College Basketball Roundup : Duke Trounces N.C. State and Tightens Race in ACC

Duke’s fans said goodby to Danny Ferry, and he showed his appreciation.

Playing in his final home game, Ferry scored 26 points and led the ninth-ranked Blue Devils to an 86-65 rout of No. 17 North Carolina State in an Atlantic Coast Conference game Thursday night at Durham, N.C.

“They’ve added so much to our college life,” Ferry said. “Not just basketball, everything. It’s been a great four years. It’s not over yet. It’s just over here.”

Duke (21-4 overall and 8-4 in the ACC) moved within one-half game of N.C. State (18-6, 8-3) and North Carolina in the battle for the ACC regular-season title and the No. 1 seeding in the conference tournament.

The Blue Devils have won seven straight games since a midseason slump that started when they were undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the nation.

North Carolina State made just four of 17 shots in the first seven minutes but still was within 23-19 when Duke broke it open with 14 consecutive points. Ferry capped the surge with a three-pointer.

Duke had a 43-28 halftime lead that increased to 80-57 late in the game.

“Sometimes, I wish basketball games were like chess games and you could resign somewhere along the line,” N.C. State Coach Jim Valvano said.

Indiana 76, Michigan State 65--Jay Edwards scored 21 points, and the fourth-ranked Hoosiers downed the Spartans in a Big Ten Conference game at East Lansing, Mich.

Eric Anderson scored eight of his 15 points in the opening minutes of the second half as Indiana (22-5, 12-1) broke away from a 31-23 halftime lead and built the margin to as many as 18 points.

Ken Redfield scored 15 points for Michigan State (12-11, 3-10).

Michigan 89, Ohio State 72--Glen Rice scored 30 points, and the No. 13 Wolverines reached the 20-win mark for the sixth straight season by scoring a Big Ten victory over the Buckeyes at Columbus, Ohio.

A 26-6 run helped Michigan (20-6, 8-5) take a 45-26 halftime lead, and Ohio State (17-9, 6-7) couldn’t get any closer than 16 points in the second half.

West Virginia 65, St. Joseph’s 50--Herbie Brooks and Steve Berger scored 14 points each as the No. 11 Mountaineers clinched the Atlantic 10 regular-season championship by turning back the Hawks at Morgantown, W. Va.

In stretching the nation’s longest winning streak to 22 games, West Virginia (23-2, 16-0) clinched the title with the help of Rutgers, which beat defending champion Temple, now in second place at 13-3 with two games remaining.

La Salle 101, Florida State 100--Lionel Simmons had 36 points and 10 rebounds as the Explorers held off the slumping No. 12 Seminoles at Philadelphia.

Florida State (19-6), which lost its fourth straight game, was trailing, 87-76, with 6:07 left, but the Seminoles made it close on the shooting of George McCloud, who scored 36 points.

After a layup by Tharon Mayes made it 94-93, La Salle (23-5) stayed ahead on a three-pointer by Jack Hurd, two free throws by Bobby Johnson and two more free throws by Hurd.