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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Top 25 roundup: No. 1 Louisville pulls away from Pittsburgh, 64-46

Pittsburgh guard Au’Diese Toney, left, and forward Eric Hamilton, right, trap Louisville forward Dwayne Sutton (24) along the baseline during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Dec. 6, 2019. Louisville won 64-46. (Timothy D. Easley / Associated Press)
Associated Press

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Jordan Nwora scored 19 points, Malik Williams had 13 points and 11 rebounds off the bench, and No. 1 Louisville used a 17-4 second-half run to pull away from Pittsburgh for a 64-46 victory Friday night.

After shooting 37% in their previous game against No. 4 Michigan, the Cardinals (9-0, 2-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) came out firing from long range. Every player had at least one 3-pointer as they went 9 of 17 from behind the arc and 13 for 26 overall in the first half. Nwora was the last to join the party but made shots from elsewhere before hitting another 3 as Louisville finished with 11 in all.

Nwora left the game briefly in the second half after injuring his left shoulder, part of a cold stretch for Louisville that allowed Pittsburgh (7-3, 1-1) to get within 43-38. The Cardinals answered with their big run that featured 13 straight points and Nwora’s steal and breakaway dunk.

No. 4 Michigan 103, Iowa 91

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Franz Wagner led a balanced scoring effort for No. 4 Michigan with 18 points, and the Wolverines overcame Luka Garza’s 44 points to open Big Ten play with a victory.

The Wolverines (8-1, 1-0) rebounded from their 58-43 loss to top-ranked Louisville on Tuesday night. In fact, Michigan exceeded its point total from Tuesday before halftime against Iowa. Garza scored 27 points in the first half, including 15 of Iowa’s first 17, but it was the defensive end that prevented the Hawkeyes (6-3, 0-1) from winning this one.

Jon Teske and Zavier Simpson added 16 points each for Michigan, which had six players with at least 12.

No. 10 Duke 77, Virginia Tech 63

BLACKSBURG, Va. – Tre Jones scored 15 points and No. 10 Duke rallied after a slow start to beat Virginia Tech.

Vernon Carey Jr. and Wendell Moore Jr. added 12 points each for the Blue Devils (9-1, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), who used runs of 12-2 just after halftime and 12-3 a short time later to take command after trailing for almost the entire first half.

P.J. Horne scored 15 points to lead the Hokies (6-3, 1-1), who lost their third in a row and ended their three-game home winning streak against the Blue Devils. Wabisa Bede and Tyrece Radford added 12 points each.