FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Keyshaun Langley scored 23 points, Mikeal Brown-Jones added 17 and UNC Greensboro stunned No. 14 Arkansas 78-72 on Friday night.
The Spartans (2-1), who came in as 15½-point underdogs according to FanDuel Sportsbook, went on a 13-2 run late in the first half and led by 15 early in the second, taking advantage of sloppy play by the Razorbacks (3-1).
Arkansas pulled within 54-50 on a layup by Davonte Davis with 9:54 left, but UNC Greensboro responded with a 3-pointer by Donovan Atwell and a layup by Joryam Saizonou for a nine-point lead. The Razorbacks never seriously threatened after that.
“We responded. They punched us,” UNC Greensboro coach Mike Jones said. “We responded the right way. We responded not by putting our head down and pouting, but just having some resolve.”
Tramon Mark scored 20 points and El Ellis added 19 for Arkansas.
The Razorbacks had 13 turnovers, including six in the final 4:15 of the first half, and the Spartans finished with 16 second-chance points. While Arkansas shot 44% from the field, it made only 4 of 23 3-pointers (17%).
“And 4 for 23? I don’t think we even needed to attempt that many,” Arkansas coach Eric Musselman said. “They didn’t have many shot blockers, you know? So not going to the rim was an issue in the first half.”
UNC-Greensboro hosts Kansas City on Nov. 24.
No. 9 Duke 90, Bucknell 60
DURHAM — No. 9 Duke found all sorts of firepower and even a spark from its coach Friday night.
Mark Mitchell scored a career-high 20 points and the Blue Devils rolled past Bucknell 90-60, picking up the pace after second-year coach Jon Scheyer’s first technical foul.
Mitchell, a sophomore forward, shot 8 of 13 from the field. He was one of five Blue Devils with at least one 3-pointer.
“We have a lot of scoring firepower on the team,” Mitchell said. “It was the way the game evolved.”
Jared McCain made five 3s on the way to 17 points. Tyrese Proctor had 13 points and Kyle Filipowski added 10 for Duke (3-1).
Jack Forrest had 17 points and Ruot Bijiek scored 11 to pace Bucknell (1-4), which played its fourth road game in 10 days.
Duke shot 38.2% on 3-pointers (13 for 34), while Bucknell was at 37% on all attempts from the field.
Scheyer was assessed his first technical foul less than eight minutes into the game. It was the 500th game for Scheyer at Duke as either a player or member of the coaching staff.
“I wanted to have something that’s memorable,” Scheyer joked about the milestone game. “I can always go to bat for my guys.”
The mild-mannered Scheyer said he never recalled getting a technical as a player.
Duke led 19-9 at the time of the whistle, coming as Scheyer disputed a non-call or two on Duke’s offensive end. The Blue Devils then went on an 8-0 spurt to build a 29-19 lead.
Four players scored during an 11-0 run to end the first half that gave Duke a 44-29 lead at the break. The Blue Devils got 3-pointers from Proctor, Jeremy Roach and McCain early in the second half for a 55-33 advantage.
Forrest scored 15 of Bucknell’s first 24 points, hitting three 3s.
Duke is home Tuesday night against La Salle.
Wake Forest 71, Towson 61
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Kevin Miller had 25 points, Hunter Salas scored 24 and Wake Forest finished strong to beat Towson 71-61 in the consolation final of the Charleston Classic on Friday night.
Messiah Jones hit back-to-back baskets to give Towson (2-3) a 56-54 lead with 5:44 remaining. Salas hit a jumper to tie it and Miller took over from there, scoring 11 of the final 15 points for Wake Forest (2-2).
Miller sank 11 of 17 shots from the floor for the Demon Deacons. Salas made 8 of 12 shots, including 4 of 6 from 3-point range.
Freshman Tyler Tejada topped the Tigers with 17 points. Jones totaled 12 points and nine rebounds, while Charles Thompson pitched in with 11 points and nine boards.
Cameron Hildreth scored all nine of his points in the first half and Miller sank a jumper at the buzzer to give Wake Forest a 35-33 lead. Tejada scored 10 to keep Towson close. Both teams shot 45%, but the Demon Deacons made 6 of 13 from beyond the arc while the Tigers hit 1 of 3.
Towson went scoreless for 4:39 late, missing eight straight shots. A 3-pointer by Dylan Williamson with 25 seconds left ended the drought.
The Demon Deacons forced 10 turnovers and had just five of their own.
NC State 87, Charleston Southern 53
RALEIGH — DJ Horne scored 14 of his team-high 18 points in the second half as NC State rolled to a third-straight win, beating Charleston Southern 87-53 on Friday night.
NC State has now started the season 3-0 six times in seven seasons under coach Kevin Keatts.
DJ Patrick and Louis Hutchinson hit back-to-back 3-pointers to pull Charleston Southern (2-2) within one, 18-17, with 8:53 left but the Wolfpack closed out the half on a 24-6 run and led 42-23 at the break.
The Wolfpack forced a season-high 22 turnovers, turning them into 29 points. They forced the Buccaneers into three 10-second violations and 12 turnovers in the first half.
DJ Burns Jr. scored 16 points, Dennis Parker Jr. had 12 points and four steals and Casey Morsell added 10 points.
Taje’ Kelly and RJ Johnson each had a dozen points to lead the Buccaneers and Louis Hutchinson added 11 points and seven rebounds.
NC State faces Vanderbilt Thursday night in the Vegas Showdown in Las Vegas.
Elon 86, IUPUI 72
ROCK HILL, S.C. — Nick Dorn scored 19 points as Elon beat IUPUI 86-72 on Friday night.
Dorn was 6-of-12 shooting, including 4 for 9 from 3-point range, for the Phoenix (2-2). TK Simpkins added 19 points. LA Pratt finished with 16 points.
Jlynn Counter led the way for the Jaguars (2-2) with 20 points. John Egbuta added 10 points and nine rebounds for IUPUI. In addition, Bryce Monroe had 10 points and four assists.
Gardner-Webb 62, Weber State 61
MONCTON, New Brunswick — Julien Soumaoro’s 27 points helped Gardner-Webb defeat Weber State 62-61 on Friday night in the opening round of the Atlantic Slam.
Brendan Mykalcio scored in the lane with 7 seconds remaining to give the Runnin’ Bulldogs their second lead of the second half and they held on for the win.
Soumaoro shot 10 for 13 (5 for 8 from 3-point range) for the Runnin’ Bulldogs (2-2). Caleb Robinson added 16 points while going 8 of 11 from the field, and he also had seven rebounds.
Dillon Jones led the way for the Wildcats (2-1) with 24 points, nine rebounds and three steals. Viljami Vartiainen added 10 points for Weber State.
The event on continues on Saturday when Gardner-Webb takes on Colgate and Weber State plays Yale.
East Tennessee State 70, Davidson 68
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — Ebby Asamoah had 24 points in East Tennessee State’s 70-68 victory over Davidson on Friday night.
Asamoah also contributed seven rebounds and three steals for the Buccaneers (2-2). Karon Boyd scored 17 points and added six rebounds. Quimari Peterson finished with 14 points.
Reed Bailey led the Wildcats (2-2) in scoring, finishing with 17 points. David Skogman added 15 points and two steals for Davidson. Bobby Durkin also recorded 13 points.
Davidson hosts Boston University on Tuesday.
