Top 25 roundup: No. 8 Tennessee crushes St. Joe's

Reuters

Published Dec 22, 2020 02:00AM ET

Victor Bailey Jr. scored 18 points and Santiago Vescovi added a season-high 16 points to go with five assists as No. 8 Tennessee remained unbeaten with a 102-66 blowout of Saint Joseph's on Monday night in Knoxville, Tenn.

Six players finished in double figures for the Volunteers (5-0), who seized control with a 16-0 run early in the first half and led by as many as 38 points. Tennessee eclipsed 100 points in successive games for the first time since 2006 while shooting 50 percent (31-for-62).

Yves Pons had 13 points and nine rebounds for Tennessee while Keon Johnson contributed 12 points and five assists. John Fulkerson and Jaden Springer added 10 points apiece.

Ryan Daly paced the Hawks (0-5) with 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists. Dahmir Bishop scored 12 points while Taylor Funk and Rahmir Moore each chipped in 10.

No. 1 Gonzaga 95, Northwestern (NASDAQ:NWE) State 57

Corey Kispert recorded 27 points on 10-of-13 shooting and collected seven rebounds to lead the top-ranked Bulldogs to the victory over the Demons at Spokane, Wash. The nonconference game was the first of back-to-back contests between the clubs.

Anton Watson contributed 15 points, seven rebounds, four assists, four steals and three blocked shots for the Bulldogs (5-0). Jalen Suggs added 12 points, seven rebounds and seven steals, and Drew Timme recorded 12 points and eight rebounds as Gonzaga cruised in its first home game of the season.

Carvell Teasett scored 16 points and Jairus Roberson added 12 on four 3-pointers for Northwestern State (1-8), which lost its third straight game.

No. 2 Baylor 99, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 42

Jared Butler scored 14 points and dished seven assists as the Bears relied on a balanced attack to cruise to a victory over the Golden Lions at Waco, Texas.

Baylor (6-0) has won each of its games by double digits, with the smallest margin of victory being a 13-point victory over then-No. 5 Illinois. Five players scored in double digits for Baylor, with L.J. Cryer (15 points) leading the way.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff (1-8) dropped its third game in a row and lost to a ranked team for the second time this season. The Golden Lions surrendered 90-plus points for the fifth time in nine games. Shaun Doss Jr. notched a double-double with 25 points and 10 rebounds to lead UAPB.

No. 21 Florida State 72, Gardner-Webb 59

Only two days after losing at home for the first time in nearly two years, the Seminoles avoided another setback in Tallahassee, producing the win over the Bulldogs.

Anthony Polite's 15 points and nine rebounds led the Seminoles (5-1), who had a 27-game home winning streak as well as a streak of 41 consecutive home games without a loss to a nonconference opponent snapped by UCF on Saturday.

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Florida State rode its defense and size in the paint to hold off the Bulldogs (1-4). Gardner-Webb led by six in the first half and kept the game close into the second half, pulling as close as 54-53 with 7:07 left. Lance Terry keyed Gardner-Webb's upset bid with a game-high 23 points.

No. 24 Virginia Tech 84, Longwood 58

Jalen Cone bombed in six 3-pointers to account for all of his scoring and the Hokies celebrated a return to the national rankings with a strong second half en route to the nonconference victory over the Lancers at Blacksburg, Va.

Cone finished with 18 points, Keve Aluma went for 14, Joseph Bamisile added 11 and Tyrece Radford chipped in with nine to complement a game-high eight rebounds for Virginia Tech (7-1). The Hokies won their third straight since a loss to Penn State knocked them out of the Top 25.

Leslie Nkereuwem had a team-high 10 points for the Lancers (1-7), who lost their fourth straight.

--Field Level Media

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Date: 22/12/2020 00:50

Word Count: 610

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