COLLEGE PARK, Md., 1 March 2005 — Raymond Felton’s go-ahead lay-up with 18.9 seconds left lifted No. 2 North Carolina over Maryland, 85-83 at the Comcast Center.
Felton finished with 10 points and 10 assists, while Sean May recorded his sixth straight double-double with 22 points and 11 rebounds for North Carolina (24-3, 12-2 ACC), which won its fifth straight and remained a game ahead of Wake Forest for first place in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Jawad Williams finished with 21 points in the win. Chris McCray led the way for Maryland with 25 points as he went 5-of-6 from three-point territory. The Terrapins (16-10, 7-8) have lost two straight and three of their last four. Nik Caner-Medley netted 18 and John Gilchrist tallied 13 in the loss.
In Lawrence, Wayne Simien scored a career-high 32 points as the eighth-ranked Kansas Jayhawks snapped a three-game losing streak and moved into first place atop the Big 12 Conference standings with an 81-79 victory over No. 4 Oklahoma State at Allen Fieldhouse.
Simien went 11-of-17 from the floor and pulled down 12 rebounds for the Jayhawks (21-4, 11-3 Big 12,) whose three straight losses was their longest slide since 1993-94. With the win, KU also added to its resume for a top seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament as well as continued its dominance over the Cowboys, improving to 98-50 all-time against them and 54-10 in Lawrence.
In Winston-Salem, Justin Gray scored 20 points to lead sixth-ranked Wake Forest to a 90-68 rout of Virginia at Joel Coliseum.
Eric Williams and Chris Paul each chipped in 17 for the Demon Deacons (24-4, 11-3 ACC), who have won two straight and eight of their last nine. Devin Smith led Virginia with 22 points, while J.R. Reynolds and T.J. Bannister each contributed 15. The Cavaliers (13-12, 4-10) have lost three in a row. Virginia trailed by 13 at halftime, but came out of the break with a 10-2 run to pull within 46-41. Wake Forest, though, responded with six straight points to restore a double-digit advantage.
In Washington, Allan Ray scored 18 points to lead a balanced Villanova attack, as the 23rd-ranked Wildcats posted their fifth straight win with a 67-56 triumph against Georgetown at the MCI Center. Will Sheridan added 14 points, Kyle Lowry chipped in 12 and Curtis Sumpter contributed 11 for the Wildcats, who have won 10 of their last 12 and moved closer to a first-round bye in the Big East Tournament.
Villanova (19-6, 9-5 Big East) took over sole possession of fourth place in the Big East, while Georgetown (16-9, 8-6) fell into a three-way tie with Pittsburgh and Notre Dame for fifth. The top five teams receive byes into the second round of the conference tournament.
In Bloomington, Bracey Wright poured in a season-high 32 points, including a crucial three-pointer in overtime, as Indiana upset 10th-ranked Michigan State 78-74 at Assembly Hall. D.J. White added 17 points, including the game-tying basket in regulation and the go-ahead score in overtime, and Marshall Strickland contributed 13 for the Hoosiers (14-11, 9-5 Big Ten), who have won three straight games and greatly improved their chances of gaining an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament with a quality win over a top-10 team.
In Columbus, Alando Tucker scored 19 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead 20th-ranked Wisconsin to a 64-56 win over Ohio State at Value City Arena. Mike Wilkinson added 14 points and eight boards while Clayton Hansen drained three shots from three-point range for the Badgers (18-7, 9-5 Big Ten), who won for only the third time in their last six games.
