Cormac Ryan’s layup with nine seconds left boosted Notre Dame to a 79-76 victory over visiting Radford in the Fighting Irish’s season-opener Thursday night.

Ryan scored in transition to lead 77-76 as Notre Dame took advantage of a 5-on-4 situation with Radford’s DaQuan Smith lying injured out of bounds after an unsuccessful drive to the basket.

The Highlanders had a chance to erase their one-point deficit, but senior Josiah Jeffers missed a 6-foot runner from the baseline with two seconds left.

Graduate student Nate Laszewski, who grabbed a defensive rebound and sank two clinching free throws with four-tenths of a second left, paced Notre Dame with 28 points and 12 rebounds.

Trey Wertz added 18 points and Ryan finished with 10 points for the shorthanded Irish, who used just six players. Mike Brey boosted his record to 23-0 in Notre Dame home openers.

Freshman guard Kenyon Giles came off the bench to score 20 points for Radford (0-2), which led by as many as nine in the second half. Smith added 18 points.

Notre Dame established Laszewski early. He scored the team’s first nine points with a mix of 3-pointers, layups and free throws. But Radford scored on four of its first five possessions to prompt Notre Dame to ditch its man-to-man defense in favor of a zone.

Notre Dame clung to a 40-39 halftime lead, then missed eight of its first nine shots in the second half to help Radford build a 51-42 lead on Giles’ pullup jumper in transition with 13:22 to go.

Notre Dame’s comeback began with 9:36 left when Radford big man Shaquan Jules hit Laszewski in the face with a right elbow while making a move in the post. The officials ruled it to be a flagrant 1 foul, and Laszewski hit both free throws to cut Notre Dame’s deficit to 57-52. Ryan added two free throws on the ensuing possession.

The Irish finally regained a 72-71 lead on Dane Goodwin’s pair of free throws with 3:21 left, but Jeffers replied with consecutive driving layups to set up the riveting conclusion.

–Field Level Media

Aundre Hyatt scored 10 of his 19 points in the second half and Cam Spencer added 15 of his 18 in the first half as Rutgers took control in the opening minutes and cruised to an 88-50 rout of visiting Sacred Heart Thursday night in Piscataway, N.J.

Hyatt followed up a double-double in the season-opening 40-point win over Columbia by making five of seven shots and all seven of his free throw attempts.

After scoring 17 in his debut in the Columbia win, Spencer was even more productive on Thursday night. The Loyola of Maryland transfer made 6 of 10 shots, hit three 3-pointers and also collected seven rebounds and six assists.

Clifford Omoruyi scored on several inside moves and contributed 17 points, seven rebounds and three blocks as the Scarlet Knights shot 51.7 percent and outrebounded Sacred Heart 36-31. Derek Simpson added 11 while Mawot Mag contributed eight and Paul Mulcahy nabbed four of Rutgers’ 17 steals.

Raheem Solomon scored 14 points and Nico Galette added 10 for the Pioneers (1-1), who shot 39.6 percent and missed 14 of 19 3-point tries. Gallette and Solomon also had four turnovers apiece as Sacred Heart allowed 29 points off 25 turnovers along with 22 fastbreak points.

Joey Reilly, who led the Pioneers with 23 points in their season-opening seven-point win over Hartford Monday, was held to five points.

Spencer scored 10 points in a 15-0 run and his putback layup staked Rutgers to a 19-7 lead with 13:01 remaining. A 3-pointer and a layup by Spencer upped the lead to 29-17 with 5:12 remaining and the Scarlet Knights held a 46-25 lead at halftime on consecutive dunks by Omoruyi and Simpson.

Spencer’s 3-pointer gave the Scarlet Knights a 58-29 lead less than three minutes into the second half, and Hyatt’s layup hiked the lead to 82-47 with just under five minutes to go.

–Field Level Media

Penn State picked up where it left off in its opening game, firing a barrage of 3-pointers at Loyola (Maryland) in a 90-65 victory Thursday night in State College, Pa.

Three nights after setting a program single-game record with 18 makes from long distance, the Nittany Lions (2-0) went 16 of 30 from beyond the arc.

In an equal-opportunity offense, nine Penn State players connected from distance, led by Camren Wynter, who made 3 of 4 on his way to a team-high 18 points.

