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Wolfpack survives off night

RALEIGH, N.C. - Julius Hodge jokingly compared himself to Terrell Owens, then declared he should be the Heisman Trophy winner of college basketball.

Just being himself was good enough.

Hodge had 22 points to offset some horrible shooting by his teammates, leading No. 16 North Carolina State to a 60-53 victory over Purdue on Monday night in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.

Playing in his 100th career game, Hodge added eight rebounds and five assists. Ilian Evtimov scored 12 and Cameron Bennerman 11 for N.C. State.

"Just missing shots," was how Hodge explained the poor performance. "That's going to happen. I'm going to keep going to my guys, though."

That he did. Praised by his coaches for his unselfishness after the Wolfpack cruised to the BCA Invitational title to start the season, Hodge kept sharing the ball while the rest of the team struggled.

Then, when Purdue did get close, he took it upon himself to score.

"He's a big-time player," Boilermakers guard Brandon McKnight said. "He might be national player of the year. Whenever they needed a big basket or anything, it seemed like he came through for them."

Through four games, the Wolfpack shot 58 percent. Against Purdue, N.C. State missed its first eight 3s and shot 33 percent in each half, including Hodge's 8-of-15.

UAB 66, LA. TECH 54: Donell Taylor had 15 points and seven steals and Richard Jones added 10 points for the host Blazers.

TENN. 73, WOFFORD 67: C.J. Watson converted a three-point play and Andre Patterson scored inside in the final 1:41 to lift the Volunteers. Scooter McFadgon made four free throws in the final seconds to seal the win in UT's home opener.

NO. 6 OKLA. ST. 76, SMU 57: John Lucas scored 11 of his 24 during a 17-4 first-half run as the visiting Cowboys gave coach Eddie Sutton his 759th win, tying Ed Diddle for seventh on the Division I list.

NO. 18 TEXAS 86, COPPIN ST. 50: Freshman Daniel Gibson scored 17 and the host Longhorns made 16 3-pointers, two shy of the school record.

UM 84, FAU 68: Anthony King recorded the first triple double in school history and Robert Hite scored a career-high 38 for the host Hurricanes. King had a school- and Atlantic Coast Conference-record 13 blocks, eight in the first half.

KANSAS ST. 76, ARK.-PINE BLUFF 42: Clent Stewart scored a career-high 15 and the host Wildcats used a stifling defense to roll.

WASHINGTON: Guard Brandon Roy will miss four to six weeks after arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right knee.

Virginia moved into the AP Top 25, giving the ACC a record-tying seven teams in the poll. The feat was accomplished twice by the Big Ten and once by the ACC.

Florida jumped from No. 23 to 19. Washington had the week's biggest rise from 22 to 14. Louisville and Wisconsin fell five spots, the Cardinals to 17 and the Badgers to 25.

Iowa moved in at No. 23 off an impressive Maui Invitational. Gonzaga and Memphis dropped out.

OBITUARY: Mark Haymore, who played on Indiana's unbeaten 1976 NCAA championship team before transferring to Massachusetts, was found dead in his Amherst, Mass., apartment Sunday. He was 48. Mr. Haymore had a history of heart problems.