‘Nova knocks off UConn

Villanova went inside in the first half and stayed outside in the second. Add some solid defense and an offensive boost from an unlikely source, and the Wildcats came up with a way to beat No. 1 Connecticut.

Allan Ray keyed the Wildcats’ 7-for-9 effort from 3-point range in the second half, and fourth-ranked Villanova beat the Huskies 69-64 Monday night in Philadelphia, its first victory over a top-ranked team in nearly 11 years.

“It was a big test for us. UConn was a great team,” said Ray, who had 19 of his 25 points in the second half. “A lot of teams didn’t think we were going to win. It was just a great test for us to go out and see where we were at.”

Ray had five 3-pointers in a 22-4 run that gave Villanova (20-2, 10-1 Big East) the lead for good in its ninth straight victory. The Wildcats forced the Huskies (22-2, 9-2) into 17 turnovers.

(13) Boston College 59, Stony Brook 47: At Boston, Craig Smith scored 19 points and helped the Eagles (20-5) come away with a listless victory over the Seawolves (4-19).

(22) Kansas 64, Oklahoma St. 49: At Stillwater, Okla., Mario Chalmers scored 13 points as the Jayhawks (18-6, 9-2 Big 12) pulled away in the second half to beat the Cowboys (13-12, 3-8).

Women

Monique Currie bounced back from her worst game for Duke (23-1, 10-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) to score a career-high 31 points in the top-ranked Blue Devils’ 90-80 win over No. 4 Maryland (22-3, 9-2) in Durham, N.C.

In Duke’s previous game, Currie scored two points on 1-for-9 shooting and had five turnovers.