DAVIDSON — Luka Brajkovic scored 22 points, Foster Loyer added 14 points, six rebounds and five assists and No. 25 Davidson held off La Salle 77-69 on Saturday in Bob McKillop’s 1,000th game as head coach of the Wildcats.
The 71-year-old McKillop is 624-376 during his 33 seasons at Davidson.
Hyunjung Lee had 14 points, including four clutch free throws in the final minute, and Sam Mennenga provided some muscle inside with eight points and eight rebounds for the Wildcats. Davidson (17-3, 7-1 Atlantic 10) bounced back from a 70-68 loss to VCU on Wednesday night, just two days after entering the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2015.
Jack Clark had 18 points for La Salle (6-12, 1-7), which has lost eight of its last nine and remains winless on the road this season.
It was Brajkovic’s eighth straight double-digit scoring game. The 6-foot-10 lefty forward has averaged 18.8 points per game during that span.
“Oh, he’s unbelievable,” La Salle coach Ashley Howard said. “He can go over either shoulder. He can shoot the ball well and he rebounds the ball well. Those guys (Davidson) have a connection and a chemistry because they have played together for some time.”
Added McKillop: “He’s been sensational. He has done it at the foul line. He’s done it at the 3-point line. He’s done it in the post. Additionally, he’s handled the ball when he has had to and he’s done a terrific job of playing defense in the paint. He has done everything we could have ever asked from him.”
Davidson took control early, jumping out to 8-0 lead as the Explorers missed their first six shots from the field. The Wildcats never trailed.
La Salle trailed by 15 in the second half before it stepped up its pressure defense, created some turnovers and began methodically chipping away at the lead. When Jhamir Brickus scored on a drive through the lane to cut the lead to 73-69 with 58 seconds left it put the home crowd on edge.
But Davidson iced the game with solid free-throw shooting.
McKillop talked after Wednesday night’s defeat about not allowing one loss turn into two losses after VCU snapped Davidson’s 15-game win streak.
“It was hard losing because we’re not used to losing anymore,” Brajkovic said. “We hadn’t lost since November. But nobody really hung their head. We knew what we had to do to get back and start a new winning streak.”
After the game, Davidson retired the jerseys of former coaches Charles “Lefty” Driesell and Terry Holland. Driesell coached nine seasons at Davidson, going 176-65 while winning three Southern Conference tournament titles and reaching the NCAA’s Elite 8 twice. Holland succeeded Driesell and coached five years at Davidson, compiling a 92-43 record while winning SoCon Coach of the Year three times.
“They are the building blocks here — the basement, the first floor, the second floor,” McKillop said. “We have been able to build a house because of what they did.”
Campbell 77, High Point 72
BUIES CREEK — Jordan Whitfield and Jesus Carralero scored 14 points apiece and Campbell beat High Point 77-72 on Saturday for its third-straight win.
Cedric Henderson Jr. added 13 points, Messiah Thompson scored 12 and Ricky Clemons had 10 for the Fighting Camels (12-7, 5-3 Big South).
Zach Austin scored a season-high 21 points and had seven rebounds and Alex Holt scored 18 for the Panthers (9-12, 3-4).
John-Michael Wright, who led the Panthers in scoring heading into the contest with 20 points per game, shot 3 for 12 and scored just eight points.
UNC Asheville 68, Presbyterian 67
CLINTON, S.C. — LJ Thorpe scored a season-high 28 points with the help of a 10-for-12 shooting effort from the foul line and UNC Asheville beat Presbyterian 68-67 on Saturday.
He sank his last two free throws with three seconds left to put the Bulldogs (12-9, 4-4 Big South) ahead 68-64. Rayshon Harrison buried a 3-pointer at the buzzer for the Blue Hose (9-13, 1-6).
Drew Pember scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds for UNC Asheville.
Winston Hill scored a career-high 29 points and had eight rebounds and Harrison scored 10 for Presbyterian.
Appalachian State 72, Arkansas-Little Rock 57
BOONE — Donovan Gregory had a career-high 23 points as Appalachian State beat Arkansas-Little Rock 72-57 on Saturday.
Adrian Delph had 19 points and nine rebounds for Appalachian State (14-9, 8-2 Sun Belt Conference), which earned its sixth straight win. CJ Huntley added 14 points. Justin Forrest had 12 points and six rebounds.
Myron Gardner had 16 points and eight rebounds for the Trojans (7-11, 2-4). Isaiah Palermo added 12 points. Nikola Maric had six assists.
Gardner-Webb 61, Radford 42
BOILING SPRINGS — D’Maurian Williams scored 19 points and Lance Terry scored 11 and Gardner-Webb beat Radford 61-42 on Saturday.
Ludovic Dufeal grabbed 11 rebounds and Anthony Selden grabbed six rebounds for Gardner-Webb (11-10, 5-3 Big South).
In a season of streaks, the Bulldogs have won two straight. They lost their first three, won four, lost four, won five and then lost three straight prior to the last two wins.
Rashun Williams scored 10 points and Josiah Jeffers grabbed eight rebounds for the Highlanders (6-14, 2-6) who have lost three straight and six of their last seven.
UNC Wilmington 78, Hofstra 72
WILMINGTON — Mike Okauru posted 19 points and six rebounds as UNC Wilmington stretched its win streak to 11 games, defeating Hofstra 78-72 on Saturday night.
