WVU Rallies, Stuns No. 2 Ohio State
Buckeyes fan McBride nets 21 for Mountaineers
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CLEVELAND -- West Virginia freshman guard Miles McBride remains an avid Ohio State football fan. The Cincinnati native doesn't share the same love for its basketball team.
McBride scored a season-high 21 points, including six in the final 2:22, as No. 22 West Virginia rallied for a 67-59 victory over No. 2 Ohio State on Sunday.
The Mountaineers (11-1), who trailed by nine late in the first half, went ahead for good at 55-54 on a push-shot by Derek Culver with 3:31 left. McBride followed with two free throws and an 18-foot jumper that he punctuated with a playful shrug.
"I knew if we got this win, our fan base was going to go crazy," he said. "Both teams have prideful fan bases, but I wanted our fans to have a little edge.
"I had family and friends in the crowd, and it felt like a big tournament game. This whole day was great. There's nothing like it."
Kaleb Wesson had 17 points and nine rebounds for the Buckeyes (11-2), who were held to a season low in points and committed season highs of 22 turnovers and 25 fouls. They made 5 of 24 shots in the second half while being outscored 36-22.
West Virginia coach Bob Huggins is 3-0 against Ohio State since taking over the program in 2007 and recorded his 19th win over a top 10 team with the Mountaineers.
"I wasn't very happy with them at halftime because I didn't think we played as hard as they did and we got in foul trouble," Huggins said. "Then they came out in the second half and played as well as we've played defensively all year."
The Buckeyes were 3-0 against ranked teams but couldn't contain McBride or senior guard Chase Harler down the stretch. Harler, who finished with 10 points, delivered the dagger with a steal and score that gave West Virginia its largest lead at 65-57.
Freshman forward Oscar Tshiebwe -- the Mountaineers' leading scorer -- had no points and four fouls in eight minutes. Culver collected seven points and 10 rebounds.
Duane Washington Jr. scored 12 points and Luther Muhammad and C.J. Walker had 10 apiece for Ohio State. Kyle Young grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds while battling the stomach flu.
"We did some things that we have to do better, but give them credit for being a really good team," Buckeyes coach Chris Holtmann said. "It was back and forth, and came down to whoever could make enough plays there late."
The Cleveland Classic drew a near-capacity crowd of 16,781 at the home of the NBA's Cavaliers. It was the first college game in the arena since its two-year renovation was completed in September.
"I thought our fans were unbelievable, unbelievable," Huggins said.
"I don't know exactly what the split was, but it sounded 50/50. Our fans really came out for us in Ohio State's backyard."
MILESTONE WATCH
Wesson has 990 points in 78 games, putting him on the verge of becoming the 59th member of Ohio State's 1,000-point club. The 6-foot-9 junior center attempted a career-high 15 free throws, making 10, against the Mountaineers.
RIVALRY RENEWED
The teams faced off for the first time since Jan. 23, 2010. West Virginia has won eight of the last nine meetings, but trails the all-time series 9-8. Ohio State has been ranked in all three of its losses to Huggins.
GRIDIRON GUY
McBride called the outcome of the Fiesta Bowl "a bummer." Clemson came from behind to beat Ohio State 29-23 in the college football playoff semifinal Saturday in Glendale, Arizona.
BIG PICTURE
West Virginia: The Mountaineers moved up three spots in the AP poll after a 75-64 victory at Youngstown State on Dec. 21. They started the season 10-1 for the fifth time in six years, dropping a 70-68 decision at St. John's on Dec. 7.
Ohio State: The Buckeyes won their first nine games before losing 84-71 at Minnesota on Dec. 15. They began the season ranked No. 18 and have been in the top 10 since Nov. 18. ... Ohio State has only played two true road games.
UP NEXT
West Virginia: Visits Kansas in Big 12 action Saturday.
Ohio State: Hosts Wisconsin in Big Ten play Friday.
West scores 22 to lead Marshall over Duquesne 83-61
CLEVELAND (AP) -- Jarrod West hit four 3-pointers and scored a season-high 22 points as Marshall easily defeated Duquesne.
Darius George added a career-high 19 points for Marshall (6-7) and Taevion Kinsey had 13.
The game was part of a doubleheader at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, the home of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers. No. 22 West Virginia defeated No. 2 Ohio State 67-59 in the first game. These were the first college games in the arena since its two-year renovation was completed in September.
Marcus Weathers scored a career-high 25 points for the Dukes (10-2), who lost their second-straight neutral site game after getting off to the second-best start in school history. Michael Hughes added 15 points.
Behind George, the Thundering Herd, who shot 51.5% with eight 3-pointers, had a 38-7 advantage in bench points. Duquesne was 3 of 16 behind the arc and shot 34%.
No. 5 KANSAS 72, STANFORD 56
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) -- Isaiah Moss made three straight 3-pointers during a decisive second-half stretch and finished with 17 points, helping Kansas overcome an inconsistent performance on both ends.
