Sports

Majerus dead at 64

Rick Majerus, the jovial coach who led Utah to the 1998 NCAA final and had only one losing season in 25 years with four schools, died yesterday. He was 64.

Utah industrialist Jon Huntsman, the coach’s longtime friend, confirmed in a statement released through the Salt Lake Tribune Majerus died of heart failure in a Los Angeles hospital.

Majerus said Nov. 19 he wouldn’t return to Saint Louis because of the heart condition. He ended the school’s 12-year NCAA tournament drought last season with a 26-win team that won its opening game and took top regional seed Michigan State to the wire. The Billikens were ranked for the first time since 1994-95.

Majerus was 95-69 in five seasons at Saint Louis and had a 25-year record of 517-216. He had his most success at Utah, going 323-95 from 1989-2004. He was at Marquette from 1983-86, and Ball State from 1987-89.

Baylor 64, Kentucky 55

In Lexington, Ky., the Wildcats’ 54-game winning streak at Rupp Arena came to an end when No. 8 Kentucky was upset by Baylor.

Pierre Jackson scored 17 points for the Bears (5-2). Archie Goodwin scored 17 points for Kentucky (4-3) before fouling out late.

Duke 88, Delaware 50

In Durham, N.C., Ryan Kelly scored 15 of his 18 points in the decisive first half of a rout by the No. 2 Blue Devils (8-0). Mason Plumlee added 18 points and 11 rebounds.

Michigan 74, Bradley 66

In Peoria, Ill., freshman Nik Stauskas scored 22 points in his first start and the Wolverines (7-0) survived a late run.

Ohio St. 70. No. Kentucky 43

In Columbus, Ohio, LaQuinton Ross scored a career-high 22 points to lead the Buckeyes (5-1) who made only 38 percent of their shots.

Indiana 87, Coppin St. 51

In Bloomington, Ind., Victor Oladipo and Will Sheehey both scored 14 points to lead the No. 1 Hoosiers (8-0).

Indiana overcame poor shooting at the start of the game and pulled away.

Louisville 69, Illinois St. 66

Russ Smith scored 24 points and Peyton Siva added 20 to help No. 5 Louisville (6-1) escape at home. Illinois State (5-2) led 61-60 with 4:25 to play.

Creighton 80, St. Joseph’s 51

In Omaha, Neb., Doug McDermott scored 18 of his 23 points in the first half, helping No. 11 Creighton to the easy win.

Mich. St. 84, Nicholls St. 39

In East Lansing, Mich., Keith Appling scored 13 points and No. 13 Michigan State (6-2) used a big run in the first half to romp past undermanned Nicholls State.

North Carolina 102, UAB 84

In Chapel Hill, N.C., Leslie McDonald scored a career-high 24 points in his first career start, powering the No. 14 Tar Heels (6-2).

Cincinnati 58, Alabama 56

In Cincinnati, Cashmere Wright’s fadeaway jumper from the baseline at the buzzer gave No. 17 Cincinnati (7-0) the victory.

Virginia Tech 81, Okla. St. 71

In Blacksburg, Va., Erick Green scored 28 points and hit eight critical free throws in the final 76 seconds to help Virginia Tech remain unbeaten and handed No. 10 Oklahoma State (5-1) its first loss.

Ole Miss 80, Rutgers 67

In Oxford, Miss., Marshall Henderson scored 18 points for Mississippi, including consecutive 3-point shots in a decisive 14-2 surge in the final seven minutes, to send Rutgers to its second loss.

Harvard 73, Fordham 64

In Cambridge, Mass., foul-prone Fordham (1-6) fell to Harvard, which got 17 points from Wesley Saunders. Branden Frazier led the Rams with 16 points.

Temple 70, Wagner 62

In Philadelphia, Wagner (2-4) took a nonconference road loss. The Seahawks were led by Jonathon Williams and Kenneth Ortiz with 15 points each.

Boston U. 74, St. Peter’s 66

In Jersey City, Desi Washington scored 32 points in St. Peter’s (3-4) loss.