The Morning Dish – Sunday, January 23rd
The First Time Is Always the Hardest: Villanova rode hot three-point shooting and a big day from Allan Ray and Curtis Sumpter to an 83-62 rout of Kansas, handing the Jayhawks their first loss of the season. Ray scored 20 of his 27 points in the second half, while Sumpter made 5-of-6 three-pointers en route to 25 points to lead the Wildcats (10-4), who shot nearly 54% from the field and were 12-19 from behind the arc. Kansas (14-1) got 15 points from Wayne Simien and 11 each from J.R. Giddens and Sasha Kaun.
Henson Retires: Health concerns have forced New Mexico State head coach Lou Henson to retire. Henson, who is still in a wheelchair and has faced assorted health problems the last few years, has 779 career victories in 41 seasons as a head coach, good for sixth all-time among Division I coaches and second among active coaches behind Bob Knight. He led Illinois to their last trip to the Final Four in 1988-89.
Even Mother Nature Can’t Stop Him: Connecticut hosted Pittsburgh despite blizzard conditions that came through the state on Saturday night. The Huskies had the clear edge in the first half as they committed just 2 turnovers and Rashad Anderson had the hot hand with 16 points, including 4-6 on three-pointers. But Pittsburgh turned the tables in the second half, holding the Huskies below 28% and using a run of 11 unanswered points to mount a comeback behind Chevon Troutman to pull of a 76-66 road win. Troutman scored 25 of his career-high 29 points in the second half and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the Panthers (13-3, 3-2 Big East), who shut down two key players on the vaunted frontline of the Huskies (11-4, 3-2). Rudy Gay and Josh Boone combined for just eight points and four rebounds, as the Huskies were led by Anderson’s 19 points. The weather didn’t keep students away, as the turnout was another sellout that included 3,000 tickets provided to students through UConn donors and season ticket holders unable to attend due to the weather.
Demon Deacons Score Big Road Win: Eric Williams scored a career-high 29 points and held host Cincinnati to 40% shooting in a 74-70 win. Chris Paul added 21 points for the Demon Deacons (16-2), who are now 5-1 against ranked teams and rebounded from their recent overtime loss at Florida State. Eric Hicks had 18 points to lead Cincinnati (15-3).
Eagles Win Again: Jared Dudley continued his torrid play, scoring 19 points and grabbing eight rebounds to lead five players in double figures as Boston College scored a 79-73 win over host St. John’s. The Eagles (16-0, 5-0 Big East) committed just six turnovers and also got 16 points from Jermaine Watson. St. John’s (7-8, 1-4) was led by Daryll Hill’s 21 points.
Sooners Stay Hot: Oklahoma stayed on a roll Saturday, winning its ninth straight by hanging on for a 64-60 win over visiting Texas despite trailing for much of the game. The Sooners (15-2, 4-0 Big 12) got 18 points and 10 rebounds from Kevin Bookout, and a late three-pointer by Drew Lavender (11 points) helped seal the win. Daniel Gibson led Texas (15-3, 3-2) with 18 points.
Blue Devils Remain Perfect, Lead Blowouts: Duke (15-0, 5-0 ACC) remained perfect on Saturday as J.J. Redick’s 31 points led an 88-56 thumping of host Florida State (10-9, 2-4). Also winning big were Oklahoma State (14-2, 4-1 Big 12), 82-53 winners over visting Baylor (9-6, 1-3) behind Joey Graham’s 24 points and seven rebounds; North Carolina (16-2, 5-1 ACC), which shot over 48% from the field to knock off Miami (12-5, 3-3) 87-67; Kentucky (14-2, 5-0 SEC), which had 11 three-pointers in their 89-58 rout of LSU (9-6, 2-2); and Louisville (16-3), which used 20 points and seven rebounds from Francisco Garcia to score an 85-62 romp over Tennessee (10-8).
Warrick Leads Another Syracuse Win: Hakim Warrick had another big game on Saturday, scoring 22 points and grabbing 13 rebounds to lead Syracuse to a 72-64 win over visiting West Virginia. The Orange (19-1, 6-0 Big East) shot 51% from the field to win their 12th straight. West Virginia (11-5, 1-4) shot under 40% and was led by Patrick Beilein’s 17 points.
Hokies Get Upset Road Win: Georgia Tech’s slide continued on Saturday, to the benefit of Virginia Tech, as the host Yellow Jackets had two free throws and two putback attempts miss in the final seconds as the Hokies held on for a 70-69 win in Atlanta. Carlos Dixon had 21 points for the Hokies (10-6, 3-2 ACC), who won their first road game over a ranked opponent in 23 years. The Yellow Jackets (11-5, 2-3) were led by Will Bynum’s 28 points.
