COLLEGE BASKETBALL / NATIONAL ROUNDUP : Indiana Improves and Defeats No. 1

Playing the top-ranked team in the country wasn’t exactly Indiana’s main concern.

Coming off a stunning season-opening loss to Butler, the Hoosiers were looking for a team that could play against anyone, let alone Kentucky, the nation’s No. 1 team.

They may have found it on Saturday at the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis.

“Nobody was happy with our effort against Butler,” senior Damon Bailey said after his 29 points led No. 21 Indiana to a 96-84 victory. “Everybody knew we could play a lot better, a lot harder than we did.

“The whole week, we really didn’t prepare for Kentucky, I’m going to be honest with you. Until last night, we were trying to get an Indiana team that could go on the floor and play. We had to dig a little deeper within each other and get a team that could play against Kentucky.”

Indiana (1-1) increased a 55-44 halftime lead to 65-50 on four baskets by Brian Evans, who had 19 points.

Consecutive three-point baskets by Travis Ford, a three-point shot by Tony Delk and a steal and layup by Jared Prickett helped bring Kentucky (2-1) to within 66-63. But a dunk by Alan Henderson started a 15-6 run that put the game out of reach.

“I had to be really pleased with our effort and the way we hung in there in tough situations,” Indiana Coach Bob Knight said.

“I really felt this is the best I’ve ever seen Bailey play. This is how I think Bailey can play basketball, how I think he has to play.”

No. 2 Arkansas 111, Northwestern Louisiana 76--Al Dillard scored 16 points in less than two minutes at Fayetteville, Ark., as the Razorbacks (3-0) moved into position to move up to No. 1.

Dillard’s spurt, which included four three-point baskets, was part of a 31-3 run that gave the Razorbacks a 64-35 halftime lead. Corliss Williamson, who turned 20 on Saturday, scored the first four points of the second half and Northwestern (2-1) got no closer than 18.

No. 3 Kansas 79, DePaul 74--Steve Woodberry sparked a 29-9 second-half run to help Jayhawks erase a 14-point deficit at Rosemont, Ill.

Woodberry scored 21 of his 23 points in the second half and made four three-point baskets during the pivotal run as Kansas (5-1) turned a 44-32 deficit into a 61-53 lead.

“I was going to be aggressive and hope that everyone followed my lead,” Woodberry said. “I have a lot of confidence in my shooting, but I was a little tentative in the first half. It was just a matter of stepping up and knocking down the shots.”

The Blue Demons (1-1) got to within 71-68, but a three-point play by Richard Scott gave the Jayhawks breathing room with 2:30 left.

No. 4 North Carolina 97, Brigham Young 65--The Tar Heels (6-1) started the game with an 11-2 run and began the second half with a 16-4 run as they improved their record at Charlotte, N.C., to 113-14.

BYU (1-2) was held to one field goal over the first eight minutes of the second half.

No. 5 Michigan 97, Tennessee Chattanooga 86--The Moccasins went on a 21-7 run to cut a 17-point deficit to 72-69 with 7:30 left, but the Wolverines (4-0) responded with a 17-7 run that gave them an 89-76 lead and they were in command the rest of the way at Ann Arbor, Mich.

Freshman guard Bobby Crawford, who scored 22 points, made two three-point shots and two free throws to spark the Wolverines’ run. Crawford was seeing extra playing time because starter Dugan Fife was in foul trouble.

No. 6 Duke 82, Xavier, Ohio 60--The Musketeers moved to within 59-54 with 8:39 left after trailing by 13, but the Blue Devils went on a 15-0 run to clinch the victory and extend their home winning streak against nonconference opponents to 83.

Antonio Lang scored six points during the 5 1/2-minute run. Grant Hill led Duke (3-0) with 21 points and had nine assists. Center Cherokee Parks had a career-high 20 rebounds.

No. 7 Temple 55, Alabama Birmingham 52--A three-point shot by Corey Jackson with four seconds left bounced off the rim, enabling the Owls (2-0) to hold off the Blazers at Philadelphia.

Alabama Birmingham shot only two free throws in the game, mainly because most of the team’s offense came from the outside. The Blazers (2-1) attempted 27 three-point shots, but made only eight.

No. 9 Massachusetts 86, St. Bonaventure 66--Dana Dingle and Mike Williams each scored seven points early in the second half to help the Minutemen pull away at Olean, N.Y.

