Big Ten/ACC Challenge 2015: Scores, Highlights and Reaction from Wednesday
Day 3 of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge hit gyms across the country Wednesday evening, and the action was highlighted by a compelling showdown between ranked opponents.
No. 3 Michigan State and No. 24 Louisville stole the show during the early window, while a battle between Syracuse and Wisconsin helped add some spice as the Orange sought to remain undefeated. No. 7 Duke and Indiana were the big draw in the late portion of Wednesday's schedule.
Check out all of the results from the college hardwood below:
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| No. 3 Michigan State def. No. 24 Louisville, 71-67 | Denzel Valentine leads MSU with 25 points |
| Wisconsin def. No. 14 Syracuse, 66-58 | Nigel Hayes posts 15 points, 12 rebounds |
| Penn State def. Boston College, 67-58 | Shep Garner drops a game-high 30 points |
| No. 7 Duke def. Indiana, 94-74 | Brandon Ingram pours in career-high 24 points |
| Notre Dame def. Illinois, 84-79 | Demetrius Jackson, Steve Vasturia score 21 points apiece |
| Iowa def. Florida State, 78-75 | Peter Jok scores game-high 24 points |
Michigan State Outlasts Strong Louisville Squad
Denzel Valentine entered Wednesday night with three 20-point outings to his name this season, and he added to that total with a 25-point effort to help Michigan State defeat Louisville, 71-67, in East Lansing.
According to Michigan State's official Twitter account, Wednesday's win was the program's 200th over a ranked opponent since the 1997-98 campaign. No other team in the country has tallied more victories in that span.
Valentine added seven assists and five rebounds to his final line as the Spartans scored 42 second-half points to erase a three-point halftime deficit and then some. Bryn Forbes added 20 points for Michigan State on 7-of-11 shooting (5-of-9 from three).
"To pull out a win like this was huge," Valentine said, according to the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). "We weren't in the best of shape. It was like a one-day prep, but you can't make excuses like that. You just get the job done."
Despite the loss, Louisville acquitted itself nicely, as CBS Sports' Doug Gottlieb and Jon Rothstein observed:
Although Louisville couldn't hold off the hard-charging Spartans, guards Damion Lee and Trey Lewis gave Michigan State's defense fits all night.
Lee finished with a team-high 23 points to score in double figures for the sixth straight game, and Lewis joined his backcourt mate by dropping 21 points on a steady 7-of-13 shooting.
ESPN.com's Jeff Borzello praised the efforts of head coach Rick Pitino's offensive leaders:
Michigan State improved to 8-0 with the win, while Louisville slipped to 5-1 in its first loss of the season. However, the Cardinals will have a golden opportunity to get back on track as they head back to Kentucky for six straight home games.
Wisconsin Tops Syracuse in Overtime
Syracuse led for significant portions of the second half, but a late Wisconsin run allowed the Badgers to enter the extra session with a renewed spirit and send the Orange to their first loss of the season.
Four of Wisconsin's five starters finished in double figures, with center Ethan Happ leading the way. The big man used crafty footwork on the blocks to torture Syracuse's defenders all night, and he finished with a monster 18 points and 15 rebounds to go with three blocks.
ESPN College BBall relayed the highlights:
"Wisconsin upsets #14 Syracuse 66-58 in OT. Etahn Happ 18 Pts & 15 Reb. https://t.co/QPSk3zSw98
— ESPN College BBall (@ESPNCBB) December 3, 2015"
Nigel Hayes also double-doubled to the tune of 15 points and 12 boards while dishing out a game-high six assists.
"If we aren’t the biggest mystery right now in the country, I don’t know who is," Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan said three days after the Badgers got walloped 65-48 by Oklahoma, per the Wisconsin State Journal's Jim Polzin.
Both teams struggled to create offense from beyond the arc, but Syracuse's limitations were glaring throughout, as Bleacher Report's C.J. Moore mentioned:
The Orange found some offensive rhythm to take a six-point lead midway through the second half, but scoring spurts were elusive for Syracuse from that point on.
