Kentucky Pulls Away From Columbia, College Roundup

Lexington, KY (SportsNetwork.com) - Kentucky's next big test was supposed to come this weekend against a national powerhouse, not during a midweek game against an Ivy League school missing its best player. But there were John Calipari's top-ranked Wildcats, yet to score a point after five minutes against Columbia.

There they were, trailing at halftime. And there they were, after 26 minutes, still yet to hold a lead. But in the end, there was enough. Aaron Harrison scored 14 points and Kentucky finally pulled away in the last 10 1/2 minutes on Wednesday night to avoid what would have been a crushing upset ahead of Saturday's game against No. 21 North Carolina. The Wildcats beat the Lions 56-46 in the first meeting between the teams since the 1966 NCAA tournament.

(5) Wisconsin 93, Milwaukee 54

Milwaukee, WI (SportsNetwork.com) - Sam Dekker scored 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting in No. 5 Wisconsin's 93-54 win over Milwaukee. Frank Kaminsky led the Badgers (9-1) with 18 points. Nigel Hayes chipped in 13 points and seven rebounds. Matt Tiby was the Panthers' top scorer with 17 points. Steve McWhorter led Milwaukee (4-6) with seven boards.

(9) Gonzaga 81, Washington State 66

Spokane, WA (SportsNetwork.com) - Przemek Karnowski had 22 points and eight rebounds to guide No. 9 Gonzaga in an 81-66 thumping of Washington State on Wednesday. Kyle Wiltjer had 21 points and six rebounds and Byron Wesley scored 20 points with nine rebounds for the Bulldogs (8-1), who were coming off an overtime loss at Arizona on Saturday. Josh Hawkinson scored 18 points with 11 rebounds for the Cougars (4-5), who had defeated Texas-San Antonio on Saturday.

(10) Kansas 75, Georgetown 70

Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) - Brannen Greene scored 19 points and No. 10 Kansas survived to take a 75-70 victory over Georgetown on Wednesday. Frank Mason III scored 14 points and Perry Ellis gave 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Jayhawks (7-1), who have won six straight after a loss to Kentucky on Nov. 18. Joshua Smith had 20 points and five rebounds, L.J. Peak scored 18 and D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera gave 10 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the Hoyas (5-3), who have lost three of their last four.

(12) Ohio State 97, High Point 43

Columbus, OH (SportsNetwork.com) - Kam Williams had 23 points off the bench to lead 12th-ranked Ohio State to a 97-43 rout of High Point on Wednesday. D'Angelo Russell netted 18 points with nine rebounds, while Jae'Sean Tate tallied 12 points and Shannon Scott added 11 for the Buckeyes (7-1). John Brown led the Panthers (6-3) with 19 points in the loss.

(13) Utah 65, BYU 61

Provo, UT (SportsNetwork.com) - Delon Wright had 18 points and 11 rebounds and No. 13 Utah ended a long winless drought in Provo with a 65-61 decision over in-state rival BYU. While Wright's excellent all-around performance certainly played a part, it was the defense that fueled the Utes' (7-1) first road win in the series since January of 2005. The Cougars entered Wednesday's showdown as the highest scoring team in Division I, but were held nearly 34 points below their season average while hitting just 36.9 percent of their shots against Utah's pressure. Tyler Haws did finish with 23 points and eight rebounds for BYU (7-3), with Kyle Collinsworth compiling 17 points, nine rebounds and five assists in the loss.

(18) San Diego State 60, Long Beach State 59

San Diego, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Dwayne Polee II scored 16 points as No. 18 San Diego State narrowly avoided an upset with a 60-59 win over Long Beach State. The Aztecs' (7-2) 10 missed free throws could have cost them in a tight game, but Polee made 7-of-8 from the line, including two in the final minute, to help secure the win. Winston Shepard added 10 points for San Diego State on 4-of-6 shooting. Mike Caffey led all scorers with 20 for the 49ers (5-6), but he missed a critical shot late that could have tied the game. He also had a game-high four assists. Tyler Lamb chipped in 13 points for Long Beach State, 10 of which came in the first half.