Jamahri Harvey had 14 points for the Seahawks (14-5, 8-0 Colonial Athletic Association). Jaylen Sims added 12 points and six assists. Shykeim Phillips scored 10.
Aaron Estrada had 17 points and nine rebounds for the Pride (13-8, 5-3), whose four-game winning streak ended. Zach Cooks added 15 points. Darlinstone Dubar had 12 points and eight rebounds.
Syracuse 94, Wake Forest 72
SYRACUSE — Buddy Boeheim had 30 points, five rebounds and seven assists, and Syracuse scored 55 second-half points to erase a three-point halftime deficit and beat visiting Wake Forest 94-72 on Saturday night.
The Orange made 10 of 19 3-pointers — including 6 of 11 for Boeheim — and shot 57.1% from the field to eclipse the 90-point mark for the sixth time this season. Four other players scored in double figures for Syracuse (10-11, 4-6 ACC).
ACC Player of the Year candidate Alondes Williams was held to single digits for the first time this season, scoring eight points on 3-of-10 shooting for the Demon Deacons (17-5, 7-4 ACC). Daivien Williamson matched a career high with 27 points for Wake Forest, which saw its four-game winning streak snapped. Damari Monsanto came off the bench to score 12 points in a season-high 20 minutes in his fourth game of the season for the Demon Deacons.
Wofford 85, UNC Greensboro 66
SPARTANBURG, S.C. — Max Klesmit scored 18 points to lead five players in double figures and Wofford breezed to an 85-66 victory over UNC Greensboro on Saturday.
Klesmit added five rebounds and five assists for the Terriers (13-9, 4-4 Southern Conference). Ryan Larson tallied 13 points and six assists, while reserve Isaiah Bigelow scored 13 with five boards. B.J. Mack and Austin Patterson scored 12 and 11, respectively.
De’Monte Buckingham led the Spartans (12-9, 4-5) with 15 points. Kaleb Hunter scored 14 off the bench and fellow reserve Keyshaun Langley had 12 points and four assists.
South Carolina Upstate 84, North Carolina A&T 64
GREENSBORO — Jordan Gainey and Bryson Mozone scored 19 points each, leading all five starters in double figures, and South Carolina Upstate defeated North Carolina A&T 84-64 on Saturday.
Dalvin White added 16 points, Josh Aldrich 11 and Khydarius Smith 10 for the Spartans (9-11, 6-2 America East).
Marcus Watson scored 21 points and Demetric Horton 10 for the Aggies (9-13, 4-4).
Old Dominion 68, Charlotte 52
NORFOLK, Va. — Austin Trice had 22 points and 10 rebounds as Old Dominion defeated Charlotte 68-52 on Saturday night.
C.J. Keyser had 16 points for Old Dominion (8-12, 3-4 Conference USA), which ended its four-game losing streak. Mekhi Long added 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Jahmir Young had 13 points for Charlotte (11-8, 4-3). Robert Braswell IV added 10 points. Clyde Trapp Jr. had eight rebounds.
The Monarchs evened the season series against the 49ers. Charlotte defeated Old Dominion 71-67 last Wednesday.
Howard 75, NC Central 74 (OT)
DURHAM — Kyle Foster scored a career-high 27 points including a 3-pointer with two seconds left in overtime to lift Howard over North Carolina Central 75-74 on Saturday.
Foster shot 10 for 12 from the floor, including 5 of 6 on 3-pointers.
Steve Settle III had 17 points and three blocks for Howard (8-9, 2-2 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference). Elijah Hawkins added seven assists and seven steals.
Both teams set season lows for scoring during the game. Howard totaled 23 points in the second half, the lowest of the season for the road team, while the 20 first-half points for North Carolina Central marked the fewest of the season for the home team.
Justin Wright had 17 points for the Eagles (8-10, 3-1). Randy Miller Jr. added 16 points. He also had eight turnovers but only two assists. Kris Monroe had 12 points and nine rebounds.
William & Mary 65, Elon 61
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — Ben Wight had 16 points as William & Mary narrowly defeated Elon 65-61 to split back-to-back games on Saturday.
Wight made 8 of 10 foul shots.
Brandon Carroll had 10 points for William & Mary (5-17, 4-5 Colonial Athletic Association).
Darius Burford had 20 points and eight assists for the Phoenix (6-16, 3-6). Hunter McIntosh added 14 points. Zac Ervin had 13 points.
The Tribe leveled the season series against the Phoenix. Elon defeated William & Mary 61-54 last Thursday.
Samford 74, Western Carolina 64
CULLOWHEE — Jermaine Marshall had 18 points to lead five Samford players in double figures as the Bulldogs beat Western Carolina 74-64 on Saturday. Jaron Rillie added 15 points for the Bulldogs. Ques Glover chipped in 13, Wesley Cardet Jr. scored 11 and Jaden Campbell had 11.
Tyler Harris had 14 points for the Catamounts (8-14, 2-7 Southern Conference), whose losing streak reached five games. Joe Petrakis added 12 points and eight rebounds. Nick Robinson had nine rebounds.
The Bulldogs improve to 2-0 against the Catamounts on the season. Samford defeated Western Carolina 85-60 on Jan. 8.
