COLLEGE BASKETBALL ROUNDUP : Preseason No.1 Arkansas Loses Opener to Massachusetts, 104-80

As decisively as Arkansas was the preseason choice for No. 1, so were the Razorbacks handled by third-ranked Massachusetts on Friday night in the Tipoff Classic at Springfield, Mass.

Massachusetts beat the defending national champions every way possible--up and down the floor, on the boards, in the halfcourt offense and especially on the scoreboard, 104-80.

“I am very proud the way my team responded,” Minutemen Coach John Calipari said. “They showed no fear. I never want to play Arkansas again, ever. Today we were better. Today. Today.”

The marquee individual matchup at forward also went Massachusetts’ way in convincing fashion. Lou Roe finished with 34 points and 13 rebounds while Corliss Williamson, the leading vote-getter on the AP preseason All-America team, had a lackluster performance, scoring 15 points on four-of-11 shooting.

No. 5 Arizona 107, Alaska Anchorage 88--Joseph Blair worked inside for 23 points and Damon Stoudamire added 20 from the perimeter as Arizona overpowered Alaska Anchorage in the Great Alaska Shootout’s consolation round at Anchorage.

The Wildcats led by 12 at the half, then blew the game open on Blair’s work inside. Arizona got its advantage up to 29 points midway through the second half before Coach Lute Olson emptied his bench. Jarvis Kelley scored 18 points and Ray Owes had 14 for Arizona (1-1), which lost to Minnesota, 72-70, on Thursday in a first-round game.

No. 8 Duke 80, Brown 38--Duke’s three freshmen helped ignite a 17-point second-half run as the Blue Devils recorded their 89th consecutive nonconference victory in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Last year’s NCAA runner-ups won their 13th consecutive season opener, forcing 15 first-half turnovers and then wearing down Brown in the first 10 minutes of the second half.

No. 10 Florida 73, Stetson 64--With center Dametri Hill on the bench for the final night of a two-game suspension, Florida struggled against Stetson at Gainesville, Fla.

Dan Cross scored 27 points and helped the Gators come back from an 11-point first-half deficit.

No. 16 Connecticut 110, Lafayette 48--Ray Allen scored 23 points and Brian Fair had 21 as Connecticut went out to a big early lead and cruised over Lafayette in a season opener at Hartford, Conn.

Allen, expected to pick up the slack because last year’s leader, Donyell Marshall, opted to go into the NBA, had 13 points in the first half. Point guard Kevin Ollie finished with 14 points and Donny Marshall had 13 as UConn shot 47% in the first half to open a 59-28 lead.

No. 19 Oklahoma State 75, Jackson State 57--Bryant Reeves scored 23 points to lead Oklahoma State in a Great Alaska Shootout consolation-round game. Reeves, a 7-foot center, scored his team’s first nine points and 13 of its first 16 en route to 19 points in the first half.

John Nelson had 12 points and nine rebounds and Randy Rutherford added 11 points for the Cowboys (1-1).

No. 23 Ohio 84, New Mexico State 80--MVP Gary Trent, who led all scorers with 33 points, made up for a blunder in the last half-minute of regulation, dominating the overtime in the championship game of the Preseason NIT at New York.

Earlier, George Washington defeated Memphis, 69-60, in the consolation game.

AROUND THE NATION

Felipe Lopez, one of the most highly regarded freshmen in the country, had 12 points, eight rebounds, five assists and four steals to help St. John’s beat Dartmouth, 93-63, in the first round of the Lapchick Tournament at New York. . . . Danya Abrams scored six of his game-high 20 points during a 22-0 first-half run as Boston College had its 21st consecutive season-opening victory with a 97-60 rout of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo at Newton, Mass. The loss spoiled the Mustangs’ inaugural game in Division I. . . . Bryant Boston scored 19 points as the Washington easily defeated Eastern Washington, 64-48, at Seattle. . . . Robbie Reid scored 17 points and Russell Larson added 14 to pace a balanced Brigham Young attack as the Cougars beat Louisville, 75-60, in the semifinals of the Great Alaska Shootout. The Cardinals whittled an 11-point lead to three, 60-57, with about three minutes left. But the Louisville offense stalled as the Cougars scored 15 of the game’s final 18 points.

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