Udoka Azubuike grabbed 13 rebounds as the Jayhawks (10-2) held a big advantage on the boards, but he took just two shots to score two points and committed five turnovers. Kansas' second-leading scorer at 14.0 points per game missed all five of his free-throw attempts in a sub-par day with several NBA scouts in the stands.
Ochai Agbaji and Devon Dotson added 14 points each as Kansas won its fourth straight meeting with Stanford. That leaves Stanford coach Jerod Haase winless against his former school as the programs conclude a four-year agreement.
Oscar da Silva scored 19 points for Stanford (11-2).
No. 6 OREGON 98, ALABAMA STATE 59
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) -- Chris Duarte scored a season-high 31 points and Oregon pounded Alabama State in its final tuneup before Pac-12 play.
The Ducks (11-2) are the conference favorites and will open league play Thursday at Colorado riding a five-game winning streak. They shot 59% and forced 20 turnovers leading to 32 points against the road-weary Hornets (1-12).
Duarte led four Oregon players with at least 10 points. Anthony Mathis had 15, Addison Patterson had 12 and Will Richardson added 10.
Brandon Battle had 14 points to lead Alabama State, which has played all 13 of its games away from home.
No. 8 AUBURN 86, LIPSCOMB 59
AUBURN, Ala. (AP) -- Danjel Purifoy had 17 points and nine rebounds and Auburn improved to 12-0.
The Tigers remained one of two undefeated teams nationally after Liberty's loss to LSU, joining No. 15 San Diego State.
Auburn got off to a slow start against Lipscomb (5-8), a team coming off a 23-point loss at Vermont, but dominated late.
KJ Johnson led Lipscomb with 17 points.
No. 11 MICHIGAN 86, UMASS LOWELL 60
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) -- Jon Teske had 25 points and eight rebounds, Eli Brooks added 15 points and Michigan closed its nonconference schedule with a rout.
The Wolverines played their first game without leading scorer Isaiah Livers after he injured his groin last week against Presbyterian. He's out indefinitely.
Teske scored the first four points of each half and Michigan (10-3) never trailed, opening the game on a 10-2 run. The 7-foot-1 senior center dominated against the River Hawks, who do not have a player over 6-7.
Christian Lutete scored 21 points to lead UMass Lowell (6-9).
No. 13 MARYLAND 84, BRYANT 70
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) -- Anthony Cowan Jr. scored 19 points and No. 13 Maryland ended a two-game slide in the nonconference finale for both teams.
Aaron Wiggins added 15 points and Jalen Smith had 11 points and 10 rebounds for his eighth double-double of the season.
The Terrapins (11-2) struggled with turnovers in losses at Penn State and Seton Hall and committed 16 giveaways Sunday. They overcame them this time and pulled away late to improve to 8-0 at home.
Adam Grant scored 25 points for the Bulldogs (8-5), who had won four in a row and have never beaten a ranked team.
No. 16 VIRGINIA 65, NAVY 56
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) -- Kihei Clark scored five points during a 12-0 second-half run and Virginia overcame a sloppy effort.
Braxton Key led Virginia (10-2) with 15 points, Mamadi Diakite had 13 and Clark added 10 and 13 assists. Clark's foul-line jumper with 9:09 remaining gave the Cavaliers the lead they had just relinquished. Key added two baskets and Clark barely beat the shot clock with a 3-point heave that rattled in, giving Virginia a 50-41 lead.
Cam Davis led Navy (6-5) with 19 points and Evan Wieck had 13. The loss was the 19th in a row for the Midshipmen when facing a ranked opponent.
No. 20 PENN STATE 90, CORNELL 59
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) -- Mike Watkins scored 16 of his 19 points in the first half for Penn State.
Lamar Stevens added 19 points, Myreon Jones scored 18, Izaiah Brockington had 11 and Watkins added 10 rebounds for the Nittany Lions (11-2), who won their 13th straight home game.
Jimmy Boeheim scored 17 points and Terrance McBride added 12 for the Big Red (1-10), who lost their 10th straight game.
No. 23 TEXAS TECH 73, CAL STATE BAKERSFIELD 58
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) -- Kyler Edwards scored 18 of his 20 points after halftime and Texas Tech pulled away to win its 54th consecutive home game against nonconference teams.
Freshman Jahmi'us Ramsey also had 20 points for the Red Raiders (9-3), with eight of those coming in a 13-2 run midway through the second half that put them ahead by double figures the rest of the game.
The Roadrunners (6-9) got within 44-41 on a 3-pointer by Justin Edler-Davis with 12:54 left. But they had three bad-pass turnovers in just under three minutes that led to seven points in the Tech run.
No. 25 IOWA 93, KENNESAW STATE 51
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) -- Luka Garza scored 23 points and Ryan Kriener added a career-high 20 as Iowa closed its nonconference schedule with a win.
Joe Wieskamp had 18 points for the Hawkeyes (10-3), who also had a season-high 14 steals.
Kennesaw State (1-12) stayed close early, trailing just 30-22 with 8:39 left in the first half. But Iowa went on an 18-6 run and led 49-30 at halftime. The Hawkeyes added a 16-0 run in the second half.