WINSTON-SALEM — Daivien Williamson scored 16 points, leading four players into double figures, as Wake Forest ended its January slate with a 66-54 defeat of a depleted Miami on Saturday.
Jalen Johnson added 15 points and Isaiah Mucius 13 with nine rebounds for the Demon Deacons (5-7, 2-7 Atlantic Coast Conference). Carter Whitt adding 11 on 4-for-4 shooting. Ody Oguama pulled down a career-best 12 rebounds, nine off the defensive glass.
Whitt, Williamson and Johnson each made three 3-pointers for Wake Forest, which kicked off Saturday’s game with a season-high nine treys in the first half.
Thirteen of the Deacons’ 23 field goals came from behind the arc.
Kameron McGusty and Isaiah Wong led the shorthanded Hurricanes (6-10, 2-9) with 17 and 14 points, respectively. Anthony Walker scored 12.
Miami was down to seven players, each of whom saw at least 11 minutes of court time, and Wong departed in the closing minutes with an ankle injury.
Elijah Olaniyi and Earl Timberlake were out with shoulder injuries, Chris Lykes with an ankle injury. Rodney Miller Jr. and Sam Waardenburg are out for the season with knee and foot issues, respectively.
Coach Jim Larranaga said he didn’t yet know the severity of Wong’s injury, and still doesn’t know when Lykes — Miami’s leading scorer a year ago — might return after being sidelined for two months.
Wake Forest lost seven of its first eight games in January, eking past Pitt 76-75 for its lone win before Saturday. Miami ends the month on a four-game slide.
Short roster or no, Miami jumped out to a 7-0 lead to start the game as Wake Forest whiffed on its first nine shots. The Deacons caught up midway through the first half when Johnson, Whitt and Mucius drained 3-pointers for a 20-13 lead Miami could never surmount.
McGusty got the Hurricanes as close as 23-21 but Wake Forest led by 10 at the break and had an answer to every Miami challenge in the second half.
Duke 79, Clemson 53
DURHAM — Matthew Hurt led a balanced attack with 13 points and Duke played like a team on a mission, rolling to a 79-53 win over Clemson on Saturday.
Jeremy Roach added 12 points, and Wendell Moore Jr., D.J. Steward and Mark Williams scored 11 each for the Blue Devils (7-5, 5-3 Atlantic Coast Conference). Jalen Johnson had nine points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals.
Aamir Simms, with 19 points, was the only player in double figures for the Tigers (10-5, 4-5), who have lost 19 straight in at Duke.
A week earlier Duke lost to Louisville, running the Blue Devils’ losing streak to three as they tumbled out of the Top 25 for the first time in almost five years before a win over Georgia Tech on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the Tigers, who have been inconsistent since coming off a COVID break, were coming off a 54-50 win over Louisville on Wednesday.
But the Blue Devils almost hit 50 points by halftime against a team giving up just 62 a game and Clemson didn’t get there until just over three minutes remained, then didn’t hit another shot.
Duke had a 17-5 lead midway through the first half and stretch it to 41-22 at the half, rattling Clemson into 30% shooting and eight turnovers that were turned into 14 points.
The Blue Devils then opened up the second half with an 11-0 run with Steward, Hurt and Moore drilling 3-pointers and Steward dunking for a 52-22 lead. the margin reach 35 points with just under 11 minutes to play.
The Tigers finished with just enough of a rush to avoid their lowest offensive performance of the year.
Duke made 10 3-pointers on 31 attempts and shot 46% overall (28 of 61). The Blue Devils got 31 points off the bench and turned 13 Clemson turnovers into 25 points, leading to a 15-2 difference in fastbreak points.
The Tigers, who have two wins over ranked teams, which is two more than Duke, went 5 of 21 from 3-point range and shot 35% overall (20 of 57).
Duke is at Miami on Monday and Clemson is home against North Carolina on Tuesday.
UNC Greensboro 76, VMI 59
GREENSBORO — Isaiah Miller had 25 points as UNC Greensboro topped VMI 76-59 on Saturday night.
Mohammed Abdulsalam had 13 points and nine rebounds for UNC Greensboro (12-5, 7-2 Southern Conference), which won its sixth straight game. Kaleb Hunter added 12 points.
Jake Stephens had 18 points and four assists for the Keydets (9-9, 4-5). Myles Lewis added 13 points and seven rebounds. Kamdyn Curfman had 11 points.
Greg Parham, the Keydets’ leading scorer coming into the matchup at 20 points per game, scored just four.
Campbell 75, Charleston Southern 67
BUIES CREEK — Joshua Lusane tallied 12 points and 12 rebounds to carry Campbell to a 75-67 win over Charleston Southern on Saturday.
Cedric Henderson Jr. had 18 points and nine rebounds for Campbell (10-9, 6-6 Big South Conference). Jordan Whitfield added 16 points. Messiah Thompson had 10 points.
Sean Price had 19 points and seven rebounds for the Buccaneers (1-15, 0-12), who have now lost 12 games in a row. Emorie Knox added 15 points. Sadarius Bowser had 13 points.
