CHARLOTTE (AP) — Armando Bacot scored 26 points on 11-of-16 shooting, RJ Davis hit four 3-pointers and finished with 19 points and North Carolina held on to beat Michigan 80-76 Wednesday night.
Caleb Love added 18 points, including four free throws in the closing seconds, for North Carolina.

The Tar Heels (9-4), who were coming off an 89-84 overtime win over then-No. 23 Ohio State on Saturday, have won four games in row.

Kobe Bufkin led Michigan (7-4) with 22 points on 7-of-10 shooting. Jett Howard made 6 of 12 from the field and finished with 17 points.

Bacot scored inside, Love followed with a 3-pointer and Bacot converted a three-point play that gave UNC the lead for good with 4:09 left in the first half. Davis added two 3s, the latter of which capped an 18-4 run that made it 41-32 with 59 seconds remaining.

North Carolina shot 50% (29 of 58) from the field and scored 40 points in the paint.

Davis hit a 3-pointer before Pete Nance was fouled as he threw down a dunk and made the and-1 free throw to give UNC an nine-point lead with 5:45 to play. The Wolverines scored 11 of the next 15 points — including 3s by Joey Baker and Terrance Williams II — to trim their deficit to 73-71 when Bufkin made a jumper with 1:23 to play. Davis answered with a runner off the glass 34 seconds later and Michigan got no closer.

UP NEXT

Michigan returns home to play Dec. 30 against Central Michigan

North Carolina hits the road to resume ACC play at Pitt on Dec. 30

 

UC Santa Barbara defeats Appalachian State 61-50
PHOENIX (AP)  — Ajay Mitchell had 22 points and UC Santa Barbara beat Appalachian State 61-50 on Wednesday night.

Mitchell also contributed six rebounds and three steals for the Gauchos (9-2). Miles Norris scored 17 points and added 10 rebounds. Calvin Wishart recorded nine points and shot 4 for 6, including 1 for 3 from beyond the arc.

Tyree Boykin led the way for the Mountaineers (7-6) with 14 points and six rebounds. Dibaji Walker added nine points for Appalachian State. Donovan Gregory also had nine points and four assists.

 

Johnson has 16 as East Carolina knocks off High Point 60-49

GREENVILLE (AP) — Brandon Johnson’s 16 points helped East Carolina defeat High Point 60-49 on Wednesday night.

Johnson also had 15 rebounds and three steals for the Pirates (9-4). Ezra Ausar added 15 points while going 7 of 10 and added seven rebounds. Javon Small had 12 points, nine rebounds, eight assists, and three steals.

The Panthers (8-4) were led by Jaden House, who recorded 17 points. High Point also got 13 points and six rebounds from Zach Austin.

Johnson scored 11 points in the first half and East Carolina led 32-18 at the break.

 

Harden-Hayes’ 22 lead UNC Wilmington over Campbell 74-66

BUIES CREEK  (AP) — Maleeck Harden-Hayes scored 22 points to help UNC Wilmington defeat Campbell 74-66 on Wednesday.

Harden-Hayes was 8 of 9 shooting (4 for 4 from distance) for the Seahawks (10-3). Trazarien White added 15 points while going 7 of 11 and 0 of 3 from the free throw line, and they also had seven rebounds. Shykeim Phillips was 4 of 10 shooting and 6 of 7 from the free throw line to finish with 14 points. The Seahawks prolonged their winning streak to nine games.

Anthony Dell’Orso finished with 20 points and nine rebounds for the Fighting Camels (5-7). Jay Pal added 13 points and eight rebounds for Campbell. In addition, Ricky Clemons finished with 11 points and two steals.

Telfort scores 20, Northeastern defeats Davidson 73-70

DAVIDSON (AP) — Jahmyl Telfort scored 20 points as Northeastern beat Davidson 73-70 on Wednesday.

Telfort also contributed six rebounds for the Huskies (4-7). Chris Doherty scored 13 points while going 5 of 10 and 3 of 4 from the free throw line, and added five rebounds. Jared Turner recorded 12 points and was 4 of 5 shooting (3 for 4 from distance).

Grant Huffman finished with 18 points, five assists and three steals for the Wildcats (7-5). Foster Loyer added 16 points, six rebounds and two steals for Davidson. In addition, David Skogman finished with 11 points and nine rebounds.

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The Associated Press used technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar for some reports.

 

Kitley powers No. 8 Virginia Tech women past High Point
HIGH POINT — Elizabeth Kitley scored 25 points and dished out a career-best seven assists as No. 8 Virginia Tech captured an 86-66 road victory over High Point on Wednesday night.

High Point — whose tallest players are 6-foot-1 — didn’t have an answer for the 6-6 Kitley. The reigning ACC Player of the Year shot a season-high 78.5% from the floor, making 11-of-14 field goals, and had seven rebounds and four blocks for the Hokies (11-1).

“Honestly, I played a little bit different than I normally do. Normally, I’m a bit more face-up with finesse moves in the post, but we worked on a lot more power-type moves,” Kitley said. “We run a lot of plays to get ready for double teams so I can see my teammates. We also did a good job moving without the ball.”

Taylor Soule added 24 points and Kayana Traylor chipped in 22 for Virginia Tech. It’s the first time in Hokies’ program history that three players have had more than 20 points in a single game.

Claire Wyatt led High Point (2-8) with 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting from 3-point land. Callie Scheier added 11 points and Nakyah Terrell had 10.

“I’m definitely proud of our girls’ effort today. I thought we played well. It’s a big task,” High Point coach Chelsea Banbury said. “They’re big. They’re athletic. (Kitley) is tough for anyone to handle. She had a good game tonight. But I thought, offensively, we were able to get some open shots.”

The Panthers hung around with the Hokies for much of the first half and even briefly led by two points in the early portions of the game. Virginia Tech finally pulled away with a 15-9 run to take a double-digit lead into halftime.

WELCOME BACK
Playing at High Point was a homecoming of sorts for Kitley and Cayla King. The senior Virginia Tech duo grew up in North Carolina’s Triad region and played their prep ball at Northwest Guilford High School, about 15 miles north of High Point.

There were more than a handful of fans clad in Virginia Tech maroon who loudly cheered each time Kitley or King made a play.

“It was really cool,” Kitley said. “I appreciate my coaches for making this happen. This has to be the most people that me and Cayla have had come (to a game). I think we were giving (High Point’s) fans a run for their money.”
King didn’t score, but finished with two boards, a block and an assist.

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AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

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More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25