WIZARDS-HORNETS
Henderson leads Hornets over Wizards again, 94-87
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Gerald Henderson scored 27 points and the Charlotte Hornets defeated the Washington Wizards for the second time this week, 94-87 on Thursday night.
Henderson was 10 of 15 from the field as the Hornets beat the Wizards for the fifth straight time. Charlotte won at Washington on Monday night, 92-88.
Brian Roberts had 12 points and provided a huge spark late in the third quarter after Charlotte fell behind by 11. Lance Stephenson, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Jason Maxiell added 11 points apiece for the Hornets (22-27).
Paul Pierce scored 19 for the Wizards. John Wall had 15 points and 13 assists.
Charlotte picked up its defense in the fourth quarter, holding the Wizards to 5-of-19 shooting.
Wizards guard Bradley Beal left in the first half with an injury to his right big toe and did not return. He had one point in 11 minutes.
HURRICANES-COYOTES
Lindholm’s shootout goal leads Hurricanes over Coyotes 2-1
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Eric Lindholm scored the only goal of the shootout to give the Carolina Hurricanes a 2-1 victory over the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday night.
Carolina’s Victor Rask and Arizona’s David Moss scored early, then the teams went scoreless through the rest of regulation and overtime.
The Coyotes missed all three shootout attempts.
Mike Smith had 39 saves for Arizona, including a sprawling block with his toe in overtime. Cam Ward had 28 saves for the Hurricanes.
Rask was credited with a goal for Carolina just 1:03 into the game. It initially was credited to Ron Hainsey but officials later determined the puck had hit Rask on the way to the net.
Moss scored his first goal of the season 6:38 in.
T25-SOUTH CAROLINA-GEORGIA
Top-ranked Gamecocks dominate No. 22 Georgia, 58-35
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Bianca Cuevas scored 16 points and top-ranked South Carolina protected its undefeated record by beating No. 22 Georgia 58-35 on Thursday night.
South Carolina (22-0, 10-0 Southeastern Conference) plays at No. 2 Connecticut on Monday night in a matchup of the nation’s top two teams.
Tiffany Mitchell had 14 points for the Gamecocks.
Georgia (17-6, 5-5) has lost three straight — all to Top 10 teams.
Aleighsa Welch had two points, 14 rebounds and three of the Gamecocks’ 10 blocked shots, which matched their season high.
WILLIAM & MARY-COLL OF CHARLESTON
College of Charleston runs though William & Mary, 80-72
CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Canyon Berry scored 19 points and added five rebounds to help lead College of Charleston to an 80-72 victory over William & Mary on Thursday night.
Joe Chealey finished with 16 points for the Cougars (7-17, 2-9 Colonial Athletic Association), whose win snaps a five-game losing streak. Adjehi Baru and Evan Bailey each added 12 points.
College of Charleston shot 54.5 percent from the field, its highest mark of the season, and got to the free-throw line 33 times in the game, also a season high.
The Cougars led 35-32 at the half, but took a double-digit lead with 14:39 left after a Berry 3-pointer and an Anthony Stitt layup. College of Charleston kept the Tribe at arm’s length the rest of the night, not allowing them within seven.
Omar Prewitt scored 22 points to lead William & Mary (14-8, 8-3).
WOFFORD-ETSU
Skinner’s double-double helps Wofford beat ETSU 74-64
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (AP) — Lee Skinner had 16 points and 10 rebounds to lead Wofford to a 74-64 victory over East Tennessee State on Thursday night.
Wofford (19-5, 10-1 Southern League) has won 10 of its past 11 games and has a one game lead over Chattanooga (16-8, 9-2) in the league.
Wofford led 56-37 midway through the second half. ETSU chipped away, with Desonta Bradford scoring on a three-point play to cap a 25-12 run and pull the Buccaneers within 68-62 with 1:24 left. Spencer Collins made four free throws and scored on a dunk to seal it for Wofford.
Skinner shot 5 of 9 from the floor and 6 of 7 from the line. Collins scored 12 points and C.J. Neumann added 11 for the Terriers, who shot 29 of 43 from the free-throw line.
Rashawn Rembert scored 17 points, Bradford added 14 and Jalen Riley 10 for ETSU (13-9, 6-6).
CHATTANOOGA-FURMAN
Tuoyo scores 20 as Chattanooga beats Furman 74-71 in OT
GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Justin Tuoyo scored a career-high 20 points, Ronrico White had 12 to surpass 1,000 points for his career and Chattanooga defeated Furman 74-71 in overtime on Thursday.
Casey Jones added 14 points and nine rebounds and Eric Robertson scored 11 points for the Mocs (16-8, 9-2 Southern Conference), who have won seven of their last eight games.
Stephen Croone led Furman (7-15, 4-7) with 31 points but he missed a 3-pointer with five seconds left in regulation after Jones had tied the game with 37 seconds to play.
Croone scored four straight in overtime to tie the game with 2:12 to go. Jones made a layup, then the Paladins missed two shots and two free throws before a Tuoyo dunk made it 73-69 with 23 seconds left.
Daniel Fowler scored for Furman but after White made one of two free throws, Croone and Geoff Beane missed 3s in the closing seconds.
MERCER-THE CITADEL
Mercer beats The Citadel 76-53
CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — T.J. Hallice scored 16 points, Darious Moten added 15 and Mercer blew past the Citadel for a 76-53 victory on Thursday.
The Bears (13-11, 8-3 Southern Conference) pushed their lead to 50-30 with 14:59 left and didn’t let it drop below 20 points from there.
Mercer shot 58.2 percent from the field and outrebounded The Citadel 34-15. Hallice was 7 for 10 from the field and Moten made all seven of his attempts, including a 3-pointer. Ike Nwamu had 12 points and Stephon Jelks 11.
Hallice, Nwamu and Moten all had eight points in the first half, helping the Bears build a 33-21 lead at the break.
The Citadel (8-14, 3-8) never led after the opening minutes. Ashton Moore had 19 points and Jake Wright added 11 as the Bulldogs lost their fifth straight.
S CAROLINA-HOKE
AP Source: Hoke agrees to join South Carolina football staff
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A person familiar with the deal says Florida defensive coordinator and longtime NFL assistant Jon Hoke will join South Carolina as co-defensive coordinator.
The person spoke to The Associated Press on Thursday on condition of anonymity because South Carolina has not publicly announced Hoke’s hiring.
Gamecocks coach Steve Spurrier had been expected to announce Hoke’s position Thursday, however, a fatal shooting on campus earlier in the day postponed a planned news conference.
Hoke served as Spurrier’s defensive coordinator with the Gators from 1999-2001. He coached defensive backs with the Houston Texans from 2002-08 and most recently with the Chicago Bears from 2009 through this past season.
Hoke will share leadership duties with Lorenzo Ward, who has led the Gamecocks’ defense the past three seasons.
