Men

No. 18 Ohio State 76, No. 10 Villanova 51

Not even Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann saw this coming.

His 18th-ranked Buckeyes looked NCAA Tournament-ready in their third game, racing out to a big lead, playing solid defense and smothering Villanova on Wednesday night for a significant early-season victory.

“Probably two or three times have I ever been part of a game as a head coach where almost everything kind of goes your way,” Holtmann said. “And that’s reality. Very rarely do you have games like that.”

Ohio State (3-0) came out firing, with Duane Washington Jr. opening the game with a pair of 3s and CJ Walker adding another for a quick 9-0 lead. The Buckeyes bolted to a 19-3 lead, led by as many as 27 and held a 40-22 advantage at the intermission of this Gavitt Tipoff Game, a November series that matches up the Big Ten and the Big East.

“We knew we had to have a big start because we’ve been starting games off slow,” said freshman guard D.J. Carton, who finished with 11 points and was one of five Ohio State players to reach double figures.

Villanova didn’t show signs of life until a 9-0 run late in the first half. But Kyle Young started the second half with a dunk and the Buckeyes never backed off the gas, leading by as many as 30.

“Our players’ preparation and their play was the reason for tonight’s win,” Holtmann said. “I thought across the board they were really ready for this game.”

Washington led the Buckeyes with 14 points on 4-for-6 shooting from beyond the arc. Luther Muhammad had 11 points and Kaleb Wesson added 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Most everything was clicking in the Buckeyes’ third game of the season. If they can sustain it, they should be able to play with nearly any team in the country.

“Tonight was one of those nights where it was just flowing,” said Walker, who had 10 points.

Villanova never could find its shot.

The Wildcats hit 30.6% from the floor, including 10 of 30 from 3-point range. They were held to a dozen points in the first 16 minutes, and the Buckeyes consistently controlled play in the paint.

Jermaine Samuels had 14 points and Cole Swider had 11 for the Wildcats (1-1).

“We have a lot to learn,” said coach Jay Wright, whose teams have won two national championships in the past five seasons.

“These guys have to learn to play together,” he said. “They have to learn to trust each other.”

Starting a pair of freshmen, Villanova could never catch up with the hustling Buckeyes. The crowd in Columbus chanted “overrated,” which could be the case.

“There’s things we should have been prepared for,” Wright said. “(Ohio State) was prepared. We as a staff have to go back and look at what are we doing. Do we have too much stuff in, where basic concepts are not really dialed in on?”

No. 4 Louisville 91, Indiana State 62

Jordan Nwora scored 21 points, Dwayne Sutton added 14 and Louisville shot 59% from the field to run past Indiana State.

The Cardinals (3-0) made 14 of their first 17 shots for a 16-point lead through 11 minutes on the way to a 47-26 advantage at the break. Nwora’s 14 points, including a pair of 3s got Louisville going, and Sutton had 10 before the break.

Nwora, a junior forward, finished 5 of 10 shooting for his third consecutive game of 20 points or more.

Tyreke Key led the Sycamores (0-2) with 20 points including four 3-pointers.

No. 11 Texas Tech 103, Houston Baptist 74

Freshman Jahmi’us Ramsey scored 25 points on 10-of-13 shooting, TJ Holyfield had 21 points on 9-of-10 field goals and Texas Tech beat Houston Baptist.

The Red Raiders (3-0) had four players score in double figures while shooting 60% overall from the field (40 of 67).

Jalon Gates had 21 points with five 3-pointers to lead Houston Baptist (0-3), which jumped out to a 9-0 lead before Texas Tech took over.

VCU 84, No. 23 LSU 82

Marcus Santos-Silva had 17 points and 11 rebounds and VCU turned 26 turnovers by LSU into 37 points.

The Rams (3-0), whose contract with former coach Will Wade mandated he bring his new team to the Siegel Center or have his school pay $250,000, improved to 5-2 against ranked opponents on their home court.

The Tigers (1-1) had a chance after Santos-Silva made one of two free throws with 4.9 seconds left, but Mays raced up court and lost control of the ball.

De’Riante Jenkins and Marcus Evans added 15 points each for VCU.

Mays led the Tigers with 23 points, but also had seven turnovers.

Women

No. 8 Maryland 70, James Madison 68

Shakira Austin scored 21 points and Ashley Owusu made a layup with four seconds left to help No. 8 Maryland rally from a 19-point fourth quarter deficit and beat James Madison.

