EAST LANSING, Mich. — Xavier Tillman scored a career-high 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to help No. 3 Michigan State tune up with a 94-46 win over Charleston Southern on Monday night.
The Spartans (3-1) were without starting forward Aaron Henry, who rolled both ankles in last week’s win over then-No. 12 Seton Hall, in the on-campus game that is part of the Maui Invitational.
Michigan State’s Gabe Brown made his first career start in place of Henry and the sophomore scored a season-high 12 points.
Cassius Winston added 11 points and eight assists for the Spartans. He told their fans they’re keeping him going while dealing with the death of his brother earlier this month.
The Buccaneers (1-4) have had four straight lopsided losses since opening with a win over Columbia International.
Charleston Southern’s Dontrell Shuler had 15 points and Terence Porter scored 11 points.
NO. 9 KENTUCKY 82, UTAH VALLEY 74
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Ashton Hagans scored a career-high 26 points, and Kentucky survived another close game against what should have been a lesser opponent in Utah Valley.
The Wildcats (3-1) dropped out of the No. 1 spot in The Associated Press Top 25 after losing at home to Evansville last week, and they had to overcome a late surge to hold off the Wolverines.
Kentucky led by 16 points early in the second half, but Utah Valley steadily chipped away until T.J. Washington’s 3-pointer got the Wolverines (3-2) within one at 68-67 with 3:26 remaining. Nate Sestina responded with a three-point play that helped the Wildcats pull away.
Nick Richards had 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Tyrese Maxey added 14 points for Kentucky.
Washington led the Wolverines with 22 points, followed by Trey Woodbury with 17 and Jamison Overton with 10.
NO. 10 OHIO STATE 86, STETSON 51
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Kyle Young had a career-high 15 points and Kaleb Wesson added 13 to lead Ohio State past Stetson.
The Buckeyes (4-0), who moved up six spots in the AP Top 25 after beating then-No. 10 Villanova last week, jumped out to a 28-3 lead against the overmatched Hatters (2-2), built a 42-14 halftime advantage and cruised in the second half.
D.J. Carton had 10 points and Justin Ahrens had nine, hitting three 3-pointers. Young completed his double-double with 10 boards.
The bright spot for Stetson was Rob Perry, who finished with 17 points.
NO. 15 UTAH STATE 82, UTSA 50
LOGAN, Utah — Sam Merrill scored 21 points, including five 3-pointers, to lead Utah State past UTSA.
Diogo Brito added 17 points and Brock Miller chipped in 10 for the Aggies. Justin Bean and Alphonso Anderson each had 11 rebounds.
Utah State (5-0) dominated the inside, outrebounding UTSA 55-36, outscoring the Roadrunners 46-16 in the paint and 38-8 in second-chance points.
Jhivvan Jackson scored 15 points to lead the Roadrunners (0-5).
NO. 19 AUBURN 91, COLGATE 62
AUBURN, Ala. — Samir Doughty scored 20 points, Austin Wiley had 13 points and 10 rebounds, and Auburn rolled past Colgate.
The Tigers improved to 5-0 for the first time in 15 years.
Colgate (1-3) struggled to get anything going against the Tigers’ overwhelming size and suffocating defense. Jordan Burns had 18 points and Rapolas Ivanauskas added 12 for the Raiders.
NO. 23 COLORADO 69, UC IRVINE 53
BOULDER, Colo. — Tyler Bey and McKinley Wright each scored 16 points and Colorado leaned on a strong defensive effort to beat UC Irvine.
Colorado (3-0) pressured Irvine into 22 turnovers leading to 21 points for the Buffaloes, who have won all eight of their meetings with the Anteaters. It was the 17th win in Colorado’s last 19 home games.
Collin Welp had 12 points to lead Irvine (3-2). Tommy Rutherford added 10 points.
