COLLEGE BASKETBALL ROUNDUP : Maryland Nearly Meets Match in Towson State

It was supposed to be a breather, an easy spot on the schedule between high-pressure games against Kentucky and Massachusetts.

Things didn’t quite go as planned for No. 19 Maryland, which received a scare from unheralded Towson State Monday night before rallying for a 70-67 victory at Baltimore.

Johnny Rhodes scored 12 of his 22 points in the final nine minutes to lift the Terrapins (1-1) past their in-state rivals for the 11th time without a loss.

The victory followed a season-opening loss to top-ranked Kentucky last Friday and precedes Saturday’s game against No. 5 Massachusetts.

The Terrapins trailed by six points at halftime, by nine early in the second half and at 55-47 with 8:45 remaining before storming back.

The game wasn’t decided until Towson State guard Ralph Blalock’s three-point shot at the buzzer fell short. The Tigers (0-1) were looking for their first victory in 22 games against Atlantic Coast Conference opponents.

No. 13 Missouri 89, Tennessee St. 75--Kelly Thames scored 16 points and Kendrick Moore came off the bench to score 15 as the Tigers won at Columbia, Mo.

The Tigers (2-0) trailed, 19-11, midway through the first half but used a 19-4 run to take control. Derek Grimm and Jason Sutherland scored 13 points in that streak.

No. 15 Virginia 87, William & Mary 58--Virginia shook off a slow start with a strong game from 7-foot-4 Chase Metheney at Charlottesville, Va.

The Cavaliers (2-0) missed 13 of their first 15 shots, whereupon Metheney entered the game and made his presence felt--getting 12 rebounds and six blocked shots in 18 minutes.

Matt Verkey led William & Mary (0-2) with 19 points, including five three-point baskets.

No. 20 Georgia Tech 87, Campbell 76--Freshman Stephon Marbury scored 26 points to lead the Yellow Jackets at Atlanta.

Georgia Tech (4-1) led, 42-31, at halftime and took its biggest lead at the outset of the second half at 50-35 when Marbury and Matt Harpring each made two field goals.

No. 24 Michigan 84, St. Francis (Pa.) 52--Travis Conlan scored all of his career-high 12 points on three-point baskets at Ann Arbor, Mich.

Forward Maceo Baston and freshman guard Louis Bullock had 15 points for the Wolverines (3-2).

OTHER GAMES

Anthony Harris scored 30 points and Alika Smith added 16 on Sunday night as Hawaii beat St. Louis, 72-66, in the championship game of the Rainbow Tip-Off Tournament at Honolulu. . . . Jaron Boone led five Cornhuskers in double figures with 17 points as Nebraska defeated Minnesota, 96-85, Sunday night to claim the championship of the Big Island Invitational at Hilo, Hawaii. . . . Junior college transfer Juan Gay scored 12 of his 16 points during a 29-12 first-half run as DePaul beat UC Santa Barbara, 91-71, at Rosemont, Ill. The Gauchos (1-1) got 20 points from Lelan McDougal.

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Notes

Duke, coming off a season in which it lost Coach Mike Krzyzewski for the last three months and a perennial spot in the national rankings, was 12th in the Associated Press poll released Monday. The move into the top 25 comes after the Blue Devils’ championship run in the Great Alaska Shootout with victories over Old Dominion, Indiana and Iowa. Arizona, winner of Preseason NIT, jumped 15 places to No. 4. UCLA is 23rd.