Trailing by 19 points early in the final period, Austin’s jumper capped a 28-6 run for the Terrapins, who used full court pressure to get back in the game. Austin’s shot gave Maryland a 68-66 lead with 1:20 left. After both teams couldn’t score over the next minute, Lexie Barrier hit two free throws with 14 seconds left to tie the game.

Maryland called timeout and Owusu scored with a few seconds left. The Dukes had one last chance, but Kamiah Smalls halfcourt shot rimmed out at the buzzer. Owusu finished with 14 points for Maryland (2-1).

Freshman Kiki Jefferson had 16 to lead James Madison (2-1) while Preseason Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Year Smalls finished with 14 in a balanced effort the Dukes.

No. 1 Oregon 109, Utah State 52

Sabrina Ionescu surpassed 2,000 career points and fell just short of a 19th triple-double as Oregon routed Utah State.

Ioenscu became the fourth Oregon player to reach the 2,000-point plateau. She had a scary moment in the third quarter when she was fouled driving to the basket and fell to the court, putting a hand on the back of her right leg.

She was helped to her feet and appeared to be reluctant to go to the bench. She sat out the final few minutes of the period before returning to start the fourth quarter.

The preseason All-American finished with 16 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds.

No. 6 South Carolina 75, Dayton 49

Freshman Zia Cooke scored 27 points as South Carolina’s young, quick guards controlled the pace, and the Gamecocks followed their big win at Maryland by dominating Dayton.

South Carolina (3-0) was coming off a 64-54 victory at then-No. 4 Maryland that represented an impressive early step for a young roster led by shot-blocking freshman Aliyah Boston. The Gamecocks’ backcourt and suffocating front line were too much for Dayton (2-1), which fell behind by 26 in the second quarter and never recovered.

Boston has quickly become a focal point of the Gamecocks’ retooled roster — only two seniors from their team that reached the Sweet 16 last season. Boston had a triple-double in her first collegiate game and led the nation in blocked shots with 15 in her first two games.

While Boston and the rest of South Carolina’s front line dug in defensively, the Gamecocks’ guards led the way to another one-sided win. Cooke, who was one of the nation’s top prep point guards at nearby Toledo, Ohio, went 5 of 6 from beyond the arc and had seven rebounds. Boston had 11 points, two rebounds and one of South Carolina’s 10 blocks.

Jenna Giacone scored 18 for Dayton, which shot only 22% from the field.

No. 12 Florida State 75, Jacksonville 41

Nausia Woolfolk scored 22 points and Kiah Gillespie posted her 15th career double-double to lead Florida State to a victory over Jacksonville.

Woolfolk shot 9 of 14 while Gillespie had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Seminoles (3-0). Nicki Ekhomu, who led Florida State in scoring in its first two games this season with 18 and 21 points, finished with 14, making all six of her free throws.

Baskets by Gillespie and Woolfolk in the final 1½ minutes of the first half put the Seminoles up by double figures for good. Florida State outscored the Dolphins by eight in the third quarter to lead by 21 and led by as many as 37 in the final minute of the fourth period when the Seminoles outscored Jacksonville 25-12.

Destiny Marshall scored 20 points with eight rebounds for Jacksonville (1-2).

No. 13 Kentucky 67, Stetson 48

Rhyne Howard scored 24 points and Keke McKinney posted a career-first double-double to lead Kentucky over Stetson.

Howard shot 11 of 21 from the floor while McKinney had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Tatyana Wyatt grabbed 10 rebounds to go with her nine points.

While the Wildcats (3-0) and Hatters (1-1) both had shooting percentages in the mid-30s and 41 rebounds apiece, Kentucky took 22 more shots with the help of 24 Stetson turnovers.

Kennedi Colclough and Kimia Carter scored 10 points each for the Hatters.

No. 17 Miami 78, North Florida 55

Beatrice Mompremier and Kelsey Marshall each scored 16 points and Miami beat North Florida.

Marshall scored 10 of Miami’s 25 first-quarter points for an 11-point lead. The Hurricanes led 34-26 at halftime and outscored North Florida 22-11 in the third quarter before adding another 22 points in the fourth to seal it.

Miami (2-0), which was coming off an 83-68 season-opening win against Jackson State, got 32 points off its bench. The Hurricanes will play IUPUI and North Carolina A&T before their first test of the season against No. 7 Oregon State on November 29.

Alexis Gordon led North Florida (1-2) with 13 points and Janesha Green added 10.

It was a coaching reunion as Miami coach Katie Meier faced her former assistant coach and current North Florida coach Darrick Gibbs.