Thursday's Shootaround: Princeton game-winner, Cincy bounces back

Princeton 72, Rider 71 OT: In what was most definitely the game of the night, Rider -- who has just one win on the season -- rallied from a four-point deficit with just 34 seconds left in the game to force overtime, even missing a shot as time-expired that would have won the game. In the extra frame, Rider took a two-point lead, setting up a finish eerily reminiscent of the Indiana-Kentucky ending:



The guy that hit the game winning jumper here is forward Mack Darrow. That three was his only field goal of the game.

Cincinnati 78, Wright State 58: The Bearcats looked like a different team on Wednesday night than they have all season long, and its not just because their starting front court began serving a six-game suspension. Cincinnati was running the floor, they were hitting threes and they were focused. They looked like a team that knew their season was in dire straits, that knew this was when they had to decide whether they were going to accept the label of just "a bunch of thugs" or go out and change that line of thinking. Sean Kilpatrick finished with 20 points and JaQuon Parker, playing just his second game of the season, added 14 in the win. As a team, Cinci was 14-32 from three.

Charleston 71, Tennessee 65: We warned you that this may not be an upset in the making. Vegas agreed, as they had Charleston favored coming in. And while the Vols got off to a quick start, the Cougars took over in the second half. From the 5:43 mark of the first half until the 6:03 mark of the second half, Charleston outscored Tennessee 48-21, turning a 28-15 deficit into a 63-49 lead. The Vols got within three in the final minute, but they never had the ball with a chance to tie the game. Antwaine Wiggins had 24 points for the Cougars. After the impressive fight that Tennessee put up in Maui, I wasn't alone in thinking that this group had a shot to be competitive in the SEC and maybe finish in the top half. That prediction looks way off right now, as the Vols were coming off of a home loss to Austin Peay prior to this game.

Iona 88, Richmond 79: Mike Glover led five Gaels in double figures with 24 points and Scott Machado added 13 points and 15 assists as Iona rolled over the Spiders in Richmond. Iona was coming off of a 19 point loss to Marshall, using this game to prove their loss to the Thundering Herd was a fluke.

UNLV 65, UTEP 54: Anthony Marshall led four Rebels in double figures with 20 points, 16 of which came in the second half, as UNLV was able to pull away from a tougher than expected UTEP team late in the second half. Neither Chace Stanback or Mike Moser were able to find a rhythm in this one, combining for 11 points on 5-16 shooting from the floor.


The rest of the top 25:

No. 2 Ohio State 82, USC-Upstate 58: Jared Sullinger returned from the back spasms that have sidelined him for two games to score 12 points and grab 10 boards in 33 minutes off the bench. Sullinger wasn't happy with his performance, but the fact that he is back on the court is, obviously, a good sign.

No. 7 Baylor 69, Bethune-Cookman 42: Baylor had 10 dunks in this game. Seriously. 10 dunks. I can't wait for the Bears to start playing some real competition so we can see what this team is actually made of.


Other notable scores:

- Ole Miss 66, Louisiana-Lafayette 54
- Norfolk State 73, Long Island 62
- Maryland 65, FIU 61
- Wichita State 94, Chicago State 44
- Denver 71, Northern Colorado 65
- UCLA 60, Eastern Washington 47


Top performers:

Tony Gallo, Coppin State: Gallo was the night's high-scorer with 27 points as the Eagles beat Towson.

Ian Hummer, Princeton: While it was Mack Darrow's three that won the game, Hummer's 21 points, 12 boards, seven assists and four steal ensured that there would be overtime.

Scott Machado, Iona: If the 13 points, 15 assists and six rebounds Machado had will turning the ball over just twice isn't enough, Mike Glover's 24 points on 11-13 shooting oughta do it for you.

Kyle O'Quinn, Norfolk State: O'Quinn had 22 points, 14 boards six blocks, two steals and 4 assists as Norfolk State knocked off Julian Boyd and Long Island.