Arizona Gets Bang-Up Effort From Woods

Loren Woods was late for No. 2-ranked Arizona’s game with No. 4 Michigan State at Tucson because of a minor car accident.

However, when the usually mild-mannered 7-foot-1 center got aggressive on offense in the second half, it was timely for the Wildcats.

After Michigan State had come back from a 19-point deficit to tie the score with 8:20 left, Woods scored the next six points and Arizona took command en route to a 79-68 victory that extended its home-court win streak to 36.

Woods made a hook shot from eight feet, followed with a dunk, then scored inside on a pass from Michael Wright to give Arizona (7-1) a 65-59 lead. The Wildcats sealed the victory by making all 10 of their free throws in the final 4:04.

Woods finished with 12 points, making six of seven shots.

“He played with the most aggressiveness he’s played all season,” Arizona Coach Lute Olson said of Woods.

No one was hurt in the fender-bender involving Woods, who didn’t arrive at the game until four minutes had passed. He entered the game with 14:17 left.

“I ran into the back of this lady,” Woods said. “I was just not paying attention. I’m glad I didn’t walk in and we were down by 20. People who were driving by us must have been saying, ‘Isn’t that guy supposed to be in McKale [Center] by now?’ ”

Said Olson: “It happened way, way before he was supposed to be here, but the woman told him it would be hit-and-run if he left. I figure she was a Michigan State fan.”

Michigan State--with guard Mateen Cleaves still sidelined by a stress fracture in his right foot--also had trouble with Arizona freshman point guard Jason Gardner, who had 20 points, nine assists and six rebounds. Gardner had made only two of nine shots and struggled defensively against Khalid El-Amid in Arizona’s 78-69 loss to No. 6 Connecticut on Tuesday.

Michigan State (7-2) shot 40%, compared to 53% by Arizona, which scored often in transition to take a 31-12 lead in the first eight minutes.

OTHER TOP 25 GAMES

No. 1 Cincinnati 74, Mississippi Valley State 48--The Bearcats (7-0) took a 21-2 lead and was never challenged in extending its home-court win streak to 34. Mississippi Valley State (1-7) had 14 turnovers and shot 21.4% in falling behind 45-13 at halftime.

No. 3 Stanford 64, Georgia Tech 61--The Cardinal (6-0), playing its first game in two weeks, overcame 31% shooting to beat the Yellow Jackets (3-4) in overtime at Atlanta. Guard Mike McDonald gave Stanford the lead for good in overtime with two free throws. Georgia Tech guard Tony Akins made a three-point basket with one second left to send the game into overtime, but he missed a layup with six seconds remaining in the extra period that could have tied the score.

No. 5 Kansas 96, Pittsburg (Kan.) State 71-- Center Eric Chenowith and forward Nick Collison each had 20 points for the Jayhawks (7-1) against the Division II Gorillas (5-3) at Lawrence.

No. 8 Auburn 77, Pennsylvania 70--The Tigers (5-1) overcame 16-for-33 free-throw shooting to beat the Quakers (1-4) at Birmingham, Ala. Guard Michael Jordan had 20 points for Penn.

No. 9 Florida 93, Bethune Cookman 77--Mike Miller scored nine of his 14 points in a 19-2 run midway in the second half that allowed the Gators (6-1) to take command at Gainesville, Fla. Bethune Cookman (2-4) led, 58-51, six minutes into the second half, but lost its poise with three technical fouls.

No. 10 Texas 76, San Diego 66--The Longhorns (5-2) won for the first time in three games with a lackluster effort against the Toreros (4-3) at Austin, Texas. San Diego played without leading scorer Dana White, who injured a knee in practice Wednesday.

No. 13 Ohio State 99, Florida A&M; 47--Guard Michael Redd had 17 points and center Ken Johnson blocked seven shots at for the Buckeyes (3-1) at Columbus, Ohio. Florida A&M; (1-5) shot 22%.

No. 14 Duke 104, Michigan 97--Freshman forward Carlos Boozer made eight of 11 shots and had 25 points and 10 rebounds at Ann Arbor, Mich., to lead the Blue Devils (6-2) to their sixth consecutive victory. Duke senior forward Shane Battier, who played in high school at nearby Birmingham Detroit Country Day and heard chants of “sellout” every time he touched the ball, had 22 points. Freshmen guards Jamal Crawford and Kevin Gaines had 27 and 23 points, respectively for Michigan (6-1).

No. 16 Tennessee 78, Middle Tennessee 77-- Guard Tony Harris had 23 points, including two three-point baskets in the final two minutes to allow Volunteers (8-0) to turn back the Blue Raiders (2-3) at Knoxville.

Georgia 68, No. 18 Wake Forest 67--Guard Adrian Jones made an off-balance, desperation three-point shot at the buzzer for the Bulldogs (5-3) at Atlanta. Wake Forest (5-1) led by 13 points with 8:47 remaining, but guard D.A. Layne scored 11 of his game-high 19 points to help pull Georgia into a 65-65 tie with 8.8 seconds left. Wake Forest regained the lead on Broderick Hicks’ layup with 3.7 seconds left.

No. 21 Maryland 72, No. 23 Kentucky 66--Forward Terence Morris scored 22 points and the Terrapins never trailed at College Park, Md., in stretching their home win streak against nonconference opponents to a nation-leading 69. Center Jamaal Magloire had 12 points and 16 rebounds for Kentucky (4-4).

No. 22 Illinois 81, Kansas State 48--The Illini (5-2) won its second consecutive game at Champaign, Ill., against a school formerly coached by Illinois Coach Lon Kruger, who had earned his 300th victory against Texas Pan American. Kansas State (5-2) shot 28%.

No. 25 Purdue 86, Coppin State 65--The Boilermakers (6-2) started the game without injured leading scorer Jaraan Cornell and lost forward Brian Cardinal to a broken left thumb two minutes into the second half at West Lafayette, Ind., but still recorded their third consecutive victory by double figures. Forward Greg McQuay had 20 points and eight rebounds for Purdue, which shot 55%. Coppin State (2-7) got 26 points from guard Jorge Cajigas.

OTHER GAMES

Fresno State (4-5) got a career-high 43 points and 11 rebounds from guard Courtney Alexander but was a 103-99 loser in overtime to Alabama Birmingham (5-2). Alabama Birmingham’s freshman guard Morris Finley had 32 points after entering the game with a total of 37. . . . Guard Schea Cotton had 20 points for Alabama (4-4) in an 87-72 loss at Louisville (4-2). . . . Forward Chris Bjorklund had 29 points for visiting Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (4-2) in a 72-67 victory over Indiana-Purdue-Indianapolis (1-6). . . . Utah (5-2) made 14 of 28 three-point shots in a 78-66 victory over Washington State (4-3) at Pullman, Wash., that ended the Cougars’ home win streak against nonconference opponents at 45. . . . Forward Brian Jackson had 20 points for Oregon State (4-2) in a 70-63 victory over Denver (1-5) at Corvallis, Ore.