Tide Sweeps Through Mississippi: After demolishing Mississippi State a few nights ago, Alabama visited Ole Miss and got Mark Gottfried’s first win over the school, a 66-58 decision behind 26 points from Kennedy Winston. The Crimson Tide (15-3, 4-1 SEC) outrebounded the Rebels (11-8, 2-4) by a 37-18 margin and were led by Tommy Eddie’s 16 points and six rebounds.
Wildcats on Boards: Arizona used a 33-19 rebound edge and 25 points from Salim Stoudamire to knock off host Oregon State by a 92-83 score. The Wildcats (16-3, 6-1 Pac-10) won despite allowing the Beavers to shoot over 54% from the field. Oregon State (11-7, 3-4), which got 17 points from Chris Stephens and David Lucas, led by as many as 15 and had a seven-game home winning streak snapped. Beavers head coach Jay John returned to the bench in this game, as he was cleared to return after sitting out Thursday’s game against Arizona State.
Big Ten Favorites Roll: Michigan State made 26 of 28 free throws and their usual good defense to knock off host Minnesota, 69-55. The Spartans (12-3, 4-1 Big Ten) held the Golden Gophers under 35% shooting and got 13 points from Alan Anderson. Jeff Hagen led Minnesota (13-5, 3-2) with a game-high 16 points.
Meanwhile, Iowa rebounded from the overtime loss to Illinois just a couple of days earlier with a 71-57 win over visiting Purdue. The Hawkeyes (14-4, 2-3) built an 18-point lead at the half and were never threatened in the second half, getting 14 points each from Greg Brunner and Doug Thomas. Carl Landry had 16 points to lead the Boilermakers (4-12, 0-6), who shot under 41% from the field.
In Ann Arbor, Wisconsin rode Mike Wilkinson’s 28 points and 15 rebounds to a 72-61 win over Michigan. The Badgers (13-3, 4-1) opened the second half with an 11-2 run to break open a close game en route to their eighth win in nine games. Daniel Horton led the Wolverines (12-7, 3-2) with 16 points.
Boilermaker Down: Staying in the Big Ten, Purdue will likely be without point guard Bryant Dillon for the rest of the season due to a knee injury suffered in practice earlier this week. Dillon, who averaged 2.3 points and 2.1 rebounds per game, ruptured the patella tendon in practice on Thursday when he landed awkwardly. He will have surgery in Indianapolis Monday.
Charlotte Rebounds: Eddie Basden had 23 points and Brendan Plavich added 20 to help Charlotte hold off Marquette for a big road win, a 76-66 decision. The Golden Eagles (14-4, 2-3 C-USA) scored 20 of the first 27 points in the second half to take a 51-47 lead, and the game went back and forth after that until the 49ers (13-3, 4-1) pulled ahead with under five minutes to go and finished the game with a 10-4 run.
‘Zags Shut Down Toreros: Gonzaga held San Diego to 10 percent shooting in the second half and went on a 16-0 run to start the second half en route to a 68-56 win over host San Diego. J.P. Batista led the Bulldogs (14-4, 4-2 WCC) with 22 points, and they outrebounded San Diego 46-23. The Toreros (10-8, 2-3) were led by Brandon Gay’s 22 points.
SEC Says Call Was Correct: The SEC issued a statement Friday night regarding a call at the end of Wendesday night’s Arkansas loss at LSU, which Razorback head coach Stan Heath said was not correct. The conference said that an in-house review determined that game officials had a miscommunication, but did not admit a mistake at the end of regulation in the Razorbacks’ 66-63 overtime loss. SEC administrators said that the tape which they reviewed proved inconclusive as they looked at a Michael Jones field goal that appeared to be a three-pointer to put Arkansas up 59-58 with 1.8 seconds left, but was ruled a two-pointer.
Grizzly Returns: Montana senior forward Kamarr Davis returned to action Saturday in their 84-72 win over visiting Sacramento State. Davis had missed eight games due to academic issues, but took care of his responsibilities and was cleared to play. He scored nine points and had five rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench.
Tonight’s Menu
• Washington hosts in-state rival Washington State in the only Pac-10 game of the day.
• North Carolina State travels to Maryland for a crucial matchup with the Terrapins.
• In the Big East, Georgetown hosts Notre Dame.
• The Patriot League, America East and Atlantic Sun all have multiple games on tap, with the weather potentially a factor in some of them from the snowstorm hitting the northeast.
