UConn holds off La Salle

Kemba Walker scored 23 points and Jeff Adrien added 22 points and 14 rebounds for second-ranked Connecticut, which struggled to put away La Salle in an 89-81 victory last night in the Paradise Jam tournament in the US Virgin Islands.

The Huskies (3-0) trailed in the early minutes and led by just 6 at halftime. They never trailed in the second half, but their lead only rose as high as 10.

UConn scored 40 points in the paint and shot 54.7 percent from the field to offset the quick Explorers (1-2), who shot 50 percent, scored 12 points on fast breaks, and had some easy baskets.

"We gave up 50 percent twice last year. We gave it up tonight," UConn coach Jim Calhoun said. "It was just too easy for them."

The Huskies will take on No. 17 Miami in the second round tomorrow. The Hurricanes (2-0) beat Southern Miss, 70-60.

In another first-round game, No. 25 Wisconsin (3-0) survived Iona, 60-58, in overtime.

N. Carolina 84, UC Santa Barbara 67 - Tyler Hansbrough scored 13 points in his season debut, one of six double-figure scorers for the top-ranked Tar Heels (3-0) in their first road game of the season.

Hansbrough, who missed the first two games because of a stress reaction in his right shin, also finished with seven rebounds in 25 minutes. Ty Lawson topped North Carolina with 19 points.

UCLA 77, Southern Illinois 60 - The fourth-ranked Bruins (3-1) rebounded from their loss to Michigan by staging a late 20-2 run to put away the Salukis (2-2) in the 2K Sports Classic consolation game in New York.

Alfred Aboya led UCLA with 22 points, but landed hard while taking a charge in the closing minutes. Coach Ben Howland said Aboya may have broken his left hand but X-rays and a CT scan came back negative.

Duke 71, Michigan 56 - Nolan Smith had 16 points and the No. 10 Blue Devils (5-0) won the championship game of the 2K Sports Classic by easily handling the Wolverines (3-1).

Memphis 84, Seton Hall 70 - Doneal Mack's 16 points helped the No. 13 Tigers (4-0) build a big cushion against the Pirates (3-1) in the semifinals of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off in San Juan. In tomorrow's final, Memphis will play Xavier, which beat Virginia Tech, 63-62, in overtime on Dante Jackson's buzzer-beater from beyond halfcourt.

Southern Cal 73, Chattanooga 46 - The No. 19 Trojans (3-1) dominated the Mocs (0-4) in a losers' bracket game in San Juan, getting 17 points, 15 rebounds, and 5 blocks from Taj Gibson.

Pittsburgh 86, Akron 67 - Sam Young (26 points) keyed a game-breaking push for the sixth-ranked Panthers (3-0) at the end of the first half in Pittsburgh.

Notre Dame 65, Loyola Marymount 54 - Luke Harangody's 27 points and 17 rebounds enabled the No. 8 Fighting Irish (2-0) to pull away in Los Angeles.

Tennessee 76, Middle Tennessee 66 - The No. 14 Vols (3-0) escaped on the road thanks to 18 points and 10 rebounds from Tyler Smith.

Davidson 97, Winthrop 70 - The No. 21 Wildcats (3-1) won their 18th straight at home as Stephen Curry totaled 30 points and a career-high 13 assists.

Maryland 89, Vermont 74 - After Maryland's Greivis Vasquez (26 points) hit a 3-pointer to force overtime, the host Terrapins (3-0) torched the upset-minded Catamounts (1-2) by scoring the first 17 points of the extra period.

Portland 77, Yale 58 - The host Pilots (2-1) put five players in double figures, while the Bulldogs (0-3) had just two, led by Alex Zampier's 15 points.

UMBC 76, Quinnipiac 71 - Darryl Proctor's 25 points rallied the Retrievers (2-1) past the Bobcats (2-1) on the first day of the Tyler Ugolyn-Columbia Classic. Later in New York, Bryant fell to Columbia, 70-54.

Stonehill 70, Adelphi 61 - Matt Hall had 20 points and the Skyhawks (3-0) shot 53 percent from the field at the Lions' Classic in Rockville Centre, N.Y.

Amherst 85, Mass. College 52 - The host Lord Jeffs (2-0) advanced to the final of the Ken Wright Invitational behind 20 points from Brian Baskauskas.

Williams 75, Southern Vt. 55 - Blake Schultz had 22 points and the Ephs (2-0) opened the Williams Invitational with a victory. Ursinus also won, 82-76, over St. Lawrence.

Tufts 82, Roger Williams 76 - Dave Beyel had 24 points for the Jumbos (1-0) in the Marriott Tournament in Bristol, R.I. Earlier, Western Connecticut outlasted Lasell, 93-91, in overtime.

Women

Hartford 53, Duke 51 - The Hawks (3-0) beat a ranked team for the fourth straight season, forcing the No. 4 Blue Devils (2-1) into 26 turnovers in the DePaul Invitational in Chicago. Lisa Etienne's 15 points led Hartford.

Oklahoma 70, Arizona St. 57 - Courtney Paris had 20 rebounds and 19 points for her 100th double-double and set Oklahoma's scoring record (2,189) as the No. 2 Sooners (3-0) beat the No. 18 Sun Devils (2-1) in a Preseason NIT semifinal in Norman, Okla.

California 66, Rutgers 52 - The No. 7 Golden Bears (3-0) took down the third-ranked Scarlet Knights (2-1) in Berkeley, Calif., as Alexis Gray-Lawson supplied 25 points.

Tennessee 66, Chattanooga 63 - The fifth-ranked Vols (2-1) survived on the road after Vicki Baugh made a tiebreaking free throw with 53.7 seconds left.

Baylor 77, Stephen F. Austin 42 - Jhasmin Player had 8 points during a 28-1 run that propelled the No. 10 Bears (3-0) at home.

Vanderbilt 66, East Tennessee St. 55 - Christina Wirth and Merideth Marsh scored 16 points apiece for the No. 12 Commodores (4-0) in Johnson City, Tenn.

Marist 93, Northeastern 65 - The host Huskies (0-3) could not stop Rachele Fitz, who was 15 of 17 from the floor and scored 36 points for the Red Foxes (2-0).

Merrimack 81, Dowling 70 - Hannah DeGraffinreed had 17 points and 13 rebounds for the Warriors (1-2) in the Marriott Classic in North Andover.