Spartans cruise in clash of top-5 teams
3 Mich. St. 81 5 Notre Dame 63
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Joshua Langford scored 12 of his 17 points in the first half to help No. 3 Michigan State take a huge lead it was able to restore in the second half against No. 5 Notre Dame in an 81-63 victory Thursday night.
The Spartans (6-1) have won five straight, including a rout against then-No. 9 North Carolina, since losing to top-ranked Duke.
The Fighting Irish (6-1) trailed by 20 at halftime and cut their deficit to seven with 13:09 left, but couldn’t get closer.
Michigan State’s Cassius Winston had 17 points and seven assists, Miles Bridges scored 14 points and Nick Ward added 12.
Notre Dame’s Bonzie Colson had 11 of his 17 points in the second half and Rex Pflueger scored 15.
NO. 9 TEXAS A&M 78, TEXAS-RIO GRANDE VALLEY 60
In College Station, Texas, Texas A&M junior guards D.J. Hogg and Admon Gilder scored 17 points each and the Aggies opened the game on a 16-0 run.
Texas A&M (7-0) only led UTRGV (3-6) by seven points with more than 7 minutes remaining before pulling away and staying undefeated on the season. UTRGV kept the game close through 3½ quarters based on the Aggies’ struggles from the free throw line. Texas A&M made 18 of 30 from the free throw line compared to 11 of 13 for the Vaqueros.
NO. 19 WEST VIRGINIA 102, NJIT 69
In Morgantown, W.Va., Jevon Carter scored 25 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead West Virginia.
Carter had his five steals that made him WVU’s all-time leader with 255, passing Greg Jones’ record set in 1983.
West Virginia (7-1) started the game sluggish, allowing NJIT to lead throughout the first 10 minutes of the game.
The Mountaineers then outscored NJIT (4-3) 31-14 to close out the first half and opened the second half with a 15-2 run to cruise to victory.
SETON HALL 89, NO. 22 TEXAS TECH 79
In New York, Myles Powell scored seven of his 19 points in a span of 45 seconds to lift Seton Hall at Madison Square Garden.