UNDATED (AP) — It was a Garden party for third-ranked Kansas and No. 9 Duke.
Ochai Agbaji scored a career-high 29 points in leading the Jayhawks to an 87-74 win against Michigan State in the Champions Classic at Madison Square Garden. Agbaji made two free throws following a technical foul on Spartans coach Tom Izzo and then hit a 3-pointer to give Kansas a 61-50 lead with 11:53 left.
Remy Martin added 15 points and David McCormack had 10 for the Jayhawks.
Trevor Keels scored 25 points and classmate Paolo Banchero added 22 to help the Blue Devils open Mike Krzyzewski’s final season by beating 10th-ranked Kentucky, 79-71. Duke, which led by four at the half, built the advantage to 15 with just under 10 minutes left behind Keels.
Oscar Tshiebwe finished with 17 points and 19 rebounds for the Wildcats.
Also on the opening night of college basketball:
— Julian Strawther had 17 points and 10 rebounds as top-ranked Gonzaga clobbered Dixie State, 97-63. Rasir Bolton added 15 points for the Bulldogs, who were undefeated last season before losing to Baylor in the national title game.
— Johnny Juzang scored 19 points, one of four starters in double figures for No. 2 UCLA in its 95-58 rout of Cal State Bakersfield. Jules Bernard also had 19 points, Jaime Jaquez Jr. had 14 points and Tyger Campbell had 10.
— Fourth-ranked Villanova coasted to a 91-51 win over Mount St. Mary’s behind Justin Moore, who hit six 3-pointers and scored a career-high 27 points for the Big East favorites. Preseason All-American Collin Gillespie scored 13 points for Villanova in his first game since suffering a torn MCL in his left knee.
— Tre Mitchell scored 13 points and fifth-ranked Texas earned new coach Chris Beard his first win for the Longhorns, 92-48 versus Houston Baptist. Transfer point guard Marcus Carr scored eight of the Longhorns’ first 18 points and had five assists.
— Sasha Stefanovic made 5 of 6 3-pointers and finished with 23 points to lead No. 7 Purdue past Bellarmine, 96-67. Zach Edey added 16 points and Isaiah Thompson had 15 for the Boilermakers.
— Fifth-year senior Jacob Grandison scored a career-high 20 points as No. 11 Illinois cruised to a 71-47 romp over Jackson State.
— Emoni Bates scored 17 points in his collegiate debut and Jalen Duren and Lester Quinones added 15 apiece and No. 12 Memphis ripped Tennessee Tech, 89-65.
— Will Richardson provided 20 points and De’Vion Harmon chipped in 15 as 13th-ranked Oregon whipped Texas Southern, 83-66.
— Keon Ellis scored 18 points and Jaden Shackelford added 17, leading No. 14 Alabama to a 93-64 thumping of Louisiana Tech.
— Marcus Sasser scored 25 points and 15th-ranked Houston rallied from 13 down in the second half to defeat Hofstra, 83-75 in overtime.
— JD Notae scored 30 points for No. 16 Arkansas, which was forced to rally from an eight-point, halftime deficit to beat Mercer, 74-61.
— Akron was poised to knock off an Ohio rival before Zed Key drained a layup in the final second to give 17th-ranked Ohio State a 67-66 triumph over the Zips. EJ Liddell carried the Buckeyes with 25 points and 12 rebounds.
— Kennedy Chandler and Santiago Vescovi each delivered 20 points in leading No. 18 Tennessee to a 90-62 rout of Tennessee-Martin.
— Caleb Love scored 22 points and No. 19 North Carolina led the whole way in Hubert Davis’ coaching debut, earning an 83-67 win over Loyola of Maryland.
— Qudus Wahab furnished 17 points and Eric Ayala surpassed the 1,000-point plateau by adding 13 to 21st-rated Maryland’s 83-69 downing of Quinnipiac.
— Wendell Green Jr. scored 19 points, fellow transfer K.D. Johnson added 12 points off the bench and No. 22 Auburn led Morehead State wire to wire in a 77-54 win.
— Kyle Lofton and Jaren Holmes scored 17 points apiece as No. 23 St. Bonaventure rolled to an 75-47 victory over Siena, the Bonnies’ first game as a ranked team since January 1971.
— No. 24 Connecticut crushed Central Connecticut, 99-48 behind Adama Sanogo’s 20 points.
— John Carter Jr. scored 19 points and Navy got its first win over a ranked team since the David Robinson era by stunning No. 25 Virginia, 66-58.
