Little Rock defeats Northern Arizona 84-57
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) Marcus Johnson Jr. led four reserves in double figures with 15 points and Little Rock continued its best start in school history with an 84-57 win over Northern Arizona on Sunday.
Jalen Jackson added 14 points, Roger Woods 13 and Mareik Isom 12 for the Trojans (10-0), who tied the school record for consecutive wins. The 10-0 start is also the best-ever for a Sun Belt Conference team.
Kris Yanku had 13 points for the Lumberjacks (2-8), whose bench was outscored 58-11 in losing their fifth straight.
Little Rock shot 50 percent and outrebounded NAU, which shot 35 percent, 43-30.
The Trojans were up by double figures nine minutes into the game after a 9-0 run. Northern Arizona got back within five at the five-minute mark but Little answered with a 17-0 run and led 44-23 at the half. Johnson had 13 points, including eight in the big run.
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UL Lafayette pulls away late, beats New Orleans 79-69
LAFAYETTE, La. (AP) Bryce Washington had 16 points and 10 rebounds as UL Lafayette pulled away late to beat New Orleans 79-69 on Monday night.
Johnathan Stove was 6 of 11 from the floor for 16 points and Shawn Long added 13 points and eight rebounds for UL Lafayette (4-6), which stopped a three-game losing skid. Kasey Shepherd added nine points and three steals.
Trailing 67-65 with 4:53 left, Hayward Register nailed two from long range and Long drove for a layup and added three free throws as the Ragin' Cajuns pulled away for a 76-69 lead with 2:56 remaining. New Orleans (3-7) mustered only two points in the final five minutes.
UL Lafayette won the rebound battle 50-39 and knocked down 26 of 65 (40 percent) field-goal attempts while the Privateers shot 23 of 60 (38 percent).
Christavious Gill had 17 points, Nate Frye added 16 and Erik Thomas had 15 for New Orleans.
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Texas State dominates Howard Payne in 92-43 victory
SAN MARCOS, Texas (AP) Emani Gant scored 18 points shooting 7-for-10 from the field to lead Texas State in a 92-43 romp over Division III Howard Payne Monday night.
Courtney Julien added 14 points and Cameron Naylor and K.J. Malveau each added 13 for Texas State (6-3). The Bobcats shot 56.6 percent from the field while the Yellow Jackets shot 22.6 percent.
Gant scored 10 points and Naylor scored four in the game's first 4:02 as Texas State built a 16-0 lead. Khyce Randall scored the Yellow Jackets' first basket with 14:32 left in the half.
Texas State built a 42-19 halftime lead. Gant then started the second half scoring the Bobcats' first six points. Kavin Gilder-Tilbury then knocked down a 3-pointer to make it 51-24 with 16:39 to play.
Evan Vaden led Howard Payne (2-7) in scoring with 10 points while collecting five rebounds.
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UT Arlington routs Division III Sul Ross State 98-40
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) Kaelon Wilson scored 15 points, Jorge Bilbao added 10 with a career-high 13 rebounds, and UT Arlington routed Division III Sul Ross State 98-40 on Monday night to win their fourth straight.
Kevin Hervey added 14 points, Nathan Hawkins had 12, and Mairega Clarke scored a season-high 10 for the Mavericks (9-2), who outrebounded the Lobos 59-24 and used 21 assists in making 35 field goals.
The Mavericks had 17 steals and scored 40 points off of 26 Sul Ross State turnovers. With 48 points, UT Arlington's bench outscored the entire Lobos' roster.
Jalen Jones sparked UT Arlington's opening 24-4 run with a jumper and the Mavericks never trailed, extending it to a 59-23 halftime lead on 49 percent shooting.
The Lobos had scored only nine second-half points through the first 15-plus minutes after halftime.
Rocky Feliciano scored 12 points, and Alex Harrison and Xavier Webb added 10 each for the Lobos.
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No. 7 North Carolina beats Appalachian State 94-70
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) Brice Johnson stayed hot, and Marcus Paige stayed healthy.
Johnson scored 22 points to help No. 7 North Carolina beat Appalachian State 94-70 on Monday night.
Justin Jackson and Isaiah Hicks added 12 points each for the Tar Heels (10-2), who rolled to the win after Paige limped off the court once in each half.
Johnson, who established a career high for scoring in North Carolina's previous two games, scored at least 22 points for the third straight game.
''I just wanted to go out there and be aggressive like I was in the last two games,'' Johnson said. ''When I'm aggressive and scoring, that opens everything up for everybody else.''
Joel Berry II had 11 points and a career-high 11 assists as North Carolina scored at least 80 points for the eighth consecutive game.
Paige played only 17 minutes, jamming his surgically repaired right ankle in the first half.
Paige walked into the tunnel to the locker room with 17:45 remaining in the game after converting a transition layup and did not return to the bench.
''There was no sense in bringing him back out,'' North Carolina coach Roy Williams said.
Paige said he was unable to get his ankle loose after it stiffened at halftime. He hurt the ankle while blocking a shot near the sideline midway through the first half.
Paige had arthroscopic surgery on the ankle during the offseason to remove bone spurs. He said after the game that he had minor swelling but that his ankle already was feeling better.
''It was a funny landing for me, and the area where I had surgery is sometimes sensitive still,'' Paige said. ''It just kind of jammed that specific part of my ankle and kind of was painful.''
The Tar Heels pulled away early with a 15-2 run in which they scored on seven of eight possessions. Johnson made two layups and two dunks in a span of 68 seconds as North Carolina seized control.
Freshman Ronshad Shabazz scored 18 of his season-high 21 points in the first half to lead the Mountaineers (2-9).
Frank Eaves had 13 points and Michael Obacha added 12 for Appalachian State, which lost its sixth consecutive game.
''We didn't come out defensively and execute at the beginning of the game,'' Appalachian State coach Jim Fox said. ''I thought it got some of their guys going.''
MILESTONE WATCH
Paige continued his climb on North Carolina's all-time statistical lists. He made a 3-pointer on the first possession of the second half to become the 28th player in program history to score 1,500 career points. His lone assist of the game, a pass that set up Hicks for a dunk late in the first half, made him the 13th player in program history to total at least 500 career assists.
QUOTE OF THE NIGHT
''I'm not worried about it at all. I'm going to be fine. And I'm not just saying that. Last year I was saying that I was fine, but I was hurt. This is nothing.'' - Paige on his ankle
TIP-INS
Appalachian State: Shabazz entered the game with just 8 3-pointers in 28 attempts (29 percent) for the season, but he made 4 of 5 3-point tries in the first half. . Eaves, the Sun Belt's leading scorer at 20.8 points per game, finished 5 of 13 from the field.
North Carolina: Johnson made his first five shots of the game, tying Brad Daugherty's school record of 16 consecutive made field goal attempts. Johnson's streak came to an end when he missed a long jumper from the left wing just over 4 minutes into the game.
UP NEXT
Appalachian State visits Louisiana Monroe on Dec. 31.
North Carolina hosts UNC Greensboro on Dec. 28.