College basketball: Virginia wins top 10 matchup with Florida State; Michigan State pulls away from Ohio State; Iowa State drubs No. 5 Kansas

By Associated Press

Jan. 5, 2019 10:10 PM PT

Kyle Guy scored 21 points and No. 4 Virginia limited No. 9 Florida State to just 15 field goals in a 65-52 victory Saturday.

Guy scored 18 of his points in the first half as the Cavaliers (13-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) took a 42-23 lead. Braxton Key added 12 points in the half and finished with 20 for Virginia, off to its best start since the 2014-15 team won its first 19 games.

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 Cavaliers led the nation in scoring defense, allowing an average of 51.4 points.

The Seminoles finished with as many turnovers as field goals, and Virginia scored 21 points off those miscues.

Virginia led 27-21 late in the first half before Key hit a 3-pointer to spark a 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 trailed by as many as 29 before a late scoring flurry and didn’t match Virginia’s first-half point total until the final minute.

No. 3 Tennessee 96, Georgia 50: Jordan Bowden scored 20 points off the bench as No. 3 Tennessee opened Southeastern Conference competition by trouncing Georgia 96-50 on Saturday for its 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.

at Iowa State 77, No. 5 Kansas 60:

Iowa State served notice that it’s a Big 12 contender again after an ugly rebuild last season.

Marial Shayok scored 24 points, and the streaking Cyclones routed No. 5 Kansas 77-60 on Saturday for their most lopsided victory over the Jayhawks in 46 years.

Freshman Tyrese Haliburton made four 3-pointers and scored 14 points for Iowa State (12-2, 2-0), which opened Big 12 play with back-to-back wins for the first time since 2015. It was the Cyclones’ fifth consecutive victory overall.

Kansas (12-2, 1-1) committed a season-high 24 turnovers in its worst loss to Iowa State since an 89-65 blowout in Lawrence in 1973.

at New Mexico 85, No. 6 Nevada 58: No. 6 Nevada was shut down by New Mexico and Anthony Mathis scored 27 points to help the Lobos hand the Wolf Pack their first loss of the season with an 85-58 victory on Saturday night.

High-scoring Nevada (14-1, 1-1 Mountain West) shot just 33.3 percent (19 for 57) from the field and committed 14 turnovers. The Wolf Pack also went 16 for 27 at the free-throw line.

While Nevada flopped, New Mexico rolled to its most impressive win of the season.

Vance Jackson had 18 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and three steals for the Lobos (8-6, 2-0). Makuach Maluach scored 14 points, and Carlton Bragg had nine points and 12 rebounds.

at No. 1 Duke 87, Clemson 68: Freshman Zion Williamson had 25 points, 10 rebounds and a spectacular 360-degree dunk, and No. 1 Duke beat Clemson 87-68 on Saturday night in its Atlantic Coast Conference opener.

RJ Barrett, the ACC’s leading scorer, finished with 13 points while freshman point guard Tre Jones had 10 points and a season-best nine assists. Jack White added 12 points and Marquise Bolden had 11 for the Blue Devils (12-1, 1-0), who shot 48 percent and turned 19 Clemson turnovers into 27 points.

Playing their first game in 16 days, they needed roughly 20 minutes to shake off the rust before scoring the first 14 points of the second half to break it open and cruise to their seventh straight win.

Marcquise Reed scored 15 points, Elijah Thomas finished with 14 and Shelton Mitchell had 11, but the Tigers (10-4, 0-1) had their four-game winning streak snapped.

at No. 7 Gonzaga 91, Santa Clara 48: Rui Hachimura scored 25 points and No. 7 Gonzaga beat Santa Clara 91-48 on Saturday night to open defense of its West Coast Conference regular-season title.

Brandon Clarke added 16 points for Gonzaga (14-2) in its 18th consecutive victory over Santa Clara since 2011. Josh Perkins had six points, five rebounds, five assists and four steals.

Keshawn Justice scored 14 points, Josip Vrankic had 11 and Tahj Eaddy 10 for Santa Clara (9-7, 1-1). The Broncos had won six in a row.

No. 8 Michigan State 86, at No. 14 Ohio State: Cassius Winston scored 25 points, Nick Ward added 21 and No. 8 Michigan State extended its unbeaten streak to eight games with an 86-77 victory over No. 14 Ohio State on Saturday.

The second half was tied six times before the Spartans took the lead on a Ward foul shot, and a layup by Kenny Goins put them up by three with 3:28 left.

