By R.L. Bynum
Cade Tyson learned Saturday night what life is like when you’re at the top of an opponent’s scouting report.
After leading Minnesota in scoring in each of its first five games, Tyson (who was second in the Big Ten in scoring through five games with a 23.4 average) was held to a season low of 14 points in a season-high 39 minutes as the Gophers lost to San Francisco 77–65 at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.
The Dons (5–1) double-teamed Tyson and tried to deny him the ball. The strategy worked early: Tyson managed just two shots and five points in 19 first-half minutes. He found more opportunities after halftime, but nothing close to his early-season production for Minnesota (4–2).
For the first time this season, Tyson didn’t lead the scoring for the Gophers, with Langston Reynolds leading the way with 16 points. Tyson shot 50% from the floor and the perimeter, but got off a season-low eight shots and a season-low two 3-point attempts.
Minnesota, which was without center Robert Vailoa (knee injury), played an eight-man rotation, which led to Tyson’s big minutes. Poor free-throw shooting (15 of 30) did in the Gophers, but Tyson was 5 of 7 at the line.
Teonni Key tied her season high with a game-high 17 points, and had eight rebounds and four blocks in No. 20 Kentucky’s 72–62 road victory Saturday over No. 21 Louisville. It was her seventh career game with at least four blocks and her second time with four this season.
Key’s three-point play with 17 seconds left in the first half gave the Wildcats (7–0) a 37–35 halftime lead.
It continues to be a struggle for SMU, where Coach Adia Barnes and Paulina Paris are in their first season with the Mustangs after coming over from Arizona in the offseason.
Paris scored a season-high 12 points for the second consecutive game, both coming off the bench after starting the previous games. But the Mustangs fell to 1–4 with a 58–55 home loss to North Texas, their fourth consecutive loss.
Paris tied it at 53 on two free throws with 2:39 left and scored on a driving layup to cut SMU’s deficit to one with 10 seconds left, but North Texas put the game away with a pair of free throws.
Paris was 2 of 5 from 3-point range after going 1 of 14 in the first four games, and she has one assist and seven turnovers on the season.
In other games:
— RyLee Grays had a rebound in five scoreless minutes Saturday as Tulsa moved to 5–0 with a 73–57 home victory over Missouri State.
— Will Shaver played six scoreless minutes Friday night as Samford fell to 3–4 with an 81–72 road loss to New Mexico State.
Get a rundown of how transfers did in Wednesday and Thursday games here, and a roundup of early-week games here.
Former Tar Heels play in holiday events this week, with Elliot Cadeau’s No. 7 Michigan team (4–0) and Ian Jackson’s No. 14 St. John’s team (3–1), both in the 18-team Players Era Championships in Las Vegas.
On Monday, St. John’s meets No. 16 Iowa State at 4:30 and Michigan faces San Diego State at 10:30. Both of those games are on truTV, as are Tuesday’s games, with St. John’s taking on Baylor at 5 p.m. and Michigan meeting Auburn at 8:30.
Based on the outcomes of those two days, the top two teams will play in the championship at 9:30 Wednesday, with the next two teams playing in a third-place game at 7 p.m. Teams that don’t play in either of those games will play a third game on Wednesday or Thursday.
In other tournament action:
— Ven-Allen Lubin heads to the Maui Invitational for the second consecutive season, with No. 25 N.C. State opening at 2:30 Monday against Seton Hall (ESPN2). The Wolfpack is the only ranked team in the field.
—Shaver’s Samford opens play in the Cancun Challenge at 2 p.m. Tuesday against Georgia State (FloCollege).
— Vanderbilt, with Tyler Nickel and Jalen Washington, plays its opener in the Battle 4 Atlantis against Western Kentucky at noon Wednesday (ESPN).
—Tray Crisp’s Mississippi State team meets Alcorn State at 1:30 Monday (FloSports) in the Emerald Coast Classic in Niceville, Fla.
—Paris and SMU face Saint Louis at 2:15 Tuesday at the Music City Classic in Nashville.
—Key’s Kentucky team meets No. 9 Maryland at 5:30 Wednesday at the Puerto Rico Tournament (FloSports).
—Tyson’s Gophers take on Stanford at 9:30 Thursday at the Acrisure Series in Palm Desert, Calif. (CBS Sports Network).
