Duke receives plenty from Moore
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NO. 9 DUKE 82, ARMY 56
DURHAM, N.C. — Wendell Moore Jr. looked comfortable and confident as a veteran captain in Duke’s home opener. It certainly helped having the ninthranked Blue Devils’ famously rowdy fans packed in again for the first time in more than 20 months.
The junior forward posted only the third triple-double of the Mike Krzyzewski era to help Duke beat Army 82-56 in Friday night’s home opener.
Moore had 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists to join big man Shelden Williams (2006) and forward RJ Barrett (2019) as the only players to post a triple-double in Coach K’s 42 seasons in Durham.
“He’s our leader,” Krzyzewski said of Moore. “He’ll do anything that we need to have done.”
Moore finished with just one turnover in nearly 35 minutes.
“It all starts with my teammates,” said Moore said, who needed IV fluids due to cramping after Tuesday’s season-opening win against No. 10 Kentucky in New York. “They have instilled so much confidence in me over this preseason. I feel like I can do anything with them behind me.”
Freshman Paolo Banchero added 18 points for the Blue Devils (2-0), who are beginning their final season under Krzyzewski.
This game matched Krzyzewski against his alma mater and the program he led before taking over at Duke in 1980. Duke jumped out to a 10-0 lead and never trailed, but had issues putting away the pesky Black Knights (1-1).
Jalen Rucker scored 19 points to lead Army, which trailed by between seven and 15 points much of the way before the Blue Devils stretched it out beyond 20 points in the final 5 minutes.
“I thought our guys were fearless,” Army Coach Jimmy Allen said. “We asked them to compete. I thought our guys competed. We asked them to be tough and we asked them to empty their tanks. And I thought our guys emptied their tanks.”
NO. 3 KANSAS 88, TARLETON STATE 62
LAWRENCE, Kan. — Ochai Agbaji scored 25 points and third-ranked Kansas beat Tarleton State to run its winning streak in home openers to 49 in a row.
Christian Braun added 15 points, Remy Martin had 14 and Jalen Coleman-Lands 10 for the Jayhawks (2-0), who got all they could handle from the Texans (0-2) after cruising past Michigan State in the Champions Classic on Tuesday night.
Tarleton was within 63-50 with about 6 1/2 minutes left before the Jayhawks pulled away down the stretch.
Shamir Bogues had 20 points and Montre Gipson had 19 for the Texans.
NO. 7 PURDUE 92, INDIANA STATE 67
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Jaden Ivey scored a career-high 27 points, Zach Edey added a career-best 22 and Purdue routed Indiana State. Ivey also had eight rebounds and four assists as the Boilermakers posted their first 2-0 start in three years. Edey had 10 rebounds and three blocks.
Cooper Neese led the Sycamores with 15 points. Cameron Henry had 10 for Indiana State (1-1).
NO. 8 BAYLOR 87, INCARNATE WORD 60
WACO, Texas — Matthew Mayer scored 14 points, LJ Cryer had 13 and Baylor beat Incarnate Word in its season opener while celebrating its national championship from last season.
Heralded freshman Kendall Brown debuted with 13 points after watching as Mayer, Cryer and other returning players (along with some former players) receive championship rings during a pregame ceremony.
Josh Morgan scored 17 points and RJ Glasper added 16 for the Cardinals (0-2), who opened with a loss at home to Texas State.
NO. 10 KENTUCKY 100, ROBERT MORRIS 60
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Kellan Grady had 19 points, including four three-pointers, Oscar Tshiebwe had 20 rebounds and 14 points and No. 10 Kentucky blew out Robert Morris in its home opener.
Daimion Collins went 7 of 8 for 14 points and had a couple of highlight-reel dunks late in the game. Keion Brooks Jr. and Davion Mintz added 13 points each and TyTy Washington had 10.
Michael Green III had 12 points and Kahliel Spear 10 for Robert Morris.