A Kyle Ahrens put-back at the 2:35 mark, a turnover by Ohio State’s Keyshawn Woods and a pair of Aaron Henry foul shots all but sealed it for Michigan State. Ohio State(12-2, 2-1 Big Ten) got to within six points twice in the last minute but couldn’t get closer as it’s six-game winning streak came to an end

Michigan State (13-2, 4-0) hasn’t lost since Nov. 27.

at No. 10 Virginia Tech 77, Boston College 66: Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 25 points to lead No. 10 Virginia Tech to a 77-66 victory over Boston College on Saturday.

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. Virginia Tech shot 55.6 percent in the second half (15 of 27).

Boston College (9-4, 0-1) led early in the second half, but Virginia Tech took control with an 11-0 run. Alexander-Walker scored six of those points as the Hokies took a 43-36 lead and never trailed. Alexander-Walker set a career high in scoring in an ACC game.

No. 11 Texas Tech 63, Kansas State 57: Davide Moretti scored 19 points and Matt Mooney added 14 to help No. 11 Texas Tech hold off Kansas State 63-57 on Saturday in a matchup of defensive-minded teams.

Barry Brown led the Wildcats with 16 points and Cartier Diarra added 11 on a day when they struggled to make shots and hit just 33 percent (19 of 57) from the field.

Kansas State (10-4, 0-2 Big 12) erased most of a 34-19 halftime deficit when Brown knocked down a 3-pointer with 6:55 to go that pulled the Wildcats to within 43-42.

But Texas Tech (13-1, 2-0) found some offensive rhythm to pull away, despite some struggles at the free-throw line in the second half (15 of 23). Moretti hit a series of big shots in the second half to account for 10 straight points and help the Red Raiders overcome 13 turnovers in the half.

at Alabama 77, No. 13 Kentucky 75: Tevin Mack made six first-half 3-pointers on his way to 22 points, and Alabama held off No. 13 Kentucky 77-75 on Saturday in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams.

Dazon Ingram scored all 11 of his points after halftime, including some key free throws in the Crimson Tide’s fifth consecutive win. The Wildcats gave them a big scare in the final seconds after surging back from 11 points down.

Ingram made two free throws with 23 seconds left in between back-to-back layups by Ashton Hagans. Hagans’ second cut it to 76-73 with 16 seconds left. Alabama (10-3) got the ball across midcourt but Hagans came away with the ball on a steal from Ingram.

PJ Washington scored on a dunk with 5 seconds to play and Kentucky (10-3) quickly fouled John Petty, who made one of two from the line.

Tyler Herro’s 3-point try for the win at the buzzer bounced off the rim.

No. 15 North Carolina 85, at Pittsburgh 60: North Carolina forward Cameron Johnson knew the boos were coming. Expected them actually. It’s part of the deal when you leave one school for another. So when the Pittsburgh’s “Oakland Zoo” student section politely let the former Panther have it during pregame introductions on Saturday, he took it as a bit of a compliment.

“No hard feelings on my end,” Johnson said with a shrug.

Besides, the boos faded quickly. Johnson helped make sure of it, hitting his first three shots on his way to 15 points and nine rebounds as the 15th-ranked Tar Heels opened Atlantic Coast Conference play with a lopsided 85-60 victory.

at No. 23 Oklahoma 74, Oklahoma State 64: Kristian Doolittle had 16 points and eight rebounds, and No. 23 Oklahoma beat Oklahoma State 74-64 on Saturday.

Brady Manek scored 15 points and Christian James added 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Sooners (12-2, 1-1 Big 12), who bounced back from a 70-63 loss at No. 5 Kansas on Wednesday.

It was another stellar defensive effort for Oklahoma. Oklahoma State, which entered the day leading the Big 12 in 3-point percentage at 39 percent, went 6 of 26 from long range. The Cowboys shot just 34 percent overall.

Pac-12 contests:

at Arizona 84, Utah 81 (OT): Brandon Randolph scored six of his 21 points in overtime and Arizona escaped with an 84-81 victory over Utah on Saturday to give the Wildcats a 2-0 start in Pac-12 play.

Sedrick Barefield scored 26, including 5 of 9 3-pointers, for Utah (7-7, 1-1) but fouled out with 1:44 to play in regulation. Donnie Tillman added 21 for the Utes, who were 11 of 21 from 3-point range.

Chase Jeter had 21 points and 13 rebounds for the Wildcats (11-4, 2-0). Dylan Smith and Brandon Williams added 11 points apiece.

at Arizona State 83, Colorado 61: Romello White scored 19 points, Luguentz Dort added 14 and Arizona State jumped on Colorado from the start of an 83-61 victory on Saturday.

Coming off a disappointing loss to Utah, the Sun Devils responded to a shakeup in the starting lineup by playing with more energy at both ends of the floor.

