Kentucky routs Tar Heels
Poythress’ talk pumps up No. 1 Wildcats
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Devin Booker and Willie Cauley-Stein each scored 15 points and top-ranked Kentucky shook off the shock of losing junior forward Alex Poythress to a season-ending knee injury two days earlier by rolling past No. 21NorthCarolina,84-70, on Saturday.
Poythress, who tore his left ACL in practice Thursday, delivered pregame remarks before the Wildcats (11-0) posted the convincing win over the Tar Heels (6-3). Booker made all three of his long-range attempts and 5 of 8 overall on a day that Kentucky hit a seasonbest 7 of 15 from behind the arc. Aaron Harrison added 14 points, Andrew Harrison had 11 and freshman Trey Lyles had nine starting in Poythress’ place.
KANSAS 63, UTAH 60: In Lawrence, the No. 13 Utes roared back from a 21-point hole in the opening minutes of the second half, taking the lead down the stretch, but they couldn’t prevent the No. 10 Jayhawks from pulling back ahead.
Delon Wright had 23 points to lead the Utes (7-2). Perry Ellis had 14 points, Jamari Traylor had 13 and Frank Mason III finished with 10 for the Jayhawks(8-1).
ARIZONA 80, MICHIGAN 53: Playing their best all-around game of the season, the No. 3 Wildcats got the ball inside early and got out in transition throughout the game to crush the Wolverines.
Stanley Johnson had arguably the best game of his freshman season, finishing with 17 points and seven rebounds. Gabe York finished with 15 points for Arizona (10-0), which outscored Michigan 42-16 in the paint for its 28th consecutive home win.
GONZAGA 87, UCLA 74: Kyle Wiltjer scored 24 points and the No. 9 Bulldogs (9-1) led all the way in beating UCLA (8-3), snapping the hosts’ four-game winning streak and handing them their first home loss.
OKLAHOMA 87, TULSA 68: TaShawn Thomas scored 25 points and Isaiah Cousins added 21, including five 3-pointers, to lead the No. 16 Sooners (6-2) on the road. Thomas shot 9 of 12 from the field and finished 7 of 8 from the foul line.
WISCONSIN 86, NICHOLLS STATE 43: Sam Dekker scored 17 points to lead the No. 5 Badgers, showing no hesitancy while dealing with a lingering ankle injury. Along with the 17 points, Dekker grabbed five rebounds, had three assists and two blocksfor host Wisconsin (10-1).
OHIO STATE 87, MOREHEAD STATE 71: Despite a ragged second half, the 12th-ranked Buckeyes did enough to get Thad Matta a win in his 500th career game as a coach. D’Angelo Russell and Sam Thompson each scored 15 points for host Ohio State (8-1).
WICHITA STATE 77, DETROIT 68: Darius Carter had 18 points and 11 rebounds, and the No. 11 Shockers rallied from a 10-point second-half deficit. Ron Baker added 19 points for Wichita State (7-1). The host Titans (6-4) fell short in their upset bid despite a 27-point performance by Juwan Howard Jr.
IONA 91, INDIANA STATE 84: David Laury scored a career-high 30 points, including 10 of the host Gaels’ final 14 in their victory.
ST. FRANCIS B’KLYN 90, MOUNT ST. VINCENT 72: Brent Jones finished with 25 points, six rebounds and six assists to lead the host Terriers over the Division III opponent. Jalen Cannon had 18 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks and Glenn Sanabria added 15 points and six boards for St. Francis.
ARMY 85, USC 77 (OT): Kyle Wilson scored 30 points and Kevin Ferguson added 14 points and six reboundst o lead the visiting Black Knights (7-2) over the Trojans (6-4). —AP