The Wildcats (1-1) led throughout the game just three days after a 79-71 loss to No. 9 Duke. They thrived in most every phase, shooting 12 of 23 from long range (52%) and 57% overall. Kentucky also owned the glass (43-24) and held the overmatched Colonials (0-2) to just 38% shooting.
Tshiebwe continued to establish a physical presence on both ends with another 20-rebound performance, along with making 5 of 11 shots. He grabbed Kentucky’s first five rebounds, including several offensive boards in which he converted to second- or third-chance baskets.
Sahvir Wheeler had 11 assists.
NO. 14 ALABAMA 104, SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 88
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Jahvon Quinerly scored 26 points and Jaden Shackelford had 23 to Alabama past South Dakota State.
Keon Ellis had 15 points and a career-high 13 rebounds for the Crimson Tide (2-0), which had five players score in double figures. Darius Miles had 13 and seven-foot freshman Charles Bediako scored 12 points.
Noah Freidel led five South Dakota State (1-1) scorers in double figures with 23 points.
NO. 15 HOUSTON 79, RICE 45
HOUSTON — Marcus Sasser scored 26 points, Kyler Edwards added 18 points and 6 rebounds, and Houston routed Rice.
Sasser finished 8 of 16 from the field and connected on 5 of 9 on three-pointers as the Cougars (2-0) jumped out to a 44-15 halftime lead.
Travis Evee scored 11 points and Cameron Sheffield had 10 points to lead Rice (11).
NO. 17 OHIO STATE 84, NIAGARA 74
COLUMBUS, Ohio — E.J. Liddell scored a career-high 29 points as No. 17 Ohio State pulled away from Niagara in the second half.
Liddell has carried the load in each of the first two games, both of them closer-than-expected wins for the Buckeyes (2-0).
Marcus Hammond scored 22 points for Niagara (0-2), which stayed in the game until the final minute. Sam Iorio had 18 points and Jordan Cintron scored 17.
NO. 25 VIRGINIA 73, RADFORD 52
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Armaan Franklin scored 21 points, Jayden Gardner had 18 and Virginia rediscovered its offense after a season-opening embarrassment.
The Cavaliers (1-1) used a 24-5 first-half burst to take a 32-15 lead. Virginia was beaten at home by Navy on Tuesday night.
Bryan Hart led Radford (11) with 12 points.
SEC
LSU 84, TEXAS STATE 59
BATON ROUGE — Darius Days and Tari Eason each scored 17 points and LSU pulled away in the second half to beat Texas State.
LSU (2-0) built a 37-32 halftime lead and Texas State (11) closed to 49-47 with about 13 minutes to play. Brandon Murray’s three-pointer sparked a 14-2 run and the Tigers led by double digits the rest of the way.
Murray finished with 14 points. Days and Eason were each 7-of-13 shooting from the floor. Eason grabbed 10 rebounds and Days had seven. Days and Murray each made three of the Tigers’ 10 three-pointers.
Alex Fudge also had 14 points for the Tigers.
MISSISSIPPI 93, CHARLESTON SOUTHERN 68
OXFORD, Miss. — Jarkel Joiner scored 24 points, making four three-pointers and adding seven assists as Ole Miss defeated Charleston Southern.
Joiner had a powerful second half, sinking six of seven shots — including two from distance — and dishing five assists in 11 minutes.
Luis Rodriguez added 12 points, 6 rebounds and 2 steals for Ole Miss (2-0). Austin Crowley scored 11 points with nine assists, Matthew Murrell scored 11 points and Jaemyn Brakefield 10 with 8 rebounds and 2 blocked shots.
Joiner opened the second half with two free throws then added two jumpers, a 3, a dunk and another 3 before his first miss.
Ole Miss shot 11-of-29 from beyond the arc, making the most three-pointers since sinking 14 against Middle Tennessee in December, 2019.
Deontaye Buskey scored 17, hitting five three-pointers, to lead the Buccaneers (1-1) and added seven rebounds. Kalib Clinton scored 12 points, Tahlik Chavez and Sean Price added 10 each.