Penn State Improves to 4-2 Against Boston College
The Penn State Nittany Lions only had one player finish in double figures, but Shep Garner's 30 points were enough to propel his squad to a 4-2 record in a 67-58 win over the Golden Eagles.
Penn State actually entered halftime trailing by a point, but as Onward Sports explained, a solid defensive display helped the Nittany Lions secure the road victory:
However, it's hard to ignore just how spectacular Garner was. The sophomore guard made 10 of 16 shots, including 8-of-12 from three. To put that number in perspective, Boston College made just six threes as a team in the loss.
Penn State received supplementary contributions from Jordan Dickerson and Payton Banks, who tallied nine points apiece on a night when their squad shot 43.1 percent from the field.
Center Dennis Clifford led Boston College with 17 points and six boards. A.J. Turner added 15 points and five boards, but the Golden Eagles simply didn't have enough offensive firepower to keep pace with Garner's three-point barrage.
Duke Dismantles Indiana at Cameron Indoor
No. 7 Duke ran roughshod over Tom Crean's Indiana Hoosiers, 94-74, in an offensive showcase that delighted the Cameron Crazies.
NBC Sports' Rob Dauster summed things up nicely on a night when Indiana's defense couldn't solve a Duke attack led by Grayson Allen, Matt Jones and Brandon Ingram:
ESPN.com's Jeff Goodman provided his take on Indiana's underwhelming defensive effort:
Laura Keeley of the Raleigh News & Observer provided the snapshot that put things in perspective for both sides:
Ingram dropped a career-high 24 points on 10-of-15 shooting in the win and Allen added 16, including a circus shot toward the end of the first half, as documented by ESPN College Basketball on Twitter:
""Are you serious? Are you serious!" https://t.co/R1vzeunrQT
— ESPN College BBall (@ESPNCBB) December 3, 2015"
Jones chimed in with 23 points on 9-of-19 shooting (5-of-11 from three) as Duke imposed its offensive will and never looked back.
Indiana received 15 points from Yogi Ferrell and a team-high 17 from Troy Williams, but the Hoosiers' lackluster defense made those solid lines moot.
"I'm sure they wanted to play better defense, but we were playing pretty good offense," Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said, per Keeley.
Crean's side needs to find stability in advance of its next big test: A Dec. 19 showdown against Notre Dame at Banker's Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Notre Dame Takes Care of Illinois
Following a 74-73 loss to Alabama and an upset loss to Monmouth, Notre Dame desperately needed a win to help steady the ship. And thanks to guards Demetrius Jackson and Steve Vasturia, the Fighting Irish did just that.
Notre Dame played a sluggish 33-point first half as Illinois jumped out to a cushy eight-point halftime lead, but Mike Brey's boys came out laser-focused for the second half. Over the game's final 20 minutes, Notre Dame outscored Illinois, 51-38.
Although Notre Dame's rotation was limited to eight players, Jackson and Vasturia scored 21 points apiece to keep the Irish's offensive equilibrium in tact. Notre Dame finished by hitting 51.8 percent of its field goals and 50 percent of its attempts from distance.
Four double-figure scorers normally would have been enough for the Illini, but their defense simply didn't have answers for Notre Dame on the other end.
Iowa Scrapes Past Florida State in OT
Iowa clinched a challenge victory for the Big Ten (8-6) over the ACC by scoring 15 points in overtime to hand Florida State a 78-75 loss in Iowa City.
All five Hawkeyes starters finished in double-figures, and it was junior guard Peter Jok who led the way with a career-high 24 points and four steals.
FoxSports.com's Reid Forgrave broke down the possible long-term implications of Iowa's triumph:
Rhythm escaped Florida State on offense. The Seminoles canned a meager 38.7 percent of their field goals and converted 22.5 percent of their 22 three-point attempts.
Florida State's also in a bit of a rut on defense. Over their last five games, the Seminoles have surrendered an average of 76.8 points. Until those issues are corrected, Florida State could have a hard time stringing together convincing wins against quality opponents.
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