Arizona State (10-4, 1-1 Pac-12) moved the ball far better on offense to shoot 57 percent and smothered the Buffaloes early with an aggressive 2-3 zone.

The Sun Devils led by 18 at halftime and never gave Colorado (9-4, 0-2) a chance of a comeback, holding the Buffaloes to 33 percent shooting.

Oregon State 77, at Oregon 72: Tres Tinkle scored 16 of his 28 points in the second half and Oregon State held off Pac-12 preseason favorite Oregon 77-72 on Saturday night.

Tinkle limped through most of the second half on an injured left ankle to lead the Beavers (9-4, 1-0) to their first road win in a conference opener in 26 years. The 6-foot-8 junior shot 9 for 15, including 4 of 8 from 3-point range, and made all six of his free throws.

Oregon State made its last eight free throws and 19 of 21 overall to hold off a furious rally by the Ducks (9-5, 0-1), who led four times after trailing by 18 points early in the second half.

at Washington 85, Washington State 67: David Crisp scored a season-high 23 points and Jaylen Nowell added 20 as Washington defeated Washington State in the Pac-12 Conference opener for both teams Saturday night.

The Cougars (7-7) opened the second half on an 8-2 run to take a 46-45 lead, their only advantage of the night, before the Huskies (10-4) answered with 12 straight, and 16 of the next 19, points to build their lead back up to double digits before holding on for their third consecutive victory and third straight over WSU.

Following slow starts in their final two nonconference games, the Huskies came out firing in the opening minutes Saturday, knocking down their first four shots, including three 3-pointers, as they jumped to a 10-3 lead.

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at Loyola Marymount 76, Portland 64: Joe Quintana scored a career-high 19 points, Mattias Markusson had a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds, and the Lions (13-3, 1-1 West Coast Conference) defeated the Pilots (7-9, 0-1).

San Francisco 72, at Pepperdine 69: Charles Minlend scored 21 points and Frankie Ferrari hit a three-pointer with 14.2 seconds left to help the Dons (14-2, 2-0 West Coast Conference) beat the Waves (8-8, 1-1).

Yale 94, at Cal State Northridge 90 (OT): Blake Reynolds and Jordan Bruner each scored 18 points to lead the Bulldogs (9-3) past the Matadors (6-10), who were led by LamineDiane’s 35 points and 15 rebounds. Terrell Gomez scored 23 points for Northridge.

at Long Beach State 124, Bethesda 52: Bryan Alberts made nine three-pointers and scored a career-high 35 points to lead the 49ers (6-10) to a rout of the NCCAA-member Flames.

Texas Rio Grande Valley 81, at Cal Baptist 74: Tyson Smith had 21 points, Terry Winn III scored 20 points and the Vaqueros (9-8, 1-0) rallied to beat the Lancers (9-6, 1-1) to win their Western Athletic Conference opener.

Other notable games:

Villanova 65, at Providence 59: Phil Booth scored 23 points and Villanova held off Providence 65-59 on Saturday after leading 60-40 with 8:43 remaining.

Syracuse 72, at Notre Dame 62: Redshirt junior guard Elijah Hughes erupted for career highs of 22 points and 10 rebounds as Syracuse dominated down the stretch during a 72-62 victory over Notre Dame on Saturday.

at Butler 84, Creighton 69: Kamar Baldwin scored a season-high 28 points and Butler defeated Creighton 84-69 on Saturday to end a two-game skid.

at Green Bay 90, Cleveland State 89: Sandy Cohen III banked in a baseline jumper just before the buzzer to give Green Bay a 90-89 victory over Cleveland State on Saturday.

Maryland 77, at Rutgers 63: Jalen Smith finished with 16 points and six rebounds, a nice follow-up to his game-winning layup against No. 24 Nebraska last time out, to lead Maryland past Rutgers 77-63 on Saturday afternoon at a sold-out RAC.

East Carolina 73, at Cincinnati 71: KJ Davis scored 17 points, Shawn Williams 16 and Jayden Gardner scored seven of his 13 points down the stretch as East Carolina held off defending conference champion Cincinnati 73-71 with the help of Justice Obasohan’s last-second block on Saturday.

St. John’s 97, at Georgetown 94 (OT): Shamorie Ponds made six 3-pointers and had 37 points and five assists as St. John’s beat Georgetown 97-94 in overtime on Saturday to snap a 13-game losing streak against the Hoyas in the nation’s capital.

Loyola-Chicago 85, at Drake 74: Marques Townes had 28 points and five assists, Clayton Custer made six 3-pointers and scored 26 points — both career highs in scoring — and Loyola-Chicago beat Drake 85-74 on Saturday.