Ohio State Crushes Number-13 Maryland

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Published on January 30 2015 2:25 am
Last Updated on January 30 2015 2:46 am
Written by Millie Lange

Columbus, OH (SportsNetwork.com) -- Ohio State continues to pile up wins at home. Thad Matta's Buckeyes and star freshman D'Angelo Russell beat another ranked opponent at Value City Arena. Russell had 18 points, 14 rebounds and six assists as Ohio State easily knocked off No. 16 Maryland 80-56 on Thursday night for its 103rd win at home since 2009.

That's the most in the country by a healthy margin over national powerhouses Kentucky and Syracuse. Russell continued to impress, making half of his 12 shots and four 3-pointers on the heels of being named Big Ten Player of the Week after scoring 55 points in wins over Northwestern and nationally-ranked Indiana. Marc Loving led the Buckeyes (17-5, 6-3) with 19 points, making all five of his 3s, and Jae'Sean Tate scored 16. Dez Wells scored 12 points to lead Maryland (18-4, 6-3) and Jake Layman had 10.


(1) Kentucky 69, Missouri 53

Columbia, MO (SportsNetwork.com) -- Andrew Harrison scored 15 points and No. 1 Kentucky stayed unbeaten with a relatively restrained 69-53 win over Missouri on Thursday. The Wildcats (20-0, 7-0 SEC) made only two 3-pointers, blocked just one shot and recorded a mere eight assists.

Still, they trailed for just 59 seconds, in part because of their 27-13 free throw advantage, but largely from their seemingly impenetrable defense, which forced 15 turnovers. Aaron Harrison scored 11 points, Devin Booker added nine, and Dakari Johnson chipped in eight points and seven rebounds for the victors. Kentucky is off to its first 20-0 start under John Calipari and sent Missouri (7-13, 1-6) to its first six-game losing streak since the 2005-06 season. Wes Clark led the Tigers with 19 points, while Johnathan Williams III added 10 points in a losing cause.


(3) Gonzaga 64, Portland 46

Spokane, WA (SportsNetwork.com) -- Domantas Sabonis had 13 points and 11 rebounds off the bench and No. 3 Gonzaga pulled away in the second half to defeat Portland 64-46 on Thursday night. Przemek Karnowski posted 10 points and 11 boards for the Bulldogs (21-1, 10-0 WCC), who have won 14 straight games since their lone loss at Arizona on Dec. 6. Volodymyr Gerun pulled down 15 rebounds to lead Portland (12-10, 3-7), which didn't have a single player reach double figures in scoring.


UCLA 69, (11) Utah 59

Los Angeles, CA (SportsNetwork.com) -- Norman Powell scored 23 points to help UCLA remain unbeaten at home in Pac-12 play and knock off No. 11 Utah, 69-59. The Bruins lost three players to the first round of the NBA draft in 2014 and haven't been able to replace the productivity that Kyle Anderson, Jordan Adams and Zach LaVine provided. They are in the midst of one of the worst seasons in recent memory, though Thursday's upset over Utah was certainly a step in the right direction.

Bryce Alford had 14 points and seven assists and Isaac Hamilton scored 11 for UCLA, which exacted revenge from an embarrassing 71-39 loss to Utah on Jan. 4. Alford went scoreless on 0-for-10 shooting in that game. UCLA (12-9, 4-4 Pac-12) snapped its two-game losing skid. Delon Wright and Brandon Taylor gave 15 and 14 points, respectively, for the Utes (16-4, 6-2), who may have lost more than a game. Freshman center Jakob Poeltl, one of the best young 7-footers in college basketball, left the game with an apparent foot injury.

 

SIUE 75, Southeast  Missouri 61

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. -- Three Cougar players scored in double figures as SIUE men's basketball won its first road game of the year, defeating Southeast Missouri 75-61 at the Show Me Center.

The Cougars improved to 5-4 in the Ohio Valley Conference and 9-11 overall with their first win at Southeast Missouri since 2008. The Redhawks slipped to 9-12 overall and 3-5 in the OVC.

"It was a team effort," SIUE Head Coach Lennox Forrester said. "Guys who started the game got us off to a great start. Really, tough it was all about our defense. We did a good job turning them over and getting some steals."

The Cougars forced 19 turnovers and collected 12 steals.


Illinois Hosts Penn State Saturday

(Champaign, IL) -- Illinois and Penn State meet Saturday at the State Farm Center.  Tip-off is at noon. The Fighting Illini are coming off a 79-71 loss at Minnesota last Saturday. Illinois is 13-8 overall and 3-5 in the Big Ten. The Nittany Lions come in at 14-7 and 2-6.


Thursday, January 29 Scoreboard

NCAA Top-25 Men's Basketball  ("USA Today" Rankings)

#1 Kentucky Wildcats 69 Missouri Tigers 53

#3 Gonzaga Bulldogs 64 Portland Pilots 46

UCLA Bruins 69  #11 Utah 59

Ohio State Buckeyes 80 #13 Maryland Terrapins 56


Friday, January 30 Schedule (All Times Central)

NCAA Top-25 Men's Basketball  ("USA Today" Rankings)

9:00 p.m. - #6 Arizona Wildcats host Oregon State Beavers