UC Santa Barbara gets ready for No. 1 Tar Heels

Chris Devine and Alex Harris scored 22 points each as UC Santa Barbara defeated winless Ball State, 79-52, Wednesday night at Muncie, Ind., for the Gauchos’ eighth consecutive victory.

UC Santa Barbara (10-1), off to its best start since 1988-89, will face top-ranked North Carolina in Chapel Hill on Saturday.

The Gauchos jumped to a 24-7 lead and never looked back.

“After the first few minutes tonight, I thought we were very good,” Coach Bob Williams said. “For the most part, we took good shots and played hard. It was kind of a businesslike approach for us, but in the last 35 minutes or so, we did a lot of things right.”

Devine made nine out of 10 shots.

The Gauchos, who had a 35-20 lead at halftime, made 12 of 19 three-point shots. They have made 33 of 52 from beyond the arc in their last three games.

Jordan Weiner had 12 points and Ivan Elliott 10 for UC Santa Barbara, which outrebounded Ball State, 33-28. Justin Joyner had six assists.

Peyton Stovall scored 18 points for Ball State (0-10), which shot 37.5% from the field.

Mississippi State 85, Loyola Marymount 54 -- Jamont Gordon scored a season-high 25 points to lead the Bulldogs.

Gordon scored 15 points in the first half, including three three-point shots in the final 2:15, to give the Bulldogs (6-5) a 40-22 lead at the break.

Mississippi opened the second half on a 20-7 run to take a commanding 60-29 lead with 15:21 remaining.

Shawn Deadwiler scored 11 points and John Ziri and Brad Sweezy added 10 apiece for the Lions (3-9), who have lost five of their last six games.