Norfolk State’s mostly new cast debuted Monday night with a season-opening 98-76 victory over Washington Adventist before 1,820 at Echols Hall.
Like hundreds of other men’s Division I teams, the Spartans played their opener Monday. They hit 51.6% (32 of 62) from the field, including 27 of 45 inside the arc, and 29 of 38 free throws. Coach Robert Jones used 13 players.
NSU scored eight consecutive points for a 10-2 lead and was never in danger, though Washington Adventist stayed in contact. The Spartans still led by double figures throughout the second half.
The Shock (1-1) of Takoma Park, Maryland, who play in the NAIA, got 15 points from Chase Cook. They shot 38.2% (21 of 55) and took more than half of their shots from 3-point range, going 9 of 29.
Anthony McComb III paced the Spartans with 19 points and grabbed five rebounds. Mykel Jenkins came off the bench for 15 points and six rebounds in 16 minutes. Elijah Jamison had 14 points, four rebounds and four assists. Devon Ellis had 12 points and six rebounds, Keyontae Lewis had 11 points and four rebounds, and Phoebus High alumna Jordan Leaks had 11 points and three rebounds.
The Spartans next will play host to Regent at 7 p.m. Wednesday before meeting William & Mary at Echols Hall at 4 p.m. Saturday.
MORE STATE GAMES
William & Mary 110, Georgian Court 63: The Tribe shot a sizzling 63.6% from the field and had 27 assists before 2,478 at Kaplan Arena and outrebounded the Division II Lions from Lakewood, New Jersey, 52-32.
Reserve Ryan Jackson Jr. led the Tribe in points (15) and minutes played (22), hitting 7 of 8 field-goal attempts. Coach Brian Earl got 13 players into the game.
Cade Haskins had 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting, three blocks and six rebounds, Kilian Brockhoff, Kyle Pulliam and Chase Lowe had 11 points apiece, and Tunde Vahlberg Fasasi added 10.
Brockhoff had eight rebounds and three assists, Lowe had six assists, and Fasasi had five assists.
Georgian Court was led by Cam Edmonds’ 20 points and five steals.
Milwaukee 90, Hampton 86: Led by Jalyke Gaines-Wyatt’s 25 points and Xzavier Long’s 16 points, 17 rebounds and eight assists, the Pirates nearly pulled off a big comeback in Wisconsin, but the Panthers held on.
Milwaukee got 23 points from Seth Hubbard and 16 apiece from Faizon Fields and Stevie Elam. Fields had nine rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks.
Trailing 15-10 approaching the 10 1/2-minute mark of the first half, Milwaukee got hot and led 49-36 by halftime.
Daniel Johnson scored 15 points for the Pirates. They pulled to 67-63, only to see the Panthers score seven consecutive points. An 8-0 surge brought Hampton to 80-78, but the Pirates never caught up.
Virginia Tech 98, Charleston Southern 67: Tobi Lawal scored 20 points and West Virginia transfer Amani Hansberry added 19 points and 13 rebounds for the Hokies before 4,488 at Cassell Coliseum. Jailen Bedford, who arrived from UNLV, chipped in with 13 points and five rebounds.
Tech led for the final 30-plus minutes, pulling away after CSU pulled to 40-38 late in the first half. A 19-0 run put the Hokies ahead by 28.
The Hokies have won 10 consecutive opening-night games, a streak going back to the 2016-17 season.
Lawal, one of just four returners for Tech, was 5 for 10 from the field and 10 for 12 on free throws.
Brycen Blaine led the Buccaneers with 22 points; he was 6 of 12 from 3-point range.
VMI 122, Johnson & Wales-Charlotte 58: The Keydets pounded the Wildcats, who are new members of the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference, leading 58-15 at halftime in Lexington.
VMI shot 21 of 41 from 3-point range. Mario Tatum had 23 points, Walker Andrews 22 and Jaylen Pazon 18 — none of them started. TJ Johnson had 19 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and three blocks, and Tan Yildizoglu had 10 points and 11 assists.
