Akron surges past UMBC 74-57
AKRON, Ohio (AP) -- Jake Kretzer scored 13 points and Demetrius Treadwell added 10 with 13 rebounds, leading Akron past Maryland Baltimore County 74-57 in the season opener for both teams on Friday night.
The Zips shot 47.2 percent from the field behind balanced scoring and hit 12 3-pointers. Kretzer was 3 of 4 behind the arc. Reggie McAdams and Kwan Cheatham Jr. each had nine points for Akron.
Cody Joyce was the lone double-figure scorer for UMBC, finishing with 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting.
The Retrievers grabbed an early eight-point lead, but Akron stormed back with a 27-8 run sparked by two 3-pointers from McAdams to end the first half.
Kretzer had 11 of his 13 points in the second half, helping Akron push the score to 64-34 with 7:08 remaining.
Ten of 13 players scored for Akron, leading to a 36-9 advantage in bench points.
Williams helps Iona hold off Cleveland St, 78-73
NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. (AP) -- Isaiah Williams converted a layup to give Iona the lead with 44 seconds left and tacked on a free throw 20 seconds later to help Iona hold off Cleveland State, 78-73 on Friday night.
Trey Lewis fed Anton Grady for a layup to give Cleveland State the lead, 71-70 with 4:11 left and neither team managed to score until Schadrac Casimir drilled a 3 with 2:27 left to put Iona back on top. Lewis answered with a 3-pointer to pull the Vikings even at 73-73.
Williams and Casimir finished with 18 and 17 points, respectively to lead the Gaels, who are the defending Metro Atlantic champions.
Marlin Mason was a perfect 6-for-6 from the field, including 2-for-2 from beyond the arc, and shared team-high honors with Williams. Both scored 16 points. Andre Yates and Kaza Keane added 14 and 13 points, respectively.
Wright State rallies past Belmont 73-70
DAYTON, Ohio (AP) -- Chrishawn Hopkins had two late layups and Reggie Arceneaux added three free throws in between, rallying Wright State past Belmont 73-70 in the season opener for both teams Friday night.
Hopkins finished with 21 points and Arcenaux had 15 for the Raiders, who trailed 70-66 with 2:41 left but scored the last seven points of the game.
Belmont turned it over three times in the final minute. Arcenaux hit two from the line to tie it at 70, and Grant Benzinger followed with a steal. Arcenaux split the next two free throws, but Evan Bradds committed an offensive foul. Hopkins' layup capped the scoring with two seconds left.
Wright State shot 40 percent to Belmonts' 47.1 percentage, but the Raiders took advantage of 21 turnovers by the Bruins
Bradds led Belmont with 21 points on 8-of-9 shooting and Reece Chamberlain added 18 points with 12 rebounds.
Xavier cruises past Northern Arizona 93-60
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Matt Stainbrook and Trevon Bluiett scored 18 points apiece to help Xavier beat Northern Arizona 93-60 on Friday night.
Jalen Reynolds added 16 points and the trio combined to make 21 of 25 shots for Xavier (1-0). The Musketeers connected on 36 of 54 attempts, including 7 of 19 from 3-point range and converted 14 of 19 free throw attempts.
It was the first of four home games to open the season as Xavier extended its streak to 25-straight regular-season openers.
Quinton Upshur scored 20 points, with four 3-pointers, for Northern Arizona (0-1) and Ako Kaluna added 10. The Lumberjacks trailed 48-22 at halftime.
Back-to-back 3-pointers by Myles Davis and J.P. Macura gave Xavier a 72-32 lead midway through the second half.
Read more:Stainbrook gives talented young Muskies their base
Thompson leads young Buckeyes to opening win
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Sam Thompson scored 14 points and No. 20 Ohio State's newcomers had a big game in leading the Buckeyes to a 92-55 victory against overmatched UMass-Lowell on Friday night.
Freshman D'Angelo Russell had 16 points, four rebounds and six assists, Marc Loving scored 14, graduate transfer Anthony Lee had 13 and redshirt freshman Kam Williams 12 for the Buckeyes (1-0), who shot 62 percent from the field.
Jahad Thomas, redshirted as a freshman due to an injury, had 18 points in his debut for the River Hawks (0-1), who are integrating nine newcomers into the lineup.
Russell is an acclaimed recruit out of Louisville, Kentucky, who led Montverde (Fla.) Academy to a 55-2 record and two mythical national championships the last two seasons. He played well alongside point guard Shannon Scott, and then slid over and ran the offense to give Scott a breather.
The bigger, stronger, quicker Buckeyes went on a 14-0 run early to effectively put the game out of reach. After Kerry Weldon's dunk put the River Hawks up 5-4 in the opening 2 minutes, Thompson hit a 3 pointer from in front of the UMass-Lowell bench and then made a floater in the lane. Scott then hit a 3, Loving a perimeter jumper and, in rapid succession in transition, the Buckeyes got back-to-back baskets on a dunk from Thompson and Russell's layup to make it 18-5.
Ohio State led 47-25 at the half, with the lead never dropping below 20 again.
Most of the buzz surrounding the Buckeyes dealt with the newcomers. Coach Thad Matta's 11th Ohio State campaign will be built around his stellar recruiting class plus Temple transfer Lee and Williams, redshirted a year ago after an early-season illness.
Ellis leads Cincinnati past St. Francis (Pa) 52-37
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Octavius Ellis scored 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds to help Cincinnati beat St. Francis (Pa) 52-37 in the season opener for both teams on Friday night.
Ellis added three steals and two blocks as the Cincinnati defense smothered St. Francis, forcing 21 turnovers and holding the Red Flash to 30 percent shooting from the field (12-of-40) and 25 percent (4-of-16) from 3-point range.
Ronnie Drinnon's jumper with 13:35 left in the first half pulled St. Francis within 3 before Cincinnati used an 18-7 run, including seven points by Quadri Moore, to open up a 27-13 lead with 5 minutes left.
Drinnon opened the second half with a jumper, but an 8-0 Cincinnati spurt pushed the lead to 37-19 with 14 minutes to play and St. Francis never again got closer than nine.
Gary Clark added 10 points, six rebounds and four steals in the win.
Dayton 76, Alabama A&M 52
DAYTON, Ohio (AP) - Dyshawn Pierre scored 16 points on a perfect 6-of-6 from the field and grabbed nine rebounds to lead Dayton to a 76-52 victory over Alabama A&M in the season opener for both teams.
Darrell Davis added 15 points off the bench, Kyle Davis had 11, and Devon Scott added nine and 12 rebounds for the Flyers, who outrebounded Alabama A&M by 13, including a 13-8 advantage on the offensive glass.
Rakiya Battle led the Bulldogs with 11 points. Justin Colvin added nine points and a three assists.
Dayton opened on a 17-6 run in the first eight minutes and built an 18-point lead at the break. Dayton kept the pressure on in the second half, pushing their lead as high as 28.
