No. 12 UConn beats Maine 95-68 to improve to 9-0
HARTFORD, Conn. -- Ryan Boatright scored 17 points to lead a balanced UConn attack and the 12th-ranked Huskies routed Maine 95-68 on Friday night to stay undefeated.
DeAndre Daniels and Omar Calhoun both added 16 points for the Huskies (9-0), who have won 54 consecutive home games against non-conference opponents. Niels Giffey added 12 points.
Shabazz Napier scored seven points and had eight assists, becoming the fourth player in school history with at least 1,000 points and 500 assists.
Xavier Pollard had 20 points for Maine (1-7), which has lost six in a row.
UConn shot 53 percent from the field including 56 percent from 3-point range.
The Huskies are off to their best start since going 10-0 to open 2010-11.
No. 20 Baylor beats No. 3 Kentucky 67-62
ARLINGTON, Texas -- Kenny Chery scored 18 points, including six in the go-ahead run, and No. 20 Baylor defeated No. 3 Kentucky 67-62 on Friday night in the same building where the NCAA Final Four will be played in April.
The young Wildcats (7-2) had a 50-41 lead when Julius Randle, one of three Kentucky freshmen playing in their home state, had a slam dunk with 13 minutes left.
Baylor (8-1) responded with a 15-5 run in which Chery, a junior college transfer who is now the Bears' point guard, came up big. His two free throws with 6 minutes left put the Bears up 56-55 and they never trailed again.
Randle had 16 points for Kentucky while Aaron Harrison had 15 and James Young 14 with four 3-pointers.
Isaiah Austin and Cory Jefferson had 13 points each for the Bears, who beat Kentucky for the second consecutive year. Rico Gathers had 13 rebounds.
Nash leads No. 9 OSU past South Carolina 79-52
STILLWATER, Okla. -- Le'Bryan Nash had 16 points to lead five Oklahoma State players in double figures as the ninth-ranked Cowboys made easy work of South Carolina in a 79-52 win on Friday night.
Marcus Smart added 13 points for the Cowboys (8-1), who bounced back from their first loss of the season last week. Markel Brown added 11 points, and Brian Williams and Michael Cobbins finished with 10 points each.
Oklahoma State, which held the Gamecocks to a season low in points, led by as many as 26 points in the first half, putting the game out of reach with an early 25-2 run.
Jaylen Shaw led South Carolina (2-3) with 13 points, while Tyrone Johnson finished with 12.