Liberty 98, Kentucky Christian 57: Brett Decker Jr. scored a career-high 29 points in his first college start. Zach Cleveland (13 points, 10 rebounds) notched his first college double-double, and JJ Harper (11 points) and Ryan Jones Jr. (10 points) both reached double figures in their Liberty debuts.
Longwood 92, Mary Baldwin 55: Johan Nziemi had 16 points and Jacoi Hutchinson added 15 for the Lancers against the Division III Squirrels. Jaylen Benard came off the bench to contribute 14 points, nine rebounds and three steals.
VCU 103, Wagner 74: The Rams rolled in Phil Martelli Jr.’s coaching debut before a sellout crowd at Siegel Center. Junior Lazar Djokovic scored a career-high 21 points in his first VCU game. Brandon Jennings added a career-high 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists.
Akron 85, James Madison 71: Amani Lyles had 22 points, eight rebounds and four blocks for the Zips, who erased an eight-point deficit in Ohio. Justin McBride and Cliff Davis scored 14 points apiece for JMU, while Paul Lewis had 12 points and five assists.
George Mason 70, Wofford 46: Reserve Kory Mincy’s 18 points and six assists led the Patriots.
Radford 80, Western Illinois 75: Del Jones’ 22 points and Dennis Parker Jr.’s 14 sparked the host Highlanders.
ACC
No. 11 Louisville 104, South Carolina State 45: Isaac McKneely, a Virginia transfer, scored 17 points and Khani Rooths had 20 for the Cardinals. They led 59-15 at the half over the Bulldogs, who lost six key players from a squad that shared the MEAC regular-season title with Norfolk State.
No. 25 North Carolina 94, Central Arkansas 54: Caleb Wilson scored 22 points and Luka Bogavac added 10 points and five assists in their UNC debuts. Kyan Evans hit four 3-pointers and scored 15 points, and Henri Veesaar added 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Clemson 88, New Hampshire 38: Ace Buckner had an efficient 18 points, and nine different Clemson players scored at least five points.
Florida Atlantic 83, Boston College 78, OT: Landstown High graduate Donald Hand Jr.’s 20 points led the Eagles, but they lost in Boca Raton. BC’s 12-of-24 free-throw shooting proved costly.
Kanaan Carlyle scored 19 points for FAU and Xander Pintelon added 14, including a crucial 3-pointer in overtime.
Miami 86, Jacksonville 69: Malik Reneau scored 20 points, Ernest Udeh Jr. had 14 points and 14 rebounds, and the Hurricanes won their opener for new coach Jai Lucas.
NC State 114, NC Central 66: Darrion Williams led seven NC State players in double-digit scoring with 19 points, while former Hampton University player Jerry Deng had 12 and former UNC player Ven-Allen Lubin had 10 in coach Will Wade’s debut with the Wolfpack.
Notre Dame 89, Long Island 67: Markus Burton scored 24 points for the Irish, and Cole Certa added a career-high 22 off the bench.
Syracuse 85, Binghamton 47: Donnie Freeman scored 20 points, William Kyle III added 16, and former Orange star Carmelo Anthony’s son Kiyan pitched in with 15 off the bench in his college debut.
Pittsburgh 74, Youngstown State 59: Cameron Corhen scored 23 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, and Brandin Cummings added 18 points for the Panthers.
Georgia Tech 56, Maryland Eastern Shore 52, OT: Mouhammed Sylla scored 14 points, Kowacie Reeves Jr.’s 3-pointer with 37 seconds left in overtime broke a tie, and the Yellow Jackets dodged an upset. Sylla’s late free throw clinched the victory.
Wake Forest 88, American 74: Mekhi Mason and Tre’von Spillers both recorded 20 points for the Demon Deacons. Mason grabbed 10 rebounds.
SMU 96, Tarleton State 76: Boopie Miller and B.J. Edwards scored 20 points apiece for the Mustangs.
MILITARY
Navy 76, Presbyterian 55: Aidan Kehoe scored 19 points on 9-of-11 shooting in Clinton, South Carolina, as Midshipmen coach Jon Perry won in his debut.
