MEN'S BASKETBALL: Syracuse remains unbeaten

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) - Kris Joseph scored 17 points, Brandon Triche added 16, and top-ranked Syracuse remained unbeaten with a gritty 73-66 victory over No. 20 Marquette on Saturday.

Syracuse (17-0, 4-0 Big East) is two wins away from matching the school's best start, established a decade ago.

Marquette (12-4, 1-2) entered the game 1-7 against the top-ranked teams. The Golden Eagles' lone triumph was 83-69 over Kentucky in the 2003 NCAA tournament, which earned them a trip to the Final Four in New Orleans, where Carmelo Anthony led Syracuse to its lone national championship. The Golden Eagles lost 82-77 to Duke in November 2010 in their previous try.

C.J. Fair had 13 points and Dion Waiters added 12 to go with seven assists and three steals.

Darius Johnson-Odom led Marquette with 19 points and Jae Crowder had 15.

No. 2 KENTUCKY 79, SOUTH CAROLINA 64.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) - Terrence Jones hit his first eight shots to finish with 20 points and No. 2 Kentucky beat South Carolina 79-64 on Saturday in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams.

The Wildcats (15-1, 1-0) have won seven straight and came in as the preseason favorite to win the SEC for the 45th time. They used an 11-0 run to end the first half to take a comfortable lead against South Carolina.

Freshman Anthony Davis had 12 points, 10 rebounds, seven blocked shots and two steals, while fellow freshman Marquis Teague added 17 points.

It was the third loss this season for South Carolina (8-7, 0-1) against a team ranked No. 1 or No. 2 after previous losses to North Carolina and Ohio State.

Damien Leonard scored 15 points as the Gamecocks' four-game winning streak ended.

No. 3 NORTH CAROLINA 83, BOSTON COLLEGE 60

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) - Harrison Barnes scored 25 points and No. 3 North Carolina won its eighth straight.

Tyler Zeller added 20 points for the Tar Heels (14-2, 1-0). The preseason league favorites shot 47 percent, took control with a big first-half run and used an even bigger spurt late to claim its 27th straight win at the Smith Center.

Matt Humphrey scored 14 points and Ryan Anderson added 13 for BC (5-10, 0-1), which started five freshmen and had 20 turnovers in losing its third straight.

The Eagles briefly made things interesting in the second half, cutting a 21-point deficit to nine on Patrick Heckmann's 3-pointer with 9:18 left. Barnes answered two possessions later with a slashing drive that started the 22-8 run that pushed the lead back into the 20s.

No. 4 BAYLOR 73, TEXAS TECH 60

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) - Pierre Jackson scored 19 points and No. 4 Baylor beat Texas Tech 73-60 on Saturday.

Brady Heslip had 16 points and Quincy Miller finished with 15 for the Bears (15-0, 2-0 Big 12), who are off the best start in school history.

Baylor held off the Red Raiders (7-7, 0-2) after building an 11-point lead midway through the second half. Texas Tech put together a 9-2 run to close to 55-51 with 8:17 remaining, but the rally fizzled from there.

The Red Raiders committed eight turnovers in the second half, compared to four after halftime for the Bears.

Javarez Willis scored 13 points and Ty Nurse added 10 for Texas Tech.

No. 5 DUKE 81, GEORGIA TECH 74

ATLANTA (AP) - Ryan Kelly scored 21 points, Seth Curry added 15 and No. 5 Duke beat Georgia Tech 81-74 on Saturday.

Duke (13-2, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) avoided consecutive defeats for the first time since Feb. 11 and Feb. 15, 2009.

Glen Rice Jr. scored a season-high 28 points and Mfon Udofia finished with 19 points for Georgia Tech (7-8, 0-1 ACC). The Yellow Jackets, who never led, have lost four straight.

Kelly was 14 of 14 from the free-throw line, including eight in the final 40 seconds to help seal the victory.

No. 6 OHIO STATE 76, IOWA 47

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) - Jared Sullinger scored a season-high 28 points and Deshaun Thomas added 10 points for the Buckeyes, who won for the second time on the road.

Ohio State (15-2, 3-1 Big Ten) went on a 16-2 run sandwiched around halftime to jump ahead 38-21 early in the second half. The Buckeyes steadily built that lead to 60-33 with just under eight minutes left and cruised to their third Big Ten win by at least 29 points.

Eric May had nine points to lead Iowa (10-7, 2-2).

