Junior Markell Johnson scored a career-high 27 points, buoyed by a big second half, as host North Carolina State upended No. 7 Auburn 78-71 on Wednesday night in Raleigh, N.C.
Dec 19, 2018; Raleigh, NC, USA; North Carolina State Wolfpack guard Markell Johnson (11) controls the ball against Auburn Tigers guard J’Von McCormick in the second half at PNC Arena. The North Carolina State Wolfpack won 78-71. Mandatory Credit: Nell Redmond-USA TODAY Sports
Devon Daniels and Braxton Beverly added 15 points apiece. The Wolfpack won despite only getting six points from senior guard Torin Dorn, who posted double figures in every previous game this season. NC State has a 10-1 record for the first time in 13 years.
J’Von McCormick (14 points), Austin Wiley (13 points), Malik Dunbar (12 points) and Jared Harper (11 points) paced Auburn (9-2), which took its only other loss to Duke in the Maui Invitational semifinals.
NC State feasted on one of the weaker schedules in the country in the opening weeks, but the Wolfpack now own victories against Power 5 teams Vanderbilt, Penn State and Auburn this month.
No. 3 Tennessee 83, Samford 70
Grant Williams contributed two free throws, a jumper and a three-point play to a second-half spurt that allowed the host Volunteers to hold off a nonconference challenge from the Bulldogs at Knoxville, Tenn.
Jordan Bone scored a game-high 24 points, Admiral Schofield had 18 points and four steals, and Williams finished with 16 points as Tennessee (9-1) won its fifth straight since an overtime loss to Kansas last month.
Ruben Guerrero had a team-high 16 points with eight rebounds for Samford (10-3), which has already matched last year’s victory total.
No. 5 Virginia 69, South Carolina 52
Kyle Guy and Ty Jerome combined for 43 points as the Cavaliers cruised past the Gamecocks in Columbia, S.C.
Jerome tallied 25 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Cavaliers (10-0). Virginia led by as many as 19 points in the second half and never trailed in the game. Guy knocked down five 3-pointers and scored 12 of his 18 points in the game’s final 20 minutes.
Down two of its starters, South Carolina (4-6) showed promise at points against one of the nation’s best teams but could never get over the hump due to 36.4 percent field-goal shooting.
No. 11 Florida State 95, North Florida 81
Mfiondu Kabengele scored a career-high 24 points and grabbed a game-high seven rebounds, leading the host Seminoles to a nonconference victory over the Ospreys at Tallahassee, Fla.
Florida State (10-1) also got 17 points from Terance Mann and 11 from PJ Savoy. The Seminoles earned their fifth consecutive victory and improved to 37-2 at home over the past three seasons.
J.T. Escobar paced North Florida (5-8) with 27 points.
No. 13 Virginia Tech 82, North Carolina A&T 60
Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 20 points, and Kerry Blackshear added 17 points and nine rebounds, and the Hokies extended their winning streak to five games with an easy nonconference victory over the Aggies at Blacksburg, Va.
Virginia Tech (10-1) remained undefeated in six home games this season while improving to 6-0 all-time against North Carolina A&T and 33-0 all-time against Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference opponents.
Quavius Copeland led North Carolina AT&T (4-7) with 16 points.
No. 17 Mississippi State 98, Wofford 87
Lamar Peters and Aric Holman scored 19 points each and led a 3-point barrage as the Bulldogs defeated the visiting Terriers in Starkville, Miss.
Peters shot 5 of 7 from the 3-point arc, and Holman made 3 of 4. Quinndary Weatherspoon missed all five of his 3-point tries and made just 2 of 10 field goals, but he hit 14 of 15 free throws to finish with 18 points for the Bulldogs (10-1). The hosts made 14 of 27 3-point attempts.
Fletcher Magee scored 24, Cameron Jackson added 20 and Nathan Hoover had 15 to lead the Terriers (9-4), who had won three in a row and led by nine at halftime.
No. 22 Indiana 86, Central Arkansas 53
Reserve Devonte Green scored 19 points, pulled down nine rebounds and delivered six assists in the Hoosiers’ romp over the Bears at Bloomington, Ind.
Romeo Langford, a freshman, had his second career double-double with 18 points and a team-high 11 rebounds for the Hoosiers (10-2). Langford also dished five assists. Indiana point guard Rob Phinisee went to locker room early in first half after he appeared to get an inadvertent knee to the head.
Hayden Koval paced Central Arkansas (4-7) with 16 points.
—Field Level Media