Phlandrous Fleming Jr., the Buccaneers’ leading scorer heading into the matchup at 18 points per game, was held to only eight points on 3-of-10 shooting. Ja’Quavian Florence, whose 10 points per game heading into the matchup ranked second on the Buccaneers, shot only 17% for the game (1 of 6).
The Fighting Camels improve to 2-0 against the Buccaneers on the season. Campbell defeated Charleston Southern 59-58 on Friday.
High Point 72, Gardner-Webb 69
BOILING SPRINGS — John-Michael Wright had 28 points as High Point edged past Gardner-Webb 72-69 on Saturday.
Lydell Elmore had 13 points for High Point (6-9, 4-6 Big South Conference) and Alex Holt scored 11. High Point tallied a season-best 46 points after halftime.
Jordan Sears had 18 points for the Runnin’ Bulldogs (6-11, 5-7). Jaheam Cornwall added 14 points and six assists. Kareem Reid had 11 points and three blocks.
The Panthers have won both contests against the Runnin’ Bulldogs this season. High Point beat Gardner-Webb 59-55 on Friday.
Charlotte 68, Florida International 65
CHARLOTTE — Jahmir Young scored 22 points and Jordan Shepherd made a 3-pointer from the left corner with 1:24 left to give Charlotte the lead for good en route to a 68-65 win over Florida International on Saturday.
Brice Williams added 15 points for Charlotte (9-7, 5-3 Conference USA). Shepherd and Jhery Matos had 12 points apiece.
Eric Lovett had 17 points for the Panthers (8-10, 2-8), who have now lost seven games in a row. Cameron Corcoran added 11 points. Dimon Carrigan had nine points with eight rebounds.
Charlotte defeated Florida International 63-55 on Friday.
North Carolina A&T 70, Florida A&M 58
GREENSBORO — Kameron Langley recorded 15 points and 10 assists as North Carolina A&T defeated Florida A&M 70-58 on Saturday.
Tyrone Lyons added 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Aggies (7-9, 3-0 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference), who won their fourth straight game. Blake Harris had 11 points and Kwe Parker added 10 points.
Jalen Speer had 17 points for the Rattlers (2-7, 1-1). MJ Randolph added 12 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. Bryce Moragne had 10 rebounds.
Troy 65, Appalachian State 59
TROY, Ala. — Nick Stampley had 19 points and seven rebounds as Troy beat Appalachian State 65-59 on Saturday.
Kam Woods had 12 points and six assists for Troy (8-9, 3-5 Sun Belt Conference), which earned its fifth consecutive home victory. Zay Williams added 11 points. Duke Miles had eight rebounds.
Justin Forrest had 15 points for the Mountaineers (12-7, 6-4). James Lewis Jr. added 13 points. Michael Almonacy had 10 points and seven rebounds.
Troy has won three of four games against Appalachian State this season. The Trojans beat the Mountaineers 71-62 on Friday.
Hofstra 82, UNC Wilmington 73
WILMINGTON — Isaac Kante scored 18 points and Omar Silverio a career-high 17 as Hofstra rallied past UNC Wilmington 82-73 on Saturday, running its win streak to four games.
Jalen Ray also scored 17 points for the Pride (10-6, 6-3 Colonial Athletic Association), while Kvonn Cramer chipped in 16, matching his career high, plus nine rebounds.
Silverio scored eight in a 12-2 run midway through the final period when Hofstra took the lead for good, and added a 3-pointer when the Pride reeled off a 9-0 run to pull away. Hofstra shot 57% for the game (31 of 54).
Mike Okauru had 21 points and seven assists for the Seahawks (7-7, 1-4). Joe Pridgen added 17 points and eight rebounds. Ty Gadsden had 12 points. The teams battled through nine lead changes and seven ties.
Delaware 66, Elon 43
NEWARK, Del. — Ebby Asamoah had 14 points as Delaware rolled past Elon 66-43 on Saturday.
Kevin Anderson had 11 points for Delaware (6-7, 4-4 Colonial Athletic Association). Dylan Painter added 10 rebounds and five assists. Andrew Carr had seven rebounds.
Hunter McIntosh had 10 points for the Phoenix (3-4, 0-3), whose losing streak reached four games.
Tulsa 77, East Carolina 68
GREENVILLE — Brandon Rachal had 21 points and 10 rebounds as Tulsa got past East Carolina 77-68 on Saturday.
Rey Idowu had 16 points and eight rebounds for Tulsa (9-6, 6-4 American Athletic Conference). Austin Richie added 14 points. Elijah Joiner had 11 points.
Jayden Gardner had 26 points and eight rebounds for the Pirates (7-6, 1-6), who have now lost five games in a row. Tremont Robinson-White added 15 points. J.J. Miles had 13 points and six assists.
Furman 75, Western Carolina 69
CULLOWHEE — Noah Gurley had 17 points to lead five Furman players in double figures as the Paladins topped Western Carolina 75-69 on Saturday.
Alex Hunter added 16 points for the Paladins (11-5, 5-2 Southern Conference). Mike Bothwell chipped in 13, Clay Mounce scored 13 and Jalen Slawson had 12.
Cory Hightower had 22 points for the Catamounts (7-9, 0-7), who have now lost seven straight games. Mason Faulkner added 14 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.