No. 5 Arizona State rallies to top Vanderbilt

Sun Devils overcome shaky start

TEMPE, ARIZ. » Tra Holder scored 25 points, Shannon Evans II added 15 and No. 5 Arizona State overcame a dismal start to beat Vanderbilt 76-64 on Sunday.

Arizona State was coming off a victory last week over then-No. 2 Kansas that sent the Sun Devils to their highest ranking in 36 years.

The Sun Devils (10-0) looked nothing like the team that won at Allen Fieldhouse in the opening minutes against Vanderbilt (3-7), falling into a 13-0 hole as they tossed balls out of bounds and directly to the Commodores. Once they got rolling, there was no stopping the Sun Devils.

Sharp at both ends, Arizona State used a 26-3 run spanning halftime to turn what started out as an embarrassing performance into a runaway that had Wells Fargo Arena the loudest it’s been all season.

Mickey Mitchell provided the Sun Devils a spark off the bench, playing solid defense while grabbing 13 rebounds. Arizona State hit 14 of 28 shots in the second half to remain one of the nation’s four undefeated teams. Saben Lee had 24 points to lead Vanderbilt. NO. 7 NORTH CAROLINA 78, NO. 20 TENNESSEE 73 » Brandon Williams made a 3-pointer to put North Carolina ahead for good with 35 seconds left against Tennessee.

North Carolina (10-1) capitalized on a 9-0 run in the final minute to win for the fifth straight time and ended Thompson-Boling Arena’s hex on defending national champions.

Tennessee (7-2) had won each of the last five times it had hosted a defending national champion, a string that included victories over Connecticut (in January 2012), Florida (February 2007 and February 2008) and Kentucky (February 1999 and February 2013).

Joel Berry II scored a game-high 21 points for North Carolina. NO. 21 BAYLOR 118, SAVANNAH STATE 86 » Jo-Lual Acuil had career highs with 31 points and 20 rebounds and Baylor had a 21-0 first-half run to rout Savannah State.

Manu Lecomte added 25 points for Baylor (9-2), King McClure had 19, Nuni Omot 18, and Mark Vital 12. Dexter McClananahan led Savannah State (3-10) with 22 points, and Austin Dasent had 18.

RICK SCUTERI — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Arizona State guard Remy Martin (1) reacts after defeating Vanderbilt 76-64 during an NCAA college basketball game, Sunday in Tempe, Ariz.