Duke Cuts Down Rising Wake
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Jeff Capel and Roshown McLeod made key shots down the stretch Wednesday night as No. 8 Duke beat No. 2 Wake Forest for the first time in 10 meetings 73-68 in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Wake Forest (18-2, 8-2) was all set to take over the top ranking after losses this week by No. 1 Kansas and No. 3 Kentucky. But the Blue Devils (18-5, 7-3) pulled out the win down the stretch, becoming the first team to shoot over 39 percent this season against the Demon Deacons with a 46.4 percent effort.
Capel led Duke with 18 points, while McLeod added 16 for the Blue Devils.
Tim Duncan led Wake Forest with 26 points, but missed five free throws during a crucial 2-minute span late and didn’t take a shot in the final five minutes.
With the score tied at 62 with 3:40 left, McLeod nailed a 3-pointer - and after Wake Forest closed to one - Capel hit a tough, double-clutching 15-footer to push the lead back to three.
Freshman Chris Carrawell, and not Duncan, then came up with the game’s top defensive play. He blocked a driving layup attempt by Wake’s Tony Rutland with 1:20 left and the Demon Deacons were then forced to foul.
Trajan Langdon, a 90 percent free-throw shooter, was the player they chose. He sank four straight from the foul line to seal the win.
(4) Minnesota 85, Penn State 70
At Minneapolis, Sam Jacobson scored 22 points and the Gophers (20-2, 9-1 Big Ten) forced 18 first-half turnovers and built a 21-point lead before fighting off a rally by the Nittany Lions (8-11, 1-9).
(6) Iowa State 61, Baylor 52
Kenny Pratt scored 16 points, including a key basket late, and Dedric Willoughby added 14 as the Cyclones (16-3, 7-2 Big 12) overcame a sluggish performance to beat the Bears (14-8, 3-7) at Ames, Iowa.
(7) Maryland 66, N. Carolina State 55
At College Park, Md., Laron Profit rebounded from a two-game slump with 20 points, and so did the Terrapins (18-4, 7-3 ACC), who ended their two-game losing streak by defeating the Wolfpack (9-10, 1-9).
Nebraska 77, (15) Colorado 69
Tyronn Lue scored 22 points and the Cornhuskers (12-9, 4-5 Big 12) jumped to an early lead and held on to stun the Buffaloes (16-5, 7-2) at Lincoln, Neb.