Northeastern starts strong in opening win

Georgia Southern big man Krzysztof Janiszewski fights a Duke double team of Brian Zoubek (55) and Jon Scheyer last night. (Gerry Broome/Associated Press)

Eugene Spates scored 14 points and Matt Janning added 13 as Northeastern opened its season with a 73-60 victory over IUPUI in a first-round game of the 2K Sports Classic tournament in Ann Arbor, Mich.

The Huskies will play Michigan, a 77-55 winner over Michigan Tech, in tonight's regional final.

Spates hit 3-pointers on Northeastern's first two possessions, turning the second one into a 4-point play. The Huskies led, 17-8, midway through the first half and took a 32-22 lead into halftime after shooting only 8 of 23 from the field but 11 of 12 from the line.

Leroy Nobles hit a 3-pointer to pull the Jaguars (0-1) within 6 points with 12:26 remaining, but the Huskies responded with a 15-5 run.

Nkem Ojougboh added 12 points for Northeastern and Chaisson Allen had 11 points and six assists.

The Huskies finished 24 of 26 from the line, and Spates and Janning each had three of Northeastern's seven 3-pointers.

IUPUI's Robert Glenn led all scorers with 19 points off the bench and Alex Young added 17. The Jaguars finished just 2 of 17 from 3-point range.

In the other semifinal at Crisler Arena, Michigan dominated the Division 2 Huskies from the opening tip. With two minutes left in the first half, Manny Harris had scored 18 of his career-high 30 points, just 4 fewer than the entire Michigan Tech team.

Duke 97, Georgia Southern 54 - Kyle Singler scored 19 points for the second straight game and the eighth-ranked Blue Devils (2-0) rolled in the Durham, N.C., regional final of the 2K Sports Classic by routing the Eagles.

Nolan Smith added 13 points and Gerald Henderson and Greg Paulus each finished with 11 as Duke earned its 61st straight nonconference victory at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

After the Blue Devils host Rhode Island this weekend, they will head to Madison Square Garden - where Duke suffered its first loss last season - to meet the winner of the Carbondale, Ill., regional final between Massachusetts and Southern Illinois.

Willie Powers scored 17 points and Julian Allen had 10 to lead Georgia Southern (1-1).

The Eagles went at least five minutes between field goals twice in the first half, and they shot just 28 percent while allowing Duke to shoot 48.5 percent.

The Blue Devils were in control from start to finish in their second straight blowout win. They opened the game with a 16-4 run and took command late in the half by running off 15 straight points over a two-minute stretch.

That pushed their lead past 20 points for good, and it grew to 30 just 12 seconds into the second half on Smith's 3-pointer.