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    Local Colleges
    Monday, April 29, 2024

    Top 25 college basketball roundup

    No. 1 Kentucky 115, Arizona State 69

    Kentucky was already up big when Isaiah Briscoe snatched down a second-half rebound, took a dribble and fired an outlet pass ahead to Malik Monk. The ball was high and off target, but Monk went airborne and redirected the ball with his right hand to Wenyen Gabriel for a transition reverse dunk.

    Yes, the top-ranked Wildcats were so good Monday night that they were turning even mistakes into highlight-reel plays.

    Freshman De'Aaron Fox posted the second triple-double in school history with 14 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists to lead that dominating effort as Kentucky beat Arizona State on Monday night.

    Monk scored 23 points for the Wildcats (7-0), who dominated an undersized team and quickly turned the game into a romping show of their athleticism and ability to run in transition.

    Kentucky led by double figures roughly 6 minutes in, led 58-30 by halftime then scored the first 12 points after the break to go up 40 with 15 minutes left.

    "My question now when I go back will be: how now do we take this to another level?" coach John Calipari asked.

    The game, billed as the Atlantis Showcase, was played at the same ballroom-turned-arena that hosted last week's Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in the Bahamas. Fox was the easy choice as MVP, though the Wildcats had five players score in double figures and put up dominating numbers in just about every area. They shot 52 percent. They finished with a 59-33 rebounding advantage. They scored 21 points off turnovers and finished with 33 assists on 44 baskets.

    "We just love playing together," said freshman Bam Adebayo, who had 12 points, nine rebounds and three blocks. "We're like brothers, so we're going to give each other the ball."

    Sam Cunliffe scored 14 points for the Sun Devils (4-3), who shot just 34 percent and made 8 of 26 3-point attempts (31 percent).

    "As a competitor you feel a little shell-shocked in these moments," Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley said. "I would've hoped we would've performed a little better. ... I thought they were spectacular."

    No. 18 Butler 68, Utah 59

    Kelan Martin scored 18 points as Butler, which moved into Top 25 earlier Monday, remained undefeated by handing Utah its first loss of the season.

    Butler controlled the game from the opening tip and trailed just once at 20-19. The Bulldogs responded to that with a 14-3 run to take a 10-point lead.

    A 13-4 run early in the second half, highlighted by a deep 3-pointer from Tyler Lewis, put Utah away. Butler did what it's done all season — shoot well from the field, play stingy defense and limit turnovers. The Bulldogs shot 52.8 percent and held the Utes to 36.5 percent.

    Tyler Wideman chipped in 15 points for Butler.

    Kyle Kuzma led Utah with 21 points and 10 rebounds while Lorenzo Bonam finished with 17 points.

    No. 23 Oregon 68, Boise State 63

    Dylan Ennis scored 18 points and Oregon rallied to beat Boise State.

    Tyler Dorsey added 17 points for the Ducks (5-2), who came back from 14 down in the first half to win their 28th consecutive home game.

    After Dorsey's free throw gave Oregon a 66-63 lead, the Broncos (3-3) had a chance for a tying shot, but Paris Austin lost possession on a baseline drive with 5 seconds left. Dillon Brooks sealed the win with two free throws.

    Brooks, a preseason All-America selection, had five points and shot 1 of 9 in 21 minutes off the bench in his fourth game back from offseason foot surgery.

    Austin led Boise State with 16 points. Nick Duncan added 15 on five of the Broncos' 11 3-pointers.

    No. 25 West Virginia 108, Manhattan 61

    Esa Ahmad scored 19 points to lead No. 25 West Virginia to a 108-61 victory Monday night in the final game of the NIT Season Tip-Off.

    The Mountaineers (5-1) forced a school-record 40 turnovers, surpassing the 34 by VMI in 2014-15.

    West Virginia started the game on an 8-0 run over the first 3 minutes, then both teams essentially traded baskets through the next 12 minutes. In the final 5 minutes of the first half, James Long and Nathan Adrian led a 22-5 scoring run, giving the Mountaineers a 60-27 lead.

    Adrian had 15 points for West Virginia, while Daxter Miles Jr. added 11 and Long had a career-high 10.

    Zavier Peart led the Jaspers (2-4) with 11 points.

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