PHILADELPHIA – The charity for troubled youths started by Jerry Sandusky more than three decades ago – and through which the retired Penn State assistant football coach met the boys he is charged withCOLUMBUS, Ohio – Lenzelle Smith Jr. scored 17 points and had a career-high 12 rebounds as No. 4 Ohio State flexed its muscle inside to beat No. 20 Michigan 64-49 on Sunday, keeping the Buckeyes in a first-place tie in the Big Ten.
“Quite honestly, with this team we sort of need a jack-of-all-trades,” Buckeyes coach Thad Matta said of Smith. “There’s so many times where a team is going to choose to guard us a certain way or scheme a certain defense. He is really understanding his role. The energy-type plays that he made today was definitely something that gave us a spurt and a boost of energy.”
Jared Sullinger added 13 points and William Buford and Deshaun Thomas had 12 each for Ohio State (19-3, 7-2), which ran its winning streak over its archrival to six straight and eight of nine.
Wolverines coach John Beilein, whose team plays host to the Buckeyes on Feb. 18, said his team will relish the rematch.
“It goes both ways, but we’ll be looking forward to that,” he said.
Tim Hardaway Jr. had 15 points for the Wolverines (16-6, 6-3). Trey Burke, the conference’s top freshman point guard, returned to Columbus to play against Sullinger, his former high school teammate, and finished with 13 points.
The Buckeyes extended their homecourt winning streak to 38, the second-longest in the program’s 100 years.
No. 7 NORTH CAROLINA 93, GEORGIA TECH 81: In Chapel Hill, N.C., Harrison Barnes scored 23 points and Tyler Zeller added 17 points for the Tar Heels (18-3, 5-1 ACC), who held off the Yellow Jackets (8-13, 1-6).
Women
No. 6 KENTUCKY 82, ALABAMA 68: In Lexington, Ky., Keyla Snowden scored 14 points to lead the Wildcats (20-2, 9-0 SEC) past the Crimson Tide (10-12, 0-8).
No. 7 TENNESSEE 67, No. 17 GEORGIA 50: In Athens, Ga., Shekinna Stricklen had 24 points as the Vols (16-5, 7-1 SEC) routed the Bulldogs (16-6, 5-4).
MINNESOTA 76, No. 9 OHIO STATE 68: In Minneapolis, Rachel Banham scored 20 points as the Golden Gophers (12-11, 4-5 Big Ten) beat the Buckeyes (20-2, 7-2) for their first win over a ranked team in nearly three years.
No. 10 MIAMI 88, BOSTON COLLEGE 57: In Boston, Shenise Johnson scored 16 of her 22 points in the opening half to lead the Hurricanes (19-3, 8-1 ACC) past the Golden Eagles (5-16, 0-8).
No. 15 DELAWARE 72, JAMES MADISON 65: In Harrisonburg, Va., Elena Delle Donne scored 23 points and the Blue Hens (18-1, 9-0 CAA) rallied from a seven-point deficit against the Dukes (15-5, 6-3).
No. 20 GEORGETOWN 54, No. 11 RUTGERS 36: In Washington, Tia Magee scored 21 points as the Hoyas (17-5, 6-3 Big East) beat the Scarlet Knights (17-4, 6-2).
No. 14 TEXAS A&M 66, IOWA STATE 64: In College Station, Texas, Sydney Carter made two free throws with 2.4 seconds left to lift the Aggies (14-5, 5-3 Big 12) past the Cyclones (11-8, 2-6).
MICHIGAN STATE 83, No. 18 PENN STATE 77: In East Lansing, Mich., Porsche Poole scored a career-high 32 points as the Spartans (13-9, 5-4 Big Ten) beat the Nittany Lions (16-5, 6-3).
No. 19 NEBRASKA 67, ILLINOIS 47: In Champaign, Ill., Lindsey Moore scored 20 points to help the Huskers (18-3, 7-2 Big Ten) rout the Illini (7-15, 1-8).
No. 25 NORTH CAROLINA 75, WAKE FOREST 71: In Winston-Salem, N.C., Tierra Ruffin-Pratt scored 21 points as the Tar Heels (16-5, 6-2 ACC) edged the Demon Deacons (12-9, 2-6).
NORTHWESTERN 68, INDIANA 61: In Evanston, Ill. Jasmine McGhee’s 16 points and seven rebounds paced the Hoosiers (5-17, 0-9) in a loss to the Wildcats (13-9, 3-6).