(19) Maryland 67, NC Central 56

College Park, MD (SportsNetwork.com) - Rashaud Pack scored 17 points to lead No. 19 Maryland in a 67-56 victory over NC Central at the Xfinity Center. Jake Layman added 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting in a game the Terrapins hit on 63.6 percent of their first-half field goal attempts to build a 39-18 lead at the break. Melo Trimble finished with 12 points for Maryland (8-1). NC Central (6-4), the defending MEAC champions, had a five-game win streak halted despite Jordan Parks' 18 points and 10 rebounds and a 14-point effort from Nimrod Hilliard.

(23) Northern Iowa 65, Denver 55

Denver, CO (SportsNetwork.com) - Seth Tuttle led four Panthers in double figures with 12 points and No. 23 Northern Iowa stayed unbeaten with a 65-55 win over Denver on Wednesday. Deon Mitchell and Wes Washpun each scored 11 points and Paul Jesperson added 10 for Northern Iowa (9-0), which shot a blistering 70 percent (21-of-30) from the floor. No one besides Tuttle (4- for-7) missed more than two shots. Cam Griffin and Nate Engesser netted 15 points apiece for Denver (4-4), which only got three points from its bench. UNI's reserves totaled 32 points.

(24) St. John's 74, Fairleigh Dickinson 52

Queens, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - D'Angelo Harrison dropped 26 points and No. 24 St. John's toppled Fairleigh Dickinson 74-52 on Wednesday. Harrison shot 8- for-14 from the floor and sank all eight of his free throws for the Red Storm (7-1), winners in three straight following their lone loss of the season to Gonzaga. Phil Greene IV added 16 points and Chris Obekpa had a 10-point, 12-rebound double-double while also providing his usual rim protection with six blocks. Obekpa has blocked at least two shots in every game this season. Mustafaa Jones led the Knights (3-5) with 18 points.

Women's Basketball

MILWAUKEE -- Eastern Illinois women’s basketball could not dig itself out of first half hole as the Panthers lost on the road at Milwaukee, 72-63, on Wednesday afternoon.

EIU fell to 3-5 on the season and will play at Western Illinois on Friday night at 7 pm. Milwaukee improved to 3-5.

EIU led 20-15 with 8:20 to play in the first half as Erica Brown hit a jumper.  That would be EIU’s final points for the next ten minutes of the contest.

UWM closed the half with a 20-0 run to take a 35-20 lead at the half. Jaleesa Armstrong gave Milwaukee its first lead of the game with a 3-pointer with 6:42 to play in the first half. Cree Hammond followed with a 3-pointer and UWM was off and running.

Illini Face Ducks

(Chicago, IL) -- The Fighting Illini are in Chicago on Saturday to play the Oregon Ducks. Illinois is 7-2 while the Ducks are 5-3. Tipoff from the United Center is at 6 p.m. on the Big Ten Network.

College Basketball Schedule

In other local basketball action on Saturday, Notre Dame hosts Florida State. Also Saturday, Northern Illinois plays Eastern Illinois at Lantz Arena. On Sunday, Northwestern hosts Mississippi Valley State.

SLU Hosts SIU-Edwardsville Saturday

(St. Louis, MO) -- The Saint Louis Billikens are back on the hardwood Saturday night hosting SIU-Edwardsville. The Billikens lost 62-55 to South Dakota State on Tuesday. It was the second straight loss for SLU, which is 5-4 overall and 3-2 at home. The Cougars are off to a 1-and-5 start this season.

Wednesday, December 11 Scoreboard

NCAA Top-25 Men's Basketball  ("USA Today" Rankings)

#1 Kentucky Wildcats 56, Columbia Lions 46

#6 Wisconsin Badgers 93, Milwaukee Panthers 54

#8 Gonzaga Bulldogs 81, Washington State Cougars 66

#10 Kansas Jayhawks 75, Georgetown Hoyas 70

#12 Ohio State Buckeyes 97, High Point Panthers 43

#14 Utah Utes 65, BYU Cougars 61

#16 San Diego State Aztecs 60, Long Beach State 49ers 59

#20 Maryland Terrapins 67, North Carolina Central Eagles 56

#23 Northern Iowa Panthers 65, Denver Pioneers 55

Thursday, December 11 Schedule (All Times Central)

NCAA Top-25 Men's Basketball

No Games Scheduled