NCAA News Wire
Top 25 roundup: Kentucky remains perfect
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
LEXINGTON, Ky. — No. 1-ranked Kentucky, the lone unbeaten team in America, pushed its spotless record to 22-0 with a 69-58 victory over Georgia Tuesday at Rupp Arena.
But it didn’t come easy, especially considering the Bulldogs (14-7, 5-4 SEC) were without three players, two reserves and leading scorer and rebounder Marcus Thornton. It was Georgia’s second straight game without Thornton, who suffered a concussion last week. For its part, Kentucky was missing two power forwards, freshman Trey Lyles, who is sick, and junior Alex Poythress, who is out for the year with a torn ACL.
Despite leading by as many as 17 points in the first half, Kentucky was never able to put Georgia away. The Bulldogs trimmed the lead to as few as six points at 60-54 with four minutes remaining. With 1:57 left, UK led by five, 63-58, before scoring the final six points.
Of the players still standing it was Kentucky sophomore guard Andrew Harrison who kept the Wildcats afloat and helped secure a 9-0 record in SEC play. Harrison scored a season-best 23 points. In one of his best efforts of the season, the oft-maligned point guard made 8-of-16 shots to go with seven assists.
No. 5 Wisconsin 92, Indiana 78
MADISON, Wis. — Frank Kaminsky scored 23 points and Nigel Hayes added 16 to help No. 5 Wisconsin record a rout of Indiana at the Kohl Center.
The Badgers set a season high for points scored in a game and got double-digit scoring from five players. Along with Kaminsky, Wisconsin’s All-American center, and Hayes, a bruising forward, the Badgers got 15 from point guard Bronson Koenig, 14 from forward Sam Dekker and 11 from shooting guard Josh Gasser.
Wisconsin led by 30 with 10 minutes to play. The Hoosiers cut the lead in half over the next five minutes but Wisconsin made it a 82-68 game with 4:55 to play on a 3-pointer by forward Colin Hartman.
No. 9 Louisville 63, Miami 55
CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Guard Terry Rozier had 22 points and forward Montrezl Harrell added 18 points and nine rebounds as No. 9 Louisville defeated Miami at the BankUnited Center.
Rozier and Harrell, both projected to go in the middle of the first round in this year’s NBA draft, helped the Cardinals (19-3, 7-2 ACC) win their fourth game in a row. Louisville is 7-1 away from home this season.
Harrell did his damage despite taking two hard hits — one in each half. On both occasions, he stayed on the ground for over a minute but quickly returned to action.
The Hurricanes (14-8, 4-5 ACC) lost their third straight game.
No. 14 Northern Iowa 61, Indiana State 51
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — Coming off its biggest-regular season win in years, a 16-point decision Saturday that ended Wichita State’s 30-game winning streak against Missouri Valley Conference teams, No. 14 Northern Iowa had little trouble avoiding a letdown.
With versatile senior forward Seth Tuttle stuffing the stat sheet once again and the defense frustrating Indiana State at every turn, Northern Iowa jumped into sole possession of first place in the MVC with a routine win at Hulman Center.
In winning their 10th straight game, the Panthers (21-2, 10-1) led by double figures for the entire second half, owning as much as an 18-point advantage at one point.
No. 21 Oklahoma 71, No. 15 West Virginia 52
NORMAN, Okla. — The 21st-ranked Oklahoma Sooners dominated 15th-ranked West Virginia on both ends of the floor, winning at home.
Junior guard Buddy Hield led Oklahoma with 21 points. Sophomore guard Jordan Woodard added 12 and junior guard Isaiah Cousins and junior forward Ryan Spangler had 10 each.
Spangler, the reigning Big 12 Player of the Week after strong performances against Texas Tech and Oklahoma State, continued to be strong on the inside on both ends.
In the team’s first meeting, West Virginia scored 27 points off turnovers in an 86-65 Mountaineers win Jan. 13.
No. 22 Butler 85, St. John’s 62
INDIANAPOLIS — Butler began the game on an 8-0 run, and the No. 22 Bulldogs began the second half with a 14-2 burst, laying the foundation for a Big East victory over St. John’s in Hinkle Fieldhouse.
Bulldogs guard Kellen Dunham scored 13 of his 21 points during the
