MEN'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL No. 11 Mississippi State gets off to best start in 41 years

The Bulldogs beat Auburn, 73-68.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
AUBURN, Ala. -- Shane Power hit four free throws in the final 19 seconds and No. 11 Mississippi State beat Auburn 73-68 on Saturday for its best league start in 41 years.
Timmy Bowers had 17 points and Lawrence Roberts had 14 points and 11 rebounds despite foul trouble for the Bulldogs (18-1, 7-1 Southeastern Conference).
Mississippi State won despite career nights by Quinnel Brown and Lewis Monroe for the Tigers (11-7, 2-5), who have lost four of five games and the last six meetings.
Clemson 81, No. 12 N. Carolina 72
CLEMSON, S.C. -- Shawan Robinson scored a career-high 24 points to help Clemson.
The win was the biggest for Clemson (9-10, 2-6 Atlantic Coast Conference) since defeating then-No. 1 North Carolina 75-65 in February 2001. It also was the first big upset for rookie coach Oliver Purnell.
North Carolina (13-5, 3-4) has yet to win a conference road game this season.
The Tigers entered the game as the ACC's worst 3-point shooting team, averaging 29.8 percent. But against the Tar Heels, they hit a school-record 84.6 percent (11-of-13) of their 3s -- including 5-of-6 by Robinson. Most were open shots as the Tar Heels gambled for turnovers by trapping on the perimeter.
Iowa St. 68, No. 15 Kansas 61
AMES, Iowa -- Freshman Curtis Stinson scored 16 of his 19 points in the second half and made a key basket in the final minute, rallying Iowa State.
Iowa State (13-4, 4-2 Big 12) trailed by 11 points in the first half and by nine early in the second half before storming back to break a five-game losing streak to the Jayhawks (13-4, 5-1).
No. 16 Texas 69, Texas A & amp;M 59
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Texas didn't allow a field goal in the final 12:41 and beat Texas A & amp;M on the road for the 10th straight time.
The 16th-ranked Longhorns (14-3, 5-1 Big 12) shot just 28.2 percent from the floor in the first half, but were able to overcome it thanks to their late defensive performance.
Brian Boddicker and Kenton Paulino led Texas with 11 points, while Jason Klotz added 10. Guard Royal Ivey had 10 rebounds.
No. 19 Wake Forest 91, Virginia 78
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Justin Gray scored 26 points in a nearly flawless shooting performance.
Gray made his first four shots of the game, including three 3-pointers, to spark the Demon Deacons (13-4, 4-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) to an early lead that was never challenged.
Gray finished 7-of-10 from the field, made 5-of-8 3-pointers and was 7-of-8 from the line. He also led Wake Forest with six rebounds and four assists.
No. 20 Syracuse 76, Va. Tech 64
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Gerry McNamara scored 26 points and Hakim Warrick had 15 points and seven assists to lead Syracuse.
It was a nice rebound for the Orangemen (14-3, 4-2 Big East), who had lost two straight, including an embarrassing 66-45 setback at home last week to No. 7 Pittsburgh. Virginia Tech (8-10, 1-6 Big East) lost its fifth straight.
Tennessee 65, No. 22 Florida 63
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Scooter McFadgon scored 24 points and Brandon Crump added 11 points and 11 rebounds to help Tennessee rally in the final minutes.
Mississippi 79, No. 24 S. Carolina 68
OXFORD, Miss. -- Justin Reed scored a career-high 32 points and had 11 rebounds for Ole Miss.