COLLEGE BASKETBALL ROUNDUP : No. 3 Kentucky Staves Off No. 14 Ohio, 79-74

Preseason NIT champion Ohio University ended a two-week trip by losing at Lexington, Ky. But the Bobcats gained the respect of Kentucky coach Rick Pitino.

“Ohio U. is a great basketball team. They have Final Four potential,” Pitino said after the No. 14-ranked Bobcats rallied from a 14-point deficit in the second half before losing, 79-74, to No. 3-ranked Kentucky on Wednesday.

Rodrick Rhodes made a free throw and a short jumper in the final three minutes to help Kentucky withstand the rally.

Tony Delk and Walter McCarty both had 17 points for Kentucky (2-0). Ohio’s Gary Trent, who came in averaging 25.8 points and 14.5 rebounds, had 21 points and 10 rebounds.

Ohio (4-1) went on a 14-2 run to close to 66-64 on Mike Reese’s three-point shot from the right wing with 3:20 remaining.

Johnson made a three-point shot from the corner to cut the deficit to 76-73 with 28.2 seconds left. But Anthony Epps made two free throws less than a second later for a five-point cushion.

No. 13 Wisconsin 61, Wis.-Green Bay 57--The Phoenix, who eliminated Jason Kidd and California from the first round of the NCAA tournament last March, couldn’t overcome Rashard Griffith as the Badgers won at Madison, Wis.

Griffith, who scored 21 points, was nine for 13 from the floor. Griffith’s basket with 4:12 left put Wisconsin (2-0) on top, 58-45, before the Phoenix used a 10-0 run to cut the lead to 58-55 with a minute remaining.

Wisconsin’s Michael Finley missed a three-point shot with 30 seconds left, but the Badgers got the ball back when Ben Berlowski stepped out of bounds trying to save the rebound. Freshman Sean Daugherty then made two free throws with 24 seconds left against the Phoenix (0-3).

No. 4 Arkansas 103, Jackson St. 87--Corliss Williamson scored 10 of his 20 points during an early 14-5 run and the Razorbacks (2-1) defeated the Tigers (0-4) at Fayetteville, Ark.

No. 18 Michigan State 92, Illinois-Chicago 78--Shawn Respert scored 18 points and set a school record for career three-point baskets by increasing his total to 215 as the Spartans (1-0) defeated the Flames (0-1) at Chicago.

No. 19 Georgetown 99, Morgan St. 63--Don Reid had 21 points and Allen Iverson added 18 as the Hoyas (1-1) defeated the Bears (0-2) at Landover, Md.

No. 23 Virginia 94, N. Carolina A&T; 50--Junior Burrough scored 24 points and the Cavaliers (2-1) scored on 22 of their first 25 possessions of the second half to defeat the Aggies (1-1) at Charlottesville, Va.

No. 24 Villanova 80, Marist 59-- Junior Kerry Kittles scored 19 points and surpassed the 1,000-point mark in his career to lead the Wildcats (3-1) past the Red Foxes (2-1) at home.

OTHER GAMES

Felipe Lopez scored 27 points and locked up the victory with a three-point shot with 19 seconds left as St. John’s (3-0) came back from an 11-point deficit in the final 15 minutes and won, 78-73, against Coppin State (0-2) in New York. . . . Anthony Pieper scored 15 of his career-high 22 points in the second half as Marquette (2-0) overcame a 10-point deficit to win, 82-70, against Ohio State (1-2) in Columbus. . . . Brent Barry scored 19 of his 23 points in the second half to lead Oregon State (1-1) to a 78-61 victory against New Orleans (2-3) in the Beavers’ home opener. . . . Bryant Reeves scored 27 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead Oklahoma State (2-2) to a 73-51 victory against Southern Methodist (0-2) at Stillwater, Okla. . . . Guard Doug Harris scored 29 points as visiting San Diego (1-1) beat Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (0-2), 87-71.