Isaiah Evans scored a career-high 23 points and got some offensive help as No. 6 Duke defeated Texas 75-60 in the season opener for both teams Tuesday night in Charlotte.
Highly touted freshman Cameron Boozer, son of former Duke and NBA star Carlos Boozer, scored all 15 of his points in the second half and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds. Patrick Ngongba II added 10 points.
The Blue Devils, who shot 42.3% from the field and 39.1% from 3-point range, opened the second half with a 10-0 run to erase a 33-32 halftime deficit and surge into the lead.
Dailyn Swain scored 16 points and Matas Vokietaitis and reserve Jordan Pope each had 15 points for Texas. The Longhorns were hurt by 16 turnovers and 32.2% shooting from the field. They also missed 12 of their 17 attempts from 3-point range.
No. 1 Purdue 82, Evansville 51
Fletcher Loyer scored a career-high 30 points and Braden Smith moved into third place in Big Ten Conference history for most assists as the Boilermakers walloped the Purple Aces in West Lafayette, Ind.
Jack Benter added 11 points and three 3-pointers for Purdue, which sank 13 of 29 3-point attempts as a team. That included a 7-of-10 performance from Loyer, who took up the slack as last season’s leading scorer, Trey Kaufman-Renn, sat out with a hip injury.
Joshua Hughes scored 15 points and Saint Louis transfer AJ Casey added 14 to pace the Evansville, which played without its top returning scorer as well. Forward Connor Turnbull, last season’s Missouri Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year, sat out due to an undisclosed injury.
No. 9 Kentucky 77, Nicholls 51
Sophomore Collin Chandler scored 11 of his career-best 15 points in the second half as the Wildcats pulled away for the win over the Colonels to open both teams’ seasons in Lexington, Ky.
Kentucky’s top scorer last season, Otega Oweh, added 13 points. Freshman guard Jasper Johnson tallied 11 points, and Florida transfer Denzel Aberdeen added 10 points and six assists.
Reserve Jalin Rice paced the Colonels with 13 points on 5-for-6 shooting. The Wildcats wound up with a 51-30 rebounding edge and outscored the Colonels 42-20 in the paint.
No. 10 Texas Tech 98, Lindenwood 60
With four teammates sidelined, Christian Anderson scored a career-high 34 points to propel the Red Raiders over the Lions at Lubbock, Texas, in the opening game for both teams.
Anderson, who helped bring Texas Tech to the Elite Eight last season as its sixth man, topped his previous career high in the first half when he tallied 25 points. Anderson also posted a career-high 11 assists and added seven rebounds. UNC Greensboro transfer Donovan Atwell added 22 points, including 13 in the second half when Texas Tech pulled away.
Mekhi Cooper scored 15 points and Milos Nenadic contributed 12 points and 11 rebounds to pace Lindenwood, which is a full member of Division I after playing two reclassification seasons in the Ohio Valley Conference.
