Gophers Easily Handle Wake Forest

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) - Andre Hollins scored a season-high 27 points and Minnesota beat Wake Forest 84-69 on Tuesday night in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

Hollins hit a career-high seven 3-pointers while Carlos Morris added 15 points and Joey King had 14 for the Golden Gophers (5-2).

They shot 49 percent - 57 percent in the second half - and overcame a season-high-tying 20 turnovers by hitting a season-best 12 3-pointers.

Minnesota hit its first seven shots of the second half and spent most of the rest of the night protecting a double-figure lead.

Miles Overton had 14 points for the Demon Deacons (4-4).

They had 18 turnovers, shot 41 percent and - for the second straight game, both losses - were unable to get top scorer Devin Thomas going.

Thomas entered averaging a team-best 11.7 points but was coming off a scoreless, 0-for-7 performance four nights earlier in a discouraging home loss to Delaware State. He finished this one with just four points 1-of-4 shooting.

At the other end of the floor, in the moments when the outcome was in doubt, Minnesota couldn't miss.

The Gophers opened the second half with 16-3 run that finally gave them some separation.

Hollins hit two 3s in about a minute, and King's wide-open 3 from the corner - his second during the burst - stretched the lead to 48-34.

Hollins stretched the lead to 66-48 with another 3 with 8 1/2 minutes to play, and Wake Forest didn't get closer than 12 after that.

Codi Miller-McIntyre and freshman Mitchell Wilbekin added 10 points apiece for the Demon Deacons, who erased their only double-figure deficit of the first half by reeling off nine straight points before the break. Miller-McIntyre's drive about a second before the buzzer pulled them to 32-31.

After that, it was all Minnesota.