Myles Dread came off the bench to make 4 of 7 shots from beyond the arc to account for his 12 points. Jalen Pickett fed the well-spaced Nittany Lions offense with 11 assists.

Kebba Njie did the work inside for Penn State, scoring 12 points and grabbing six rebounds. The Nittany Lions led in rebounding 33-26.

Jaylin Andrews led Loyola (0-2) with 23 points. Golden Dike added 10 points and six rebounds.

The Nittany Lions needed little time to warm up. Before the game was five minutes old, Andrew Funk, Seth Lundy, Dallion Johnson and Wynter drained 3-pointers as Penn State built a 14-4 lead.

With Andrews scoring inside and out, Loyola fought back. When Dike made layups on consecutive possessions, the Greyhounds were within 21-19 with 8:49 left in the half.

Penn State answered with another long-range assault. In just over five minutes, Dread made a trio of 3-pointers. Wynter and Johnson added one each as the Nittany Lions took their biggest lead of the half at 40-26.

Penn State opened the second half just as it did the first. With a 10-2 run, fueled by 3-pointers from Wynter and Caleb Dorsey, the Nittany Lions stretched their advantage to 50-31.

The Greyhounds never challenged again. They finished at 46.4 percent shooting from the floor, including 31.6 percent from beyond the arc. The Nittany Lions finished at 57.9 percent and 53.3 percent from distance.

Through two games, Penn State is shooting 50 percent (34 of 68) on 3-point attempts.

–Field Level Media

Julian Reese scored 19 points and sparked one of several Maryland scoring runs as the host Terrapins defeated Western Carolina 71-51 on Thursday night in College Park, Md.

Jahmir Young added 16 points and Hakim Hart had 10 points for Maryland (2-0), which was in control throughout its second straight home game to begin the season.

Tyzhaun Claude had 12 points for cold-shooting Western Carolina (0-2). The Catamounts made 27 percent of their shots from the field, with just six assists to their credit. With so many misses, their 14 offensive rebounds were enough to offset the shoddy shooting.

Reese made 7 of 9 shots from the field and 5 of 5 on free throws. He also pulled in a game-high 12 rebounds.

The Terrapins won despite 2-for-19 shooting from 3-point range.

Maryland was strong on defense for a second time this week after opening with a 71-49 victory against visiting Niagara. Western Carolina was charged with 17 turnovers to match its 17 field goals.

It took 11 minutes for the Terrapins to build a double-digit lead.

When Hart drained Maryland’s first 3-pointer with 15:51 to play in the second half, the Terrapins had a 41-21 lead.

Western Carolina’s inability to create sustained offense was a game-long issue. The Catamounts had a four-minute span without a field goal during the second half, enabling Maryland to maintain about a 20-point edge.

Reese scored seven points in Maryland’s 11-0 run that created a 61-31 spread while Western Carolina went another 4:16 between field goals.

Maryland held a 32-15 halftime lead, with Young and Reese combining for 21 points. Reese had his 10 points in the opening eight minutes.

In the first half, the Catamounts had 10 turnovers and six field goals while shooting 20 percent from the field. The offensive woes included two stretches of about five minutes without a point.

Maryland is 3-0 all-time against Western Carolina.

–Field Level Media

Mike White got a win in his first game as the Georgia coach but a second victory figures to be tougher to come by when his Bulldogs visit Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, N.C., on Friday night — one of two matchups pitting the Atlantic Coast Conference against the Southeastern Conference that night.

“An ACC road game in Game 2,” White said. “It’s not ideal, but an opportunity at the same time. They’re playing us early, too. We’ll find out really soon exactly where we’re at with our level of competition.”

South Carolina hosting Clemson is the other SEC-ACC matchup.

Georgia (1-0) opened with a 68-55 victory over Western Carolina to provide a successful debut for White, who spent the previous seven seasons as head coach at Florida. The media’s pick for 13th in the 14-team SEC, the Bulldogs return their leading scorer from last season in guard Kario Oquendo.

Oquendo, an all-SEC second-team pick two seasons ago, scored 18 points in the opener. Frank Anselem, a transfer from Syracuse, with 11 points was the only other Bulldog in double figures as Georgia had to fend off Western Carolina’s second-half rally after leading by 15 at halftime.

