MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — DeAndre Williams had 20 points and six assists, Jalen Duren added 14 points and Memphis finally played to its potential, beating No. 6 Alabama 92-78 to snap a four-game skid. Landers Nolley added 13 points for Memphis, which came into the season with a highly touted recruiting class and topped out with the No. 9 ranking in the AP Top 25. But the Tigers got pounded by Iowa State and lost close games to Georgia, Ole Miss and Murray State to fall out of the poll. Keon Ellis led the Crimson Tide with 19 points. Jahvon Quinerly finished with 12 points and Jaden Shackelford added 10.
AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Walker Kessler had 14 points, Jabari Smith and Devan Cambridge each scored 13, and No. 13 Auburn beat North Alabama 70-44. It was the Tigers’ second and final game without suspended coach Bruce Pearl. The Tigers who won their sixth straight. They didn’t push their lead into double digits until five minutes into the second half but made up for it with a 25-2 run to put away the Lions. Auburn completed Pearl’s two-game NCAA-imposed suspension with a second straight blowout. His son, Steven Pearl, served as head coach on Tuesday after Wes Flanigan presided over a win Saturday over Nebraska.
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BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Tari Eason led a balanced attack with 18 points and No. 19 LSU beat Northwestern State 89-49, improving to 10-0 for the first time in 22 years. Eason scored all but five of his 18 points in the second half, when LSU already had a big lead. Three Tigers starters also scored in double figures. Xavier Pinson had 15 points and four assists, Efton Reid had 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Darius Days had 13 points. Kendal Coleman led the Demons with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Cedric Garrett added 15 points for Northwestern State, which hasn’t beaten a Division I team this season.
STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) — Iverson Molinar scored 18 points and D.J. Jeffries scored 15 and Mississippi State blitzed Georgia State 79-50 and ended its two-game losing streak. Shakeel Moore’s layup broke a tie at 8-all and that triggered an 11-4 Bulldogs run. Jeffries’ 3-pointer with 8:35 before halftime gave Mississippi State a 22-14 advantage and they went on to outscore Georgia State 21-8 to close the half. Molinar only missed one shot all night going 5 for 6 overall and made all seven of his foul shots. Corey Allen scored 15 for the Panthers who have now lost three of their last four.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Money is pouring in by the millions as name, image and likeness efforts spring up around major college athletic programs eager to aid the marketing of athletes and bring wealthy alumni into the game. College football will have its first national signing day on Wednesday in this new money era. With few rules governing how it all works, the push to dangle cash in front of players has created a new, rapidly expanding frontier in college sports with “collectives” and even nonprofits popping up to play ball.
UNDATED (AP) — Last year’s bowl season felt a little sad with so many games canceled by the pandemic. College football fans were grateful for the 25 bowls they got, but it just wasn’t the same. The full bowl lineup is back this season. There will be 43 bowl games and all but one of them involves FBS teams at the top level of college football. AP College Football Writer Ralph Russo says there is a reason to watch every one of them. He is also picking Alabama and Georgia to win their playoff semifinal games and advance to the national championship.
UNDATED (AP) — Alabama and Georgia are competing for the honor of having the nation’s top-ranked recruiting class. A third Southeastern Conference program is assembling an equally impressive recruiting class. Texas A&M has joined its two SEC rivals atop the team recruiting rankings heading into Wednesday’s early signing date. The race is close enough that the unofficial team recruiting champion might not be determined until the later signing date on Feb. 2. Experts say all the coaching changes this year have also added more uncertainty about where prospects wind up.
UNDATED (AP) — Southeastern Louisiana quarterback Cole Kelley, East Tennessee State running back Quay Holmes and Montana State linebacker Troy Andersen highlight The Associated Press FCS All-America team. Kelley and Holmes are among the finalists for the Walter Payton Award, given to the most outstanding player in the Championship Subdivision. Andersen is a finalist for FCS defensive player of the year, the Buck Buchanan Award. Montana State was one five schools to place two players on the All-America first team.
