Thursday, December 26, 2013
Associated Press
HONOLULU
DeAndre Kane scored 23 points and No. 14 Iowa State overcame its worst half of the season to beat Boise State 70-66 on Wednesday in the Diamond Head Classic championship game.
Kane hit a 3-pointer with less than 2 minutes left to help seal the win for the Cyclones (11-0). Boise State’s Derrick Marks had a chance to tie with less than 30 seconds left, but missed a 15-foot jumper.
Melvin Ejim had 15 points and 10 rebounds.
The win gives Iowa State its best start to a season in school history.
Derrick Marks had 23 points for Boise State (10-3).
Iowa State came back after making less than a third of its shots in the first half.
Ward earned tournament MVP honors for his three-game performance.
South Carolina 69, Akron 59
HONOLULU
Duane Notice scored 15 points as South Carolina defeated Akron in the third-place game of the Diamond Head Classic.
Sindarius Thornwell, Brenton Williams scored 12 points apiece and Michael Carrera, Tyrone Johnson each added 10 points off the bench for South Carolina (4-6). It was a season high for the freshman Notice.
Demetrius Treadwell scored 12 points and Quincy Diggs had 10 for Akron (6-4). The Zips held a 31-25 lead at the break, but were outscored 12-5 in the first 5 minutes after halftime.
The Gamecocks took over midway through the second half. Notice’s basket started a 14-3 run as South Carolina rallied to take a 53-45 lead with 7:20 remaining.
A 3-pointer by Jake Kretzer and a three-point play by Treadwell helped Akron close to 59-56 with 4 minutes remaining. But Notice scored on the next play and then his steal and layup put the Gamecocks ahead 63-56 with 3:19 left. South Carolina then stole the ball on consecutive Akron possessions to seal the win.
Notice, who entered the tournament averaging just four points per game, had three-straight double-digit scoring performances in the tournament. He scored 11 in Sunday’s win over Saint Mary’s and had 13 in Monday’s loss to Boise State. Both were his season highs at the time.
Notice was 7 of 12 from the field as the Gamecocks shot 41.7 percent for the game and made 81 percent of their 21 free throw attempts. South Carolina held the Zips to 22-of-58 shooting, including 5 of 17 from 3-point range.
The teams will face each other again on Saturday in South Carolina.