—Gray’s Tulsa team goes against Kent State at 10 a.m. Friday in the Baha Mar Hoops Nassau Championship (FloCollege).
Elliot Cadeau, Michigan guard
6–1, 180 pounds | Junior | UNC 2023–25 (2 seasons)
Roster situation — Starting point guard ahead of sophomore L.J. Cason
Season statistics — 13 games, 13 starts, 9.6 points, 44.3 FG%, 44.2 3P%, 59.3 FT%, 3.2 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 2.4 turnovers
Team record: 13–0, 3–0 Big Ten; Rank: No. 2
Tuesday: No. 2 Michigan 96, No. 24 USC 66 — Started; 28:30, 7 points, 2–8 FG, 1–4 3FG, 2–4 FT, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 turnovers, 2 steals, +25
Next game — 7 p.m. Tuesday at Penn State, FS1
Trayanna Crisp, Mississippi State guard
5–8 | Senior | UNC 2024–25 (1 season)
Roster situation — Starter
Season statistics — 15 games, 15 starts, 8.7 points, 41.5 FG%, 39.1 3P%, 78.3 FT%, 1.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists
Team record: 14–2, 1–1 SEC
Thursday: Mississippi State 75, Auburn 53 — Started; 32 minutes, team-high 17 points, 6–10 FG, 3–7 3FG, 2–3 FT, 2 fouls, 3 assists, 3 turnovers
Sunday: (at) No. 8 Oklahoma 95, Mississippi State 43 — Started; 28:39, 7 points, 2–11 FG, 1–5 3FG, 2–2 FT, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, -39
Next game — 7:30 Thursday vs. No. 23 Tennessee
RyLee Grays, Tulsa forward
6–4 | Junior | UNC 2023–24 (1 season)
Roster situation — One of four forwards competing for time
Season statistics — 13 games, 2.8 points, 42.9 FG%, 1–3 3FG, 69.6 FT%, 2.8 rebounds, 6 blocks, 3 steals
Team record: 9–4
Tuesday: Tulsa 64, Wichita State 58 — 11 minutes, 0–2 FG, 0–1 3FG, 3 fouls, 1 turnover, 1 block
Next game — 7:30 Tuesday at Tulane, ESPN+
Ian Jackson, St. John’s guard
6–5, 195 pounds | Sophomore | UNC 2024–25 (1 season)
Roster situation — Starter, sharing time in a point-guard-by-committee mix
Season statistics — 14 games, 7 starts, 11.4 points, 44.6 FG%, 35.7 3P%, 89.7 FT%, 2.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists
Team record: 9–5, 2–1 Big East
Wednesday: St. John’s 95, (at) Georgetown 83 — Started; 24 minutes, 14 points, 4–9 FG, 4–7 3FG, 2–2 FT, 2 rebounds, 1 foul, 1 assist, 2 turnovers, 1 block
Saturday: Providence 77, St. John’s 71 — Started; 14 minutes, 6 points, 1–8 FG, 0–6 3FG, 4–4 FT, 1 rebound, 4 fouls, 2 assists, 1 steal
Next game — 7 p.m. Tuesday at Butler, Peacock, NBCSN
Teonni Key, Kentucky forward
6–4 | RS senior | UNC 2022–24 (2 seasons)
Roster situation — Starting forward
Season statistics — 14 games, 14 starts, 11.0 points, 54.9 FG%, 1–12 3FG, 70.7 FT%, 6.5 rebounds, 1.4 blocks
Team record: 15–1, 2–0 SEC; Rank: No. 6
Thursday: No. 6 Kentucky 80, (at) No. 5 LSU 78 — Started; 38:58, 17 points, 8–14 FG, 0–2 3FG, 1–1 FT, team-high 16 rebounds, 4 turnovers, 1 steal, +1
Thursday: No. 6 Kentucky 74, Missouri 52 — Started; 22:10, 5 points, 2–6 FG, 1–2 FT, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, +10
Next game — 7 p.m. Thursday at Alabama
Ven-Allen Lubin, N.C. State forward
6–9, 250 pounds | Senior | UNC 2024–25 (1 season)
Roster situation — Starting center
Season statistics — 15 games, 15 starts, 12.7 points, 66.3 FG%, 3–8 3FG, 70.2 FT%, 7.0 rebounds