Belmont 79, Air Force 63: Sam Orme had 21 points, five rebounds and three steals for the Bruins in Nashville, Tennessee. Kam Sanders led the Falcons with 18 points and seven assists.
Army 73, SUNY Maritime 49: Kevin McCarthy’s 18 points and three steals paced the Black Knights over the Division III Privateers.
TOP 25
No. 2 Houston 75, Lehigh 57: Emanuel Sharp scored 24 points and Chris Cenac Jr. added 12 points and 10 rebounds in coach Kelvin Sampson’s 800th victory. Sampson improved to 800-354 in his 37-year career, 300-84 since taking over at Houston in 2014.
No. 4 Connecticut 79, New Haven 55: Alex Karaban had 19 points and 10 rebounds and Solo Ball scored 12 of his 18 points in the second half. Andre Pasha scored 17 points for New Haven in its first game at the Division I level.
No. 5 St. John’s 108, Quinnipiac 74: Dillon Mitchell scored 18 points, Zuby Ejiofor added 17 and the Red Storm opened their third season under Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino with a victory.
No. 7 Michigan 121, Oakland 78: Morez Johnson Jr. scored 20 of his career-high 24 points in the first 20 minutes, when the Wolverines set a first-half school record with 69 points in Ann Arbor.
No. 8 Brigham Young 71, Villanova 66: Star freshman AJ Dybantsa had 21 points and six rebounds in the Hall of Fame Series in Las Vegas, spoiling the regular-season debut of Villanova coach Kevin Willard. The Wildcats were led by James Madison transfer Bryce Lindsay’s 22 points.
No. 12 UCLA 80, Eastern Washington 74: Senior guard Donovan Dent had 21 points and nine assists in his UCLA debut.
No. 13 Arizona 93, No. 3 Florida 87: Freshman Koa Peat had 30 points, seven rebounds and five assists in Las Vegas as the Wildcats beat the defending national champions in the Hall of Fame Series.
Jaden Bradley had 27 points for Arizona, and Thomas Haugh led Florida with 27.
No. 14 Arkansas 109, Southern 77: Trevon Brazile scored a career-high 25 points and Darius Acuff Jr. had 22 for the Razorbacks.
No. 15 Alabama 91, North Dakota 62: Labaron Philon Jr. had 22 points and eight assists, and Houston Mallette added 15 points for the Crimson Tide.
No. 16 Iowa State 88, Fairleigh Dickinson 50: Milan Momcilovic made seven 3-pointers and finished with a career-high 29 points for the Cyclones, who have won 35 consecutive nonconference games at Hilton Coliseum.
No. 17 Illinois 113, Jackson State 55: David Mirkovic scored 19 points and grabbed 14 rebounds for the Illini.
No. 18 Tennessee 76, Mercer 61: Nate Ament, one of the nation’s top freshmen, scored 18 points and had nine rebounds.
No. 19 Kansas 94, Green Bay 51: Freshman Darryn Peterson scored 21 points in 22 minutes in his debut. Kansas’ Flory Bidunga led all scorers with 23 points.
No. 20 Auburn 95, Bethune-Cookman 90, OT: Auburn’s 61st consecutive nonconference win didn’t come easily.
Keyshawn Hall scored seven of his 28 points in overtime.
The Tigers led 81-78 in regulation when Elyjah Freeman fouled Arterio Morris on a half-court heave just before the buzzer. Morris knocked down all three free throws to send the game into overtime.
No. 21 Gonzaga 98, Texas Southern 43: Tyon Grant-Foster scored 15 points and Graham Ike added 13 points and 11 rebounds.
No. 22 Michigan State 80, Colgate 69: Jaxon Kohler scored 16 points and grabbed 15 rebounds and Jeremy Fears Jr. added 14 points and 10 assists.
No. 24 Wisconsin 96, Campbell 64: John Blackwell scored 31 and Nick Boyd 21 for the Badgers, who began the season in the Top 25 for the first time since 2020-21.