear Jr. added 18 points for Virginia Tech, hitting two 3-pointers, while Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Ty Outlaw each hit three 3-pointers.
Joe Hugley led the Blue Devils (4-5) with 13 points. They only shot 25.9 percent (14 of 54).
(20) Texas Tech 78, Memphis 67
Tariq Owens had 13 points and 11 rebounds and tied a career high with eight blocks, Jarrett Culver scored 14 of his 20 points in the second half and Texas Tech rallied to beat Memphis at the HoopHall Miami Invitational.
(21) Buffalo 85, San Francisco 81
Nick Perkins scored 22 points, Jeremy Harris added 15 with eight rebounds and Buffalo held off San Francisco in the title game of the Basketball Hall of Fame Belfast Classic. C.J. Massinburg scored 15 points, making 5 of 6 free throws in the final 20 seconds to close out the win, and Montell McCrae added 11 points as Buffalo (7-0) won the matchup of unbeatens to continue its best start since 1930.
(23) Villanova 85, La Salle 78
Eric Paschall scored 27 points, Phil Booth had 19 and Villanova held off La Salle’s upset bid. Villanova (6-2) remained the class of the city and won its 23rd straight in the Big 5, round-robin play among five Philadelphia Division I basketball teams.
(24) Maryland 66, Penn State 59
Freshman Jalen Smith scored 16 points, Bruno Fernando had 12 points and 13 rebounds and Maryland opened Big Ten play by slipping past Penn State.