Guy, Key power Virginia past Seminoles
Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton and his team knew that Virginia’s Kyle Guy could hurt them offensively.
The No. 9 Seminoles were less ready for Braxton Key.
Guy scored 21 points and Key had 20 Saturday as the host No. 4 Cavaliers beat the Seminoles 65-52.
“You watch him play on film and … you just don’t believe a guy is capable of being that confident when he shoots the ball,” Hamilton said of Guy, who set a Virginia record by stretching his streak of consecutive 3-pointers made to 11 before a late miss. “I’m not really sure I’ve seen many guys that seem to feel as good wherever he is on the floor that he’s capable of putting it in the basket, and he does.”
Guy scored 18 points in the first half, when he made as many field goals as the Seminoles, and Key added 12 before the break.
“Him coming in and giving them that much offensive output really set us back a little bit,” Hamilton said. “He was the Xfactor.”
Guy and Key both made seven of 11 shots, with Key also hitting a pair of threepointers.
“Whenever I had an open look, I tried to be a little more aggressive today than normal and shots were falling for me,” Key said.
“He let the game come to him and made some shots when they were there, attacked when it was there,” Virginia coach
Tony Bennett said of the transfer from Alabama. “That’s his game. He’s kind of a complete player who does a little bit of everything.”
The Cavaliers (13-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), who lead the nation in scoring defense (51.4), limited Florida State to just 15 field goals and continued their best start to a season since the 2014-15 team won its first 19 games.
“We were locked in and we were ready to play defensively,” coach Tony Bennett said.
The Cavaliers closed the first half on a 15-2 run to lead 42-23 and led by as many as 29 before the Seminoles rallied late.
“They took advantage of every mistake we made, every shortcoming we had on the court,” Hamilton said.
Phil Cofer scored nine points to lead the Seminoles (12-2, 0-1 ACC). Florida State shot just 34 percent (15-44) and became the 11th team held below 60 points by Virginia this season. The Seminoles finished with as many turnovers as field goals, leading to 21 Virginia points.
Virginia led 27-21 late in the first half before Key hit a three-pointer to spark the 15-2 run to end the half. Key scored seven and Guy six in the burst, which gave the Cavaliers a 42-23 lead at the break. The Seminoles didn’t match Virginia’s first-half point total until the final minute.
A No. 3 Tennessee 96, Georgia 50: Jordan Bowden scored 20 points off the bench as the host Volunteers opened Southeastern Conference competition by trouncing the Bulldogs for their eighth consecutive victory.
Tennessee recorded the most lopsided triumph in this series’ 146-game history, surpassing a 105-69 Volunteers victory from Feb. 1, 1975.
The Vols (12-1, 1-0 SEC) were one point away from matching their most decisive win over any SEC opponent. Tennessee beat Mississippi 102-55 on Jan. 8, 1966.
Tennessee delighted a sellout crowd with its 17th consecutive home victory. Tennessee’s last home defeat was a 94-84 setback against Auburn on Jan. 2, 2018.
Derek Ogbeide scored 17 points for Georgia (8-5, 0-1), which had a threegame winning streak snapped.
Iowa State 77, No. 5
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Kansas 60: Marial Shayok scored 24 points, and the host Cyclones routed the Jayhawks for their fifth straight win.
Freshman Tyrese Haliburton made four threepointers and scored 14 points for the Cyclones (12-2, 2-0), who opened Big 12 play with back-to-back wins for the first time since 2015 after forcing the Jayhawks (12-2, 1-1) into a season-high 24 turnovers.
The Jayhawks played without big man Udoka Azubuike, who was hit on the right wrist during Friday’s practice. Azubuike, who is averaging 13.4 points and 6.8 rebounds a game, is scheduled for an MRI on Sunday.
A No. 8 Michigan State 86, No. 14 Ohio State 77: Cassius Winston scored 25 points, Nick Ward added 21 and the Spartans extended their unbeaten streak to eight games with a victory over the host Buckeyes (12-2, 2-1 Big Ten). Michigan State (13-2, 4-0) hasn’t lost since Nov. 27.
A No. 10 Virginia Tech 77, Boston College 66: Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 25 points to lead the host Hokies past the Eagles. Alexander-Walker made 9 of 14 from the floor for the Hokies (13-1, 2-0 ACC), who overcame a cold-shooting first half to win their eighth straight game. Boston College (9-4, 0-1) led early in the second half, but Virginia Tech took control with an 11-0 run.
A No. 11 Texas Tech 63, Kansas State 57: Davide Moretti scored 19 points and Matt Mooney added 14 to help the host Red Raiders (13-1, 2-0 Big 12) hold off the Wildcats (10-4, 0-2) in a matchup of defensiveminded teams.
Alabama 77, No. 13
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Kentucky 75: Tevin Mack made six first-half threepointers on his way to 22 points, and the host Crimson Tide (10-3, 1-0) held off the Wildcats (10-3, 0-1) in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams.
A No. 15 North Carolina 85, Pittsburgh 60: Cam Johnson scored 15 points in his homecoming and the Tar Heels made quick work of the host Panthers.
Johnson, a graduate transfer from the Pittsburgh suburbs who left the Panthers in the spring of 2017, shook off the boos and hit his first three shots as the Tar Heels (11-3, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) opened league play by providing the rebuilding Panthers (10-4, 0-1) and a reminder of how far they still have to go under firstyear head coach Jeff Capel.
A No. 23 Oklahoma 74, Oklahoma State 64: Kristian Doolittle had 16 points and eight rebounds, and the host Sooners (12-2, 1-1 Big 12) beat the Cowboys (6-8, 0-2).
WOMEN
A No. 4 Maryland 75, Ohio State 69: Kaila Charles scored 24 points, Stephanie Jones added 16 and the host Terrapins (13-1, 2-1) slipped past the Buckeyes (4-8, 0-3) in a rematch of the 2018 Big Ten title game.
STATE SCHOOLS
A UCF 65, UConn 53: Aubrey Dawkins scored a season-high 23 points, including 16 in the second half, to lead the Knights (12-2, 2-0 American) beat the host Huskies (9-6, 0-2) for their sixth straight win.
Florida A&M 82, HowA ard 72: Justin Ravenel scored 20 points and led five players into doublefigure scoring as the Rattlers (4-12, 1-0) snapped a five-game losing streak by knocking off host Howard (6-9, 0-1) in their MidEastern Athletic Conference opener.