Team record: 10–5, 1–1 ACC
Wednesday: N.C. State 70, Wake Forest 57 — Started; 33 minutes, 12 points, 6–10 FG, 11 rebounds, 2 fouls, 2 assists, 1 turnover, 2 steals
Saturday: Virginia 76, N.C. State 61 — Started; 29:43, 7 points, 2–6 FG, 0–1 3FG, 3–4 FT, 5 rebounds, 3 fouls, 2 turnovers, -10
Next game — 9 p.m. Tuesday at Boston College, ACC Network
Plays UNC —7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 17, at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, ESPN or ESPN2
Tyler Nickel, Vanderbilt wing
6–7, 220 pounds | Senior | UNC 2022–23 (1 season)
Roster situation — Starting forward
Season statistics — 14 games, 14 starts, 14.9 points, 53.0 FG%, 49.1 3P%, 78.9 FT%, 3.3 rebounds, 1.4 assists
Team record: 14–0, 1–0 SEC: Rank: No. 11
Saturday: No. 11 Vanderbilt 83, (at) South Carolina 71 — Started; 28:01, 16 points, 6–10 FG, 4–7 3FG, 0–1 FT, 3 rebounds, 3 fouls, 2 assists, 1 turnover, +8
Next game — 9 p.m. Wednesday vs. Alabama, ESPN2
Paulina Paris, SMU guard
5–9 | Senior | UNC 2022–24 (2 seasons)
Roster situation — Starting guard
Season statistics — 15 games, 9 starts, 11.0 points, 42.3 FG%, 27.1 3P%, 69.7 FT%, 3.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists
Team record: 7–9, 0–4 ACC
Tuesday: (at) No. 13 Louisville 91, SMU 58 — Started; 33:14, 20 points, 8–15 FG, 4–7 3FG, 0–1 FT, 2 rebounds, 2 fouls, 3 assists, 4 turnovers, -29
Sunday: Georgia Tech 67, SMU 59 — Started; 37:01, 12 points, 5–10 FG, 0–2 3FG, 2–4 FT, 5 rebounds, 2 fouls, 4 assists, 6 turnovers, 2 steals, -3
Next game — 6 p.m. Sunday at N.C. State, ACC Network
Plays UNC — 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 12, at Carmichael Arena, ACCN
Will Shaver, Samford center
6–10, 265 pounds | RS junior | UNC 2022–23 (1 season)
Roster situation — Reserve minutes
Season statistics — 13 games, 2.0 points, 47.8 FG%, 28.6 3P%, 2–6 FT, 2.3 rebounds, 12 assists, 5 blocks, 2 steals
Team record: 8–7, 1–1 Southern Conference
Thursday: Samford 78, (at) VMI 58 — 3 minutes, 2 points, 1–1 FG, 0–1 FT, 1 rebound, 2 fouls, 2 turnovers
Saturday: (at) UNCG 89, Samford 82 — Didn’t play
Next game — 7 p.m. Wednesday at Western Carolina, ESPN+
Cade Tyson, Minnesota wing
6–7, 180 pounds | Senior | UNC 2024–25 (1 season)
Roster situation — Starter
Season statistics — 14 games, 14 starts, 22.1 points, 52.9 FG%, 39.7 3P%, 82.4 FT%, 5.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists
Team record: 9–5, 2–1 Big Ten
Saturday: Minnesota 84, (at) Northwestern 78 —Started; 40 minutes, 24 points, 6–13 FG, 1–4 3FG, 11–12 FT, 5 rebounds, 2 fouls, career-high 6 assists, 3 turnovers
Next game — 8 p.m. Tuesday vs. Iowa, Big Ten Network
Jalen Washington, Vanderbilt center
6–9, 240 pounds | Senior | UNC 2022–25 (3 seasons)
Roster situation — Backup center
Season statistics — 14 games, 1 start, 10.1 points, 62.7 FG%, 29.4 3P%, 78.2 FT%, 5.31 rebounds
Team record: 14–0, 1–0 SEC: Rank: No. 11
Saturday: No. 11 Vanderbilt 83, (at) South Carolina 71 — Didn’t start; 19:35, 10 points, 3–5 FG, 4–5 FT, 8 rebounds, 1 foul, 2 turnovers, 1 steal, 1 block, +3
Next game — 9 p.m. Wednesday vs. Alabama, ESPN2
Photo via @GopherMBB
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