“We’ve got a little fight to us,” White said. “We’ve got to have a lot more fight to win in our league, of course, and we’ve got to execute better.”

Picked to finish ninth in the 15-team ACC, Wake Forest (1-0) opened with a 71-59 victory over Fairfield. Four players scored in double figures with Delaware transfer Andrew Carr, East Tennessee State transfer Daivien Williamson, and sophomore Cameron Hildreth scoring 14 points each. Freshman Bobi Klintman added 11.

Third-year coach Steve Forbes liked his team’s defense after it held Fairfield to less than 39-percent shooting and forced 13 turnovers. The Deacons had seven stops over the final four minutes of the first half and never trailed again.

“We didn’t get off to a great start offensively,” Forbes said, “but we didn’t let our offense dictate how we defended, and that kept us in the game.”

–Field Level Media

Zed Key recorded his second straight double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds as host Ohio State overwhelmed Charleston Southern 82-56 on Thursday in Columbus, Ohio.

Brice Sensabaugh had 14 points and Sean McNeil added 13 points for the Buckeyes (2-0).

Tahlik Chavez scored 13 points and Claudell Harris Jr. had 12 for Charleston Southern.

The Buccaneers (1-1) scored the first two points of the game but that was their lone shining moment as Buckeyes, particularly Key, quickly took control.

They went on an 11-0 run with Key putting in six points. By the time he went to the bench for a breather with 11:12 left in the first half, he had 13 points, hitting 6 of 7 from the floor and a free throw as well as grabbing six rebounds for a 23-6 Ohio State advantage.

During a 91-53 win over Robert Morris three days earlier, Key had his third career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. He earned his fourth by halftime with 13 points and 10 rebounds as the Buckeyes took a commanding 46-22 lead.

The Buccaneers could not handle Ohio State’s inside game. They were outscored in the paint 26-10 through 20 minutes, a big reason the Buckeyes made 17 of 33 field goals (51.5 percent).

Charleston Southern, of the Big South, opened the season with an 83-52 win against Toccoa Falls, a member of the Division II-level National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association. It was a stark contrast from Thursday’s opponent, a Big Ten team that reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season.

Charleston Southern, which shot 38 percent from the field against Toccoa Falls, struggled for the second game in a row, making 33.8 percent against the Buckeyes.

After making 8 of 34 3-pointers in their opener, the Buccaneers were 5 of 22 Thursday.

Both teams are idle until Wednesday when the Buckeyes host Eastern Illinois while Charleston Southern plays at Tulane.

–Field Level Media

After sitting out Virginia Tech’s opener, Justyn Mutts made an energetic return as he tallied 16 points and 11 rebounds, helping the Hokies past Lehigh 78-52 Thursday night in Blacksburg, Va.

Sean Pedulla scored 16 of his 20 points before the break as Tech (2-0) built an 18-point halftime lead. Grant Basile added 11 points and eight rebounds.

Mutts, serving a one-game suspension for participating in an unsanctioned pre-draft showcase in the offseason, flashed his efficient repertoire as he made 6 of 8 shots to go along with his five assists.

Lehigh (0-2) of the Patriot League was paced by Jakob Alamudun, who scored 14 points, and Dominic Parolin, who added 10 points and five rebounds.

Virginia Tech got off to a quick start, holding Lehigh scoreless for the first 3:43. Mutts made up for lost time on three straight possessions as he drained a 3-pointer, scored with a drive to the hoop and fed Basile for a slam dunk and a 9-0 lead.

Lehigh matched Tech over the next 10 minutes as Keith Higgins Jr. made three buckets scoring from the perimeter and inside.

But eight straight points by the Hokies put them in charge. After Pedulla made a driving 3-point play, Hunter Cattoor followed with a long-distance three-pointer to cap the spree.

When Pedulla ran off a pick and drilled a 3-pointer to close the half, it matched Virginia Tech’s largest lead of the half, 43-25.

In a 60-second span early in the second half, Tyler Whitney-Sidney scored eight straight points as the Mountain Hawks sliced the deficit to 13 points.

But the Hokies quickly regained control behind the play of its reserves. Clemson transfer Lynn Kidd wