IUPUI 58, Elon 57
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Brandon Cole scored 18 points, including a game-tying 3-pointer during a 9-6 run, as IUPUI edged Elon 58-57 Saturday night.
Brandon Cameron scored 16 for the Jaguars (4-5), who outlasted Elon through five ties in the second half, including one in the final minute.
Elon (2-7) trailed 29-23 at the break but took a 38-36 lead on a James Brett 3-pointer about six minutes into the second half. The Phoenix outscored IUPUI 34-29 in the second half.
Chris Chalko led Elon with 15. Colin Wyatt had 10.
Following Brett's 3-pointer, the Jaguars went on a 9-6 run and caught up when Cole nailed a 3-pointer with 8:35 left to make it 44-44.
After that, it was back-and-forth as the Phoenix tied it up at 50 and took a one-point lead on a pair of free throws by Wyatt. But Angelo Smith hit a layup with 3:03 left to give IUPUI a 52-51 lead.
The Phoenix tied three more times in the final three minutes - the last time at 57-57 with less than one minute remaining - but never led again. A free throw by Smith gave the Jaguars the winning edge.
IUPUI scored 23 points off turnovers, compared with 12 for Elon.
VCU 76, College of Charleston 71
Eric Davis scored a career-high 18 points including the go-ahead bucket with under two minutes remaining as Virginia Commonwealth edged the College of Charleston, 76-71, in men's college basketball action before 4,090 at Alltel Pavilion on Saturday.
VCU improved to 5-2 on the season, while the Cougars fell to 3-3. The Cougars play Florida Atlantic in the opening round of the Billy Minardi Classic in Louisville at 9:30 on Tuesday.
The Cougars, who led 39-36 at intermission, got a career-best 14 points and 11 rebounds from David Lawrence and 18 points from Dontaye Draper.
Davis' short jumper in the lane with 1:51 remaining gave VCU a 72-71 lead. Davis blocked Drapers' spinning layup attempt on Charleston's next possession, and then gave his team a 74-71 lead with 30 seconds left on another short jumper off the glass.
Jesse Pellot-Rosa, who finished with 15 points and a team-high eight rebounds, hit two free throws with eight seconds left to secure the win.
The Cougars also got 16 points and eight rebounds from freshman Jermaine Johnson and 12 points from Josh Jackson. The Cougars shot 50.8 percent from the floor and outrebounded the Rams 36-25, 11-6 on the offensive glass.
VCU, who shot 50.9 percent from the floor, also got double-figure scoring efforts from B.A. Walker (13), Alexander Harper (11) and Nick George (11).
The Cougars outscored the Rams 40-22 in the paint and 26-8 off the bench.
Appalachian State 73, Marshall 65
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (AP) - D.J. Thompson scored 25 points to lead Appalachian State to a 73-65 win over Marshall Saturday evening.
Appalachian State had two other players in double figures. Douglass McLaughlin-Williams scored 14 points and a team-high nine rebounds; Demetrius Scott added 12 points.
Joe Miles was the only Marshall player in double figures with 15 points.
The win snapped Marshall's two-game winning streak while snapping a three-game losing streak for the Mountaineers.
Thompson's stop-and-pop with 2:02 remaining gave Appalachian State a two-possession lead the Mountaineers would never relinquish.
Free throws proved pivotal with the Mountaineers hitting eight straight down the stretch to seal the victory. Marshall struggled to a 17-of-31 performance from the foul line.
Marshall's shooting woes weren't limited to the foul line. The team went the last 8:42 of the game without a field goal.
Appalachian State took advantage of Marshall's futility, ending the game on a 16-6 run to get its first victory at Marshall since a 75-72 win on Jan. 25, 1992, when both teams were members of the Southern Conference.
Marshall led by as many as eight points in the first half, but a 12-0 run by Appalachian State powered the Mountaineers to a 38-35 halftime lead.
Georgia Southern 82, Arkansas State 71
JONESBORO, Ark.?Elton Nesbitt tied his season high in points, tallying 28 points and leading the Eagles to an 82-71 win over Arkansas State Saturday night. The win is the third straight for Georgia Southern.
Georgia Southern won the opening tip, and never looked back, jumping out to an 11 point lead midway through the first half and cruising to a relatively easy victory.
The Eagles (7-4) jumped out to an early 10-5 lead with 16:37 to play in the opening half. GSU extended its lead to 11, at 24-13, on a pair of Nesbitt jumpers. The Indians (4-6) responded, scoring five straight, cutting the Eagle lead to six with 7:26 on the clock. The two teams traded baskets in the closing minutes of the opening stanza, but a dunk by Will Dunn with one minute to play in the half gave the Eagles the 42-36 advantage at the break.
The Indians came out of the break on fire, going on a 7-2 run, closing the gap to two, 44-42, with 18 minutes remaining in the game. Georgia Southern once again used the charity stripe to its advantage, scoring nine straight points from the free throw line, extending its lead to 11, 56-45, with 15:54 on the clock. The Indians attempted a comeback with 9:26 left to play, as Marcus Ardison banked two free throws. After a defensive stop by Arkansas State, Isaac Wells took the ball down the court for a layup then Yual Banks hit a pair of free throws to slice the deficit to five at 67-62. A free throw by Banks put the Indians within three, with 2:47 to play, but that was as close as the Indians would get however, as Nesbitt came off a double screen and popped a wide-open 3-pointer, sealing the game for the Eagles.
Georgia Southern shot 46.7 percent (28-60), while Arkansas State shot 46.0 (23-50). The Eagles scored 21 points from the charity stripe, going 21-of-22 (95.5%).. The Indians hit 24-of-34 (70.6).
Nesbitt led all scorers with 28, while three other Eagles scored in double figures. Louis Graham and Sean Olivier each had 12 points, while Dwayne Foreman had 11. Graham finished with nine rebounds.
The Eagles will take a week off for the Christmas holiday, and will return to action on Dec. 29, as they travel to Jacksonville. This will be the second meeting between the two teams in 15 days. Tip-off from Jacksonville is set for 7:00 p.m.
South Carolina 73, Wofford 43
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - Brandon Wallace hit a career-high three 3-pointers en route to his third career double-double to help lead South Carolina to a 73-43 victory over Wofford on Saturday night.
Wallace, who came into the game shooting 3-of-11 on 3-pointers this year, tied his career high with 13 points while pulling down 10 rebounds along with five assists as the Gamecocks (7-2) beat Wofford for the 22nd straight time.
South Carolina finished with a season-high 14 3-pointers (out of 26).
Shane Nichols and Adam Sheehan each had 14 points to lead the Terriers (3-7).
South Carolina reserve Stephen McDowell finished with a career-high 12 points, including four of six 3-pointers. Tarence Kinsey added 11 points and a season-high nine rebounds.
Six South Carolina players hit 3s in the first half as the Gamecocks made half of their 14 shots from beyond the arc to grab a 39-15 halftime lead - including one by Renaldo Balkman, who was 1-of-4 coming into the game.
South Carolina raced to a 15-3 lead on Wallace's follow with 13:37 left, but the Terriers cut the deficit to 15-9 on 3-pointers by Nichols and Sheehan two minutes later. But that was as close as Wofford got.
The Gamecocks shot 48.3 percent for the game. The Terriers struggled from the field, shooting just 33.3 percent - including 21.7 in the first half - while also being out rebounded 40-25.
South Carolina was without Antoine Tisby, who was suspended after oversleeping and missing practice Friday. Also, Balkman didn't start after being late for practice earlier this week.