Boston ? Tyrelle Blair blocked five shots against Miami, and that was enough to make the Hurricanes worry about him every time they put the ball up.
“I think he changed more shots than he blocked,” Boston College coach Al Skinner said after the Eagles beat No. 21 Miami, 76-66, on Tuesday night. “That’s probably as important.”
Blair had 11 points and 12 rebounds to go with his blocks, and Rakim Sanders scored 20 points to lead BC to its 12th consecutive victory over the Hurricanes. Tyrese Rice had 14 points, eight rebounds and six assists as BC (12-4, 3-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) beat a ranked opponent for the first time since last February.
Jack McClinton scored 20 points on 6-for-26 shooting for Miami, which had won consecutive games since it lost to Winthrop on Dec. 29 to snap a season-opening 12-game winning streak. James Dews scored 15 points for the Hurricanes (14-2, 1-1), who would have tied the best start in school history with a win.
The Eagles had lost two of three – a 25-point defeat to No. 3 Kansas and another that was even more embarrassing: 57-51 at home to Robert Morris last Monday.
“Coach called us out after the Kansas game,” Rice said. “We took it to heart. We tried to prove that we could be better than people think we can.”
Boston College scored 14 of the first 16 points and led 50-27 with 11:26 to play before McClinton hit a three-pointer to start a 23-10 run that pulled Miami back into the game. He had 13 points in all over the five-minute span, including three three-pointers.
No. 11 Michigan State 66, Ohio State 60
East Lansing, Mich. – Drew Neitzel scored eight of 13 points in the first half, helping Michigan State start strong in a victory over Ohio State
The Spartans (15-2, 3-1 Big Ten) led by as many as 21 points in the first half and held off the Buckeyes in the second half.
Jamar Butler scored 21 points to give Ohio State (12-5, 3-2) a shot to stay in the game.
No. 17 Wisconsin 80, Penn State 55
State College, Pa. – Michael Flowers scored 23 points, and Wisconsin’s man-to-man defense stifled Penn State as the Badgers extended their winning streak to eight games. Playing with trademark toughness and contesting every shot, Wisconsin ran out to a 20-4 lead. The Nittany Lions missed their first seven shots and never got closer than 11 points the rest of the way.
No. 24 Clemson 70, North Carolina State 54
Clemson, S.C. – Terrence Oglesby had four three-pointers, and Clemson beat North Carolina State. North Carolina State (11-5, 0-2) had come off a 93-62 loss to North Carolina.