Dingle and Williams were instrumental as Massachusetts (5-1) increased a 35-28 halftime lead to 58-38 with 13:14 to play.

St. Bonaventure (1-2) was led by Harry Moore, who scored a career-high 32 points.

No. 11 Louisville 77, Michigan State 68--Greg Minor scored five of his 25 points during a late 12-0 run that carried the Cardinals past the Spartans at Louisville.

Minor’s basket with 6:52 left started the run and cut Michigan State’s lead to 53-51. Clifford Rozier then tied the game and two free throws by Tick Rogers gave Louisville (1-1) the lead for good.

With less than a minute left, Michigan State (2-2) made three three-point baskets--the last by Shawn Respert, who had 26 points--reducing Louisville’s lead to 70-67. But the Cardinals made five free throws to seal the victory.

No. 12 Virginia 59, Rice 51--The Cavaliers overcame a cold-shooting first half by limiting the Owls to two baskets during a span of nearly 17 minutes in the second half at Charlottesville, Va.

Virginia (2-1), which missed 12 of its final 14 shots in the first half, wound up shooting 29%. Rice (2-2) shot 30%.

No. 14 Purdue 94, Western Michigan 54--The Boilermakers took an 18-4 lead in the first six minutes and were never threatened at West Lafayette, Ind.

Glenn Robinson scored 18 points for Purdue (5-0), which led at halftime, 42-22, and limited the Broncos (1-2) to 25% shooting.

No. 16 Illinois 101, Illinois Chicago 80--Shelly Clark scored 29 points and Deon Thomas had 27 to lead the Illini at Champaign.

With Illinois leading, 79-72, and 5:35 remaining, Kiwane Garris drew a foul from Michael Simmons of Illinois Chicago (1-2). When Simmons complained, he was assessed a technical foul. Garris then made four free throws to give the Illini a 83-72 lead.

No. 17 Georgia Tech 95, Georgia State 65--Travis Best scored a career-high 32 points, 23 in the first half at Atlanta.

Best made 11 of 14 shots in only 30 minutes. Georgia State (1-1) took an 8-0 lead and was ahead, 18-14, with 9:58 left in the first half before the Yellow Jackets (3-1) rallied behind Best.

No. 18 Syracuse 78, No. 20 Vanderbilt 62--In a game matching two of the nation’s best guards, Lawrence Moten of the Orangemen and Billy McCaffrey of the Commodores, Moten’s team won the Carrier Classic for the 12th consecutive year.

Syracuse (4-0) used an aggressive 2-3 zone to frustrate the Commodores (3-1) in the second half, when they missed 31 of 41 shots.

Moten scored 22 points on nine-of-18 shooting. McCaffrey scored 14, but was only five of 18.

No. 22 George Washington 77, South Carolina 71--Kwame Evans scored a career-high 25 points as the Colonials (2-1) won the third-place game in the Carolina Tournament at Charlotte.

George Washington ran up a 14-point lead with 4 1/2 minutes remaining, then held off the Gamecocks. All of the Colonials’ scoring came from the starters, and all five were in double figures.

Villanova 76, No. 25 Georgetown 75--Eric Micoud missed a foul shot after time expired in overtime, giving the Wildcats the Big East victory at Landover, Md.

Roscoe Harris made a basket with 3.2 seconds left to give Villanova (2-0) a 76-73 lead. Micoud was fouled while attempting a three-point shot at the final buzzer, giving him three free throws. He made the first two, but missed the third.

OTHER GAMES

Monty Williams scored nine of his game-high 28 points during a 13-2 run midway during the second half that propelled Notre Dame (2-1) from a nine-point deficit into the lead for good as the Irish beat San Diego, 63-53, at South Bend, Ind. . . . Unbeaten Pittsburgh (3-0) used a 39-15 run to take control of the Big East opener at Pittsburgh to beat Providence, 94-82. Pitt had trailed for 30 minutes before breaking loose during the second half. The Panthers led by as many as 17 points against the Friars (2-2). . . . Dan Cross made eight free throws in the final minute as Florida defeated Texas, 76-68, at Austin, Tex. . . . Guard Randolph Childress, playing for the first time since an upper respiratory infection sidelined him for three games, scored a game-high 26 points to lead Wake Forest to a 71-65 victory over Richmond at Winston-Salem, N.C.