Four ranked teams walked away with victories on Thursday night. No. 24 Gonzaga was not one of them.
Check out the full scoreboard from Thursday night in college basketball.
Florida held off a game South Carolina team and kept its home record spotless with a 74-66 win over the Gamecocks on Thursday night.
The No. 12 Gators got 24 points from Kenny Boynton and 17 points from Bradley Beal in the victory, and both players' slashing helped make up for an atypically poor night from long distance for Florida. The Gators made seven threes, as they have in every game of the 2011-12 season, but took 28 treys to get them, and shot 37.3 percent from the field as a team.
Florida also had more turnovers (13) than assists (12), but held a massive advantage on the glass, securing 39 rebounds to the Gamecocks' 28. The victory was the Gators' 12th of the season in Gainesville.
South Carolina got 15 points from Bruce Ellington, and 12 points, nine rebounds, and six blocks from Damontre Harris, but never led after holding a 3-2 advantage for 20 seconds in the first half.
For more on the Gators, visit Florida blog Alligator Army. For more on South Carolina, hit Gamecocks blog Garnet and Black Attack.
The No. 10 Murray St. Racers fell behind 39-33 in the first half before rallying for an 81-73 win over Southeast Missouri State to remain undefeated on the 2011 season.
Junior guard Isaiah Canaan led all scorers with 32 points on eight of 17 shooting, six for 11 beyond the arc, and 10-of-12 from the free throw line. Canaan also added five rebounds and three assists in playing 37 minutes for the Racers. Fellow guards Jewuan Long and Donte Poole added 13 and 11 points, respectively, with Poole atoning for a cool night from the floor (one of eight) by hitting eight of 10 free throw attempts.
Murray State is now 22-0 on the season and 10-0 in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Racers have now set the OVC record with 22 straight wins and will go for No. 23 in a Saturday night game against the Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks.
With tonight's loss, Southeast Missouri State dropped to 12-10 overall and 7-3 in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Redhawks got 17 points and eight rebounds from guard Marcus Brister and 15 points off the bench from guard Corey Wilford. The Redhawks host the Tennessee State Tigers at the Show Me Center on Saturday night.
The No. 7 Duke Blue Devils used a 13-2 run late in the first half to take a ten-point lead over the Virginia Hokies en route to a 75-60 win at the Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Virginia on Thursday night.
Freshman guard Austin Rivers led the Blue Devils with 18 points on seven-of-11 shooting, including four of six from beyond the arc. Junior forward Ryan Kelly added 15 points off the bench for the Blue Devils, who improved to 19-3 overall and are now 6-1 within the ACC.
Duke hosts the Miami Hurricanes at Cameron Indoor Arena on Sunday afternoon.
Guard Eric Green had a team-high 17 points for the Hokies, who also got 16 points from forward Victor Davila. Both Green and Davila notched seven rebounds.
With the loss, the Hokies fell to 12-10 overall and are 1-6 in the ACC with the Clemson Tigers visiting Blacksburg on Saturday afternoon.
For more on Virginia Tech, be sure to visit Gobbler Country.
No. 24 Gonzaga Vs. BYU: Cougars Upset Zags, 83-73
Noah Hartsock's big night helped BYU upset No. 24 Gonzaga, 83-73, at the Marriott Center in Provo on Thursday night.
Hartsock had 24 points and 14 rebounds for the Cougars, leading all players in both statistical categories. Matt Carlino added 18 points for BYU, which also got 15 points and five rebounds from Brandon Davies. The Cougars built a 38-24 halftime lead and held onto it, expanding it to as many as 19 points in the second period.
Gonzaga countered with balanced scoring, with four players in double figures, including leading scorer Sam Dower, who had 15 points and five rebounds off the bench, and Marquise Carter, who had 13 points on just six shots. But the Bulldogs were unable to dent BYU's lead in part because of their turnover issues: they committed 19 on the night, and allowed the Cougars to pilfer 14 steals.
For more on the Cougars, visit BYU blog Vanquish the Foe.
Feb 03 8:01a by Andy Hutchins - 0 comments