No. 23 KANSAS STATE 75, No. 7 MISSOURI 59

MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) - Rodney McGruder scored 20 points and No. 23 Kansas State encountered surprisingly little resistance from No. 7 Missouri.

Missouri (14-1, 1-1 Big 12) entered the day as one the nation's four remaining unbeaten teams but never threatened in the final 30 minutes. Marcus Denmon led the Tigers with 17 points while Michael Dixon added 16.

Will Spradling had 14 points for the Wildcats, (12-2, 1-1) who led by at least a dozen points the entire second half.

K-State held Missouri without a field goal for more than eight minutes in the first half, taking its lead from 16-10 to 38-19. The Wildcats led 44-25 at halftime, helped by the Tigers going 5 of 22 from the free throw line in the half.

WEST VIRGINIA 74, No. 9 GEORGETOWN 72

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) - Truck Bryant scored 25 points and West Virginia ended No. 9 Georgetown's 11-game winning streak.

Kevin Jones added 22 points and 16 rebounds for his 11th double-double of the season for the Mountaineers (12-4, 3-1 Big East).

Georgetown came back from 17 points down to beat No. 20 Marquette on Wednesday night but couldn't overtime a double-digit deficit against the Mountaineers, who shot 50 percent (24 of 48) from the floor and beat the Hoyas for the fifth straight time.

Hollis Thompson led Georgetown (13-2, 3-1) with 20 points. Jason Clark, who had 26 points in the Marquette win, was limited to 10 on Saturday.

NOTRE DAME 67, No. 11 LOUISVILLE 65

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Eric Atkins scored six points in the second overtime and the Fighting Irish got their first road win of the season.

Notre Dame (10-6, 2-1 Big East) held the Cardinals without a field goal in the second overtime until Rakeem Buckles' tip in at the buzzer.

Atkins hit jumpers on back-to-back possessions to give Notre Dame a 65-63 lead with 17 seconds to play, and after Louisville's Peyton Siva missed on the other end, he sealed the win with two free throws.

Jack Cooley led the Irish with 18 points and 10 rebounds, Jerian Grant scored 17 points, and Atkins finished with 15 points. Scott Martin also chipped in a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds.

Kyle Kuric and Chane Behanan each scored 17 points to pace Louisville (13-3, 1-2).

TENNESSEE 67, No. 13 FLORIDA 56

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Kenny Hall scored a season-high 13 points and Tennessee upset No. 13 Florida.

The Gators, who have lost all four of their true road games this year, came in averaging 85.4 points this season, best among SEC teams and fifth in the nation. The Volunteers held them to 35.7 percent shooting while hitting 51 percent of their own attempts.

Josh Richardson hit a 3-pointer 41 seconds into the second half that set the tone for the Vols the rest of the way. Cameron Tatum stole the ball from Erving Walker on the next possession and ran it down the floor for a dunk to give Tennessee a 38-31 lead.

Kenny Boynton hit a 3-pointer for the Gators at the other end. Boynton, who entered the game averaging 19.5 points, finished with 13. Erik Murphy also had 13 for Florida (12-4, 0-1) and Patric Young added 12.

No. 14 KANSAS 72, OKLAHOMA 61

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) - Travis Releford scored 28 points to set a career best for the second straight game and Thomas Robinson added 18 points.

The Jayhawks (12-3, 2-0 Big 12) scored the first seven points of the second half to take the lead, then never gave it back. Jeff Withey, Elijah Johnson and Robinson all had two-handed slams during a 29-6 surge that turned a one-point game into a blowout.

The Jayhawks have won their first two conference games for the sixth straight year and the 16th time in 17 seasons.

Steven Pledger scored 14 points to lead the Sooners (10-4, 0-2), who have lost three of their last four games.

Kansas has won the last eight games in the series.

No. 22 HARVARD 63, DARTMOUTH 47

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) - Oliver McNally scored 17 points, hitting a 3-pointer during an 8-0 run that gave the Crimson the lead for good, and No. 22 Harvard pulled away with a dominant second half.

Kyle Casey and Keith Wright scored 10 apiece for Harvard (13-2, 1-0 Ivy), which bounced back from a loss to Fordham and made its case to remain in The Associated Press Top 25.

Gabas Maldunas scored 15 points and added nine rebounds for Dartmouth (3-13, 0-1), which lost its sixth consecutive game.

Dartmouth led 34-27 in the second half but was outscored 36-13 from there.

Harvard President Drew Gilpin Faust was at the game, Harvard's second sellout of the season.