Duke leaves no doubt

There was no doubt about the latest No. 1 vs. No. 2 men’s matchup.

There was no doubt who the top players were, either.

J.J. Redick had career highs of 41 points and nine 3-pointers and Shelden Williams added 23 points as No. 1 Duke beat No. 2 Texas 97-66 on Saturday in East Rutherford, N.J., the third-biggest margin in a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup.

“J.J. is a special player, as good as they come,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said of the returning All-American. “I don’t think Shelden is far behind. This was a really good team performance.”

The Blue Devils (9-0) used some impressive defense to pull away early in the second half, holding Texas (8-1) without a field goal for a span of 8:25. In that time, Duke went on a 21-3 run and all that was left for the sellout crowd of 19,579 was to cheer for Duke and chant Redick’s name.

“I really don’t relish that,” the senior said of the chanting. “I’m more about people cheering for Duke, not for me. But it was a great atmosphere here.”

Sean Dockery, the other senior guard on Duke, was the game-changing player with his defense. He harassed Texas’ Daniel Gibson as soon as he crossed midcourt, and the Longhorns never got into their offense. The Blue Devils had 21 points off 16 turnovers.

“That was Sean’s man the whole game,” Krzyzewski said. “He didn’t let Gibson have a great game. That was such a gutty performance.”

And it was one Dockery was ready for. “That’s what I do best, get after people,” Dockery said.

LaMarcus Aldridge led Texas with 21 points, and P.J. Tucker and Kenton Paulino each had 14.

“J.J. was terrific,” Texas coach Rick Barnes said. “He got comfortable and whether we allowed him to or not, he got going and they understand to get the ball in his hands.”

The biggest margin in meetings of the nation’s top two teams came in 1951, when No. 1 Kentucky beat St. John’s 81-40. In a national semifinal in 1968, No. 2 UCLA beat Houston 101-69.

(18) Indiana 79, (15) Kentucky 53: At Indianapolis, Marco Killingsworth had 23 points and 11 rebounds, A.J. Ratliff added a career-high 21 points and the Hoosiers (5-2) rolled to a win over the Wildcats (6-3).

It was coach Mike Davis’ first victory over Kentucky in six tries, and Indiana’s most lopsided win in the 49-game series history. The Hoosiers also won for only the second time in 12 meetings.

(4) Villanova 90, Longwood 77: At Atlantic City, N.J., Randy Foye scored 27 points and Allan Ray added 20 as the Wildcats (6-0) beat the Lancers (2-7) for their sixth straight win.

Michael Jefferson scored 19 and Maurice Sumter 17 to pace Longwood, a former Division II school from Farmville, Va., that is in the midst of a five-year reclassification to Division I.

(5) Louisville 111, Akron 85: At Louisville, Ky., Taquan Dean scored 22 points to lead five Cardinals (5-0) in double figures in a victory over the Zips (2-1).

Louisville shot 60 percent from the floor while posting its highest point total at home since 1999.

(7) Memphis 97, Providence 89: At Providence, R.I., Darius Washington scored 20 points and Rodney Carney added 17 to lead the Tigers (7-1) to victory over the Friars (3-4).

Washington scored 15 points in the second half, including several key baskets down the stretch, as the Tigers won for the seventh time in eight games.

(8) Oklahoma 57, Coppin State 47: At Norman, Okla., Kevin Bookout scored 19 points and Taj Gray added 18, but the Sooners (5-1) struggled to put away the winless Eagles (0-7).

Tywain McKee finished with 19 points to lead Coppin State, Darryl Roberts added 11 and Augustine Woodlin scored 10.

(14) Michigan State 83, Wichita State 64: At Auburn Hills, Mich., Maurice Ager scored 21 points to lead the Spartans (7-2) to victory over the Shockers (7-2).

Michigan State has won six straight, including two against top-10 teams, since its triple-overtime loss to Gonzaga in Hawaii

Wichita State’s Paul Miller scored 21 points, P.J. Couisnard had 12 and Kyle Wilson added 10. The Shockers had won four in a row since losing by a point to Illinois on a last-second shot.

(19) George Washington 102, Morgan State 75: At Baltimore, Pops Mensah-Bonsu had 18 points, 11 rebounds and seven blocks, and teammate Danilo Pinnock scored a game-high 23 points to help the Colonials (7-0) defeat the Bears (0-9).

Joseph McLean led Morgan State with 15 points, Marcus Gomes added 14 and Spinner finished with 12. Carl Elliott added 17 points for George Washington – including five 3-pointers.

Temple 68, (22) Alabama 58: At Philadelphia, Dustin Salisbery hit four 3-pointers and scored 20 points, and Antywane Robinson had 17 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Owls (5-2) to their first win over a ranked team in three years, beating the Crimson Tide (4-3).

The Owls committed only three turnovers in their first win over a ranked team since beating No. 10 Indiana on Dec. 28, 2002.

(25) N.C. State 92, Appalachian State 68: At Raleigh, N.C., Andrew Brackman came off the bench for the first time this season and scored 16 points, helping the Wolfpack (6-1) run away from the Mountaineers (3-5).