COLLEGE BASKETBALL ROUNDUP : No. 4 Kentucky Shifts Into High Gear, 118-99

Fourth-ranked Kentucky used a 32-2 first-half run to take control in a 118-99 victory over Marshall Tuesday night at Louisville, Ky.

Anthony Epps, Jeff Sheppard, Ron Mercer and Antoine Walker each hit a three-point basket in the run for the Wildcats (6-1). They also got three-point plays from Derek Anderson and Tony Delk and scored 13 points off turnovers as the lead increased from 13-10 to 45-12 in the seven-minute spurt that ended on Mercer’s midcourt steal and dunk at 9:48.

Mark Pope led Kentucky to its fifth consecutive victory with 21 points, followed by Walker with 20. John Brannen topped Marshall (4-3) with 21 points. John Brown and Keith Veney each had 16.

No. 16 Mississippi State 66, Northeast Louisiana 60--The outside shooting of Marcus Bullard and Darryl Wilson helped the Bulldogs overcome an off game by their frontline of Erick Dampier, Russell Walters and Dontae Jones at Monroe, La.

Dampier, Walters and Jones were held to a combined 16 points, 24 below their average. But Bullard scored 23 points and Wilson had 21 as the Bulldogs (6-1) overcame Northeast Louisiana’s 32-29 halftime lead.

Anthony Cook came off the bench to lead Northeast Louisiana (1-5).

No. 18 Georgia 103, Central Florida 54--Carlos Strong and freshman Michael Chadwick each scored 14 points for the Bulldogs, who built a 29-point lead at halftime and a 60-point margin in the closing minutes at Athens, Ga., for their fourth consecutive victory.

Georgia (7-1), which had beaten ranked opponents Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech in its two previous games, had no trouble with Central Florida (2-4). Georgia’s biggest lead was 96-36 with 4:45 to play.

Howard Porter led Central Florida with 17 points, matching his average. Porter also matched Georgia’s Shandon Anderson with 10 rebounds.

No. 20 Duke 79, Delaware 73--Greg Newton scored a career-high 24 points and Jeff Capel keyed the Blue Devils’ early second-half run after a sluggish start at Durham, N.C.

Mike Brey, an assistant at Duke for eight seasons before taking the Delaware job this summer, threw a scare into his old boss--Mike Krzyzewski. The Blue Hens (3-3) shot 53.6% in the first half and led by as many as three.

Newton kept Duke (6-2), coming off a 10-day exam break, close throughout in first half, hitting eight of nine shots.

Duke starting forward Tony Moore did not play after being suspended indefinitely because of academic problems, the school said.

Tyrone Perry, a freshman reserve, led Delaware with 23 points.

College Basketball Notes

Virginia Tech Coach Bill Foster had his contract extended Tuesday for five years. Last season, Foster’s fourth at Virginia Tech, the Hokies had a school-record 25 victories and won the National Invitation Tournament. This season, Virginia Tech is 4-1 and is ranked 22nd. . . .

James Madison Coach Lefty Driesell has filed a lawsuit seeking more than $430,000 in damages from Converse Inc. after the sports apparel company canceled his promotional contract.