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Without a leader, FSU falls to W. Carolina

TALLAHASSEE -- Florida State needed a player to emerge as a leader Saturday against Western Carolina. No one stepped forward.

The Seminoles were outscored 15-4 in the final two minutes as the Catamounts defeated their first ACC opponent in 21 years, 79-69 in the Leon-County Civic Center.

Six FSU players weren't alive when Western Carolina defeated Georgia Tech 88-77 on Nov. 28, 1980.

"I'm disappointed that throughout the game, we had a number of chances where we could've made some plays," FSU coach Steve Robinson said. "You make those plays, and we don't bobble the ball out of bounds, and we don't miss the layup here or there, maybe the outcome of the game is different."

Forced into desperate 3-pointers by Western Carolina's zone defense, FSU went four minutes without scoring and watched a seven-point lead disappear with 7:55 left. The team shot 36 percent from the floor and was 7-for-30 on 3-point attempts. Small forward Kelvin Wylie hit two free throws with 1:50 left to give the Catamounts a 66-65 lead. They made 9 of 11 free throws at the end.

"I don't think this was shocking, disappointing that we lost," FSU center Mike Matthews said. "You step on the court at any time you can get beat. I'm still a believer in that."

FSU starting point guard Delvon Arrington had a team-high 12 points and eight assists.

Shooting guard Monte Cummings, back from a one-game suspension for violating team policy, scored six in 23 minutes of play.

NO. 1 DUKE 104, MICHIGAN 83: Jason Williams had 14 of his career-best 35 points in the first 4:13, and the visiting Blue Devils spoiled Tommy Amaker's return to Duke. Amaker, in his first season at Michigan, started 138 games for the Blue Devils from 1984-87 and was an assistant from 1989-97.

N.C. ST. 82, NO. 9 SYRACUSE 68: Anthony Grundy put on a second-half show with 22 of his 26 points in the final 20 minutes as the visiting Wolfpack upset the Orangemen, handing them their first loss of the season.

S.C. 81, CLEMSON 59: Aaron Lucas scored 20 and Jamel Bradley added 18 for the visiting Gamecocks, who dominated the outside, hitting 9-of-25 on 3-pointers, compared to the Tigers' 3-of-23 (13 percent).

SEC

NO. 20 UCLA 79, NO. 16 ALABAMA 57: Jason Kapono had 16 of his 22 points in the second half and the host Bruins took advantage of poor shooting by the Crimson Tide.

The Bruins are 5-1 in the Wooden Classic.

The Crimson Tide had its four-game winning streak snapped in its first appearance in the eighth annual tournament.

UCLA had a 23-7 run over the final 7:45. Billy Knight had seven points and Kapono six when he hit two 3-pointers.

NO. 5 ILLINOIS 94, ARKANSAS 91: Frank Williams scored 25, hitting 18-of-24 from the free-throw line, and made a last-second steal for the host Illini.

NO. 8 VIRGINIA 77, AUBURN 72: Roger Mason scored 18 and the visiting Cavaliers hit 11 straight free throws late. Virginia trailed 72-70 late, but held the Tigers scoreless in the final two minutes.

NO. 11 KENTUCKY 79, UNC 59: Tayshaun Prince scored 31 and had 11 rebounds for the host Wildcats. Kentucky became the first school to win 1,800 games. The Wildcats won their fifth straight after falling to No. 25 Western Kentucky in the season opener.

VANDY 77, CENTENARY 75: Sophomore Brendan Plavich hit a 3-pointer with 3.4 seconds left for the host Commodores.

The shot came after Centenary had taken its first lead of the half (75-74) on a 3-pointer by Andrew Wisniewski with 16 seconds left. Wisniewski missed a 40-foot shot at the buzzer.

MISS. ST. 91, ARK. ST. 83: Mario Austin had 20 points and 10 rebounds and Michal Ignerski scored a career-best 19 for the host Bulldogs, who at 8-0, are off to their best start since 1998.

C-USA

NO. 17 MARQUETTE 79, FORDHAM 55: Dwyane Wade had 16 points, seven assists and numerous hustle plays for the host Eagles (9-0). Marquette is off to its best start since the 1997-98 team won its first 10.

DEPAUL 94, FAIRFIELD 90: Andre Brown scored 24 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Challenge at Madison Square Garden, and the Blue Demons scored their last nine on free throws to snap a two-game losing streak.

CINCINNATI 90, COPPIN ST. 39: Steve Logan scored 15, set a team record with 16 assists and was one of three Bearcats to post double doubles at home.

CHARLOTTE 62, RICHMOND 42: Jobey Thomas scored 16 and Cam Stephens had 15 points and 11 rebounds for the host 49ers. Demon Brown added 10 points and seven rebounds, and Charlotte ended a two-game losing streak.

LOUISVILLE 84, MURRAY ST. 69: Luke Whitehead scored a career-high 30 and had 10 rebounds, and the host Cardinals won the Jim Thorpe Classic. The Cardinals (4-1) are off to their best start since the 1996-97 season.

UAB 74, UNLV 68: P.J. Arnold had 16 of his 20 points in the second half to lift the host Blazers, who made 14 of 18 free throws in the final seven minutes.

-- Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

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