Blue Devils rally late, stay undefeated

Sean Dockery saved Duke again. This time, he didn’t wait until the final buzzer.

With the top-ranked Blue Devils’ unbeaten record on the line, Dockery made a go-ahead 3-pointer and set up another an instant later by Lee Melchionni to help them beat No. 14 North Carolina State 81-68 Wednesday night in Durham, N.C.

J.J. Redick had 28 points and Shelden Williams added 21, but it was Dockery’s plays down the stretch that helped Duke reach 17-0 (5-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) for only the second time. The other was during a run to the NCAA title in 1992.

The Wolfpack (14-3, 3-2) was never too far away in a game that featured 16 lead changes and nine ties, the last at 65 following a free throw from N.C. State’s Gavin Grant. On the other end, Dockery swished a 3-pointer as Tony Bethel slammed into him.

When his free throw clanged off the rim, Dockery chased down the rebound and found Melchionni alone at the top of the key. His jumper also found the mark, and suddenly, the Blue Devils had a six-point lead. They never were challenged again.

(2) Florida 113, Savannah State 62: Joakim Noah had 21 points on 10-for-10 shooting, reserve Walter Hodge added 18 points and the Gators (17-0) remained unbeaten with a victory over the lowly Tigers (1-18) in Gainesville, Fla. The Gators extended the best start and longest winning streak in the school’s history, and finished undefeated in non-conference play for the first time in coach Billy Donovan’s 10 seasons.

(4) Memphis 88, Tennessee 79: Shawne Williams had 21 points and 14 rebounds, while Rodney Carney added 22 points as the Tigers (16-2) held off the Volunteers (11-3) in Memphis, Tenn.

Dane Bradshaw led the Volunteers with 21 points, 10 rebounds and five steals and was 9 of 13 from the field. Chris Lofton finished with 16 points for the Vols.

(9) Pittsburgh 76, Rutgers 68: Aaron Gray scored nine of his 20 points in the final 3 minutes to help the Panthers (15-0, 4-0 Big East) remain undefeated with a victory over the Scarlet Knights (12-5, 2-2) in Piscataway, N.J.

Quincy Douby, the Big East’s leading scorer at 23.3 points per game, had 27 for Rutgers, which scored only five points in the first 17 minutes of the second half as Pittsburgh slowly pulled away.

(19) Ohio State 77, (15) Wisconsin 67: Terence Dials tossed in 15 points, and Ron Lewis, Jamar Butler and Matt Sylvester each scored 14 to lead the Buckeyes (13-2, 3-2 Big Ten) to a victory over the Badgers (14-3, 4-1) in Columbus, Ohio.

Kammron Taylor and Alando Tucker each scored 21 for the Badgers, who saw their seven-game conference winning streak end.

(23) Iowa 76, Minnesota 72 (3OT): Erek Hansen scored a career-high 20 points and the Hawkeyes (14-4, 3-1 Big Ten) relied on clutch free-throw shooting to beat the Golden Gophers (9-6, 0-4) in the first triple-overtime game played in Carver Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa.

Iowa made nine straight free throws during a stretch of the second and third overtimes, while the Gophers went 5 of 12 from the line in the extra periods, including missing four straight when they had a chance to seal the victory in the final minute of the second overtime.

Women

Elana Larkins scored 22 points, including 14-for-14 free-throw shooting, and Ivory Latta had 17 points to lead No. 4 North Carolina (17-0, 4-0 ACC) to an 85-56 victory over Georgia Tech (11-6, 0-4) in Chapel Hill, N.C.

(8) Baylor 60, Texas A&M 49: Sophia Young scored 28 points and Abiola Wabara added 10 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Lady Bears (13-2, 3-2 Big 12) past the Aggies (14-4, 3-2) in Waco, Texas. … (17) Oklahoma 63, Texas Tech 57: Freshman center Courtney Paris had her 10th straight double-double, finishing with 17 points and 19 rebounds, as the Sooners (14-4. 4-0 Big 12) beat the Red Raiders (7-8, 2-2) in Norman, Okla. … (23) BYU 60, Wyoming 44: Ambrosia Anderson scored 14 points and pulled down nine rebounds to lead the Cougars (13-1, 4-0 MWC) over the Cowgirls (12-4, 2-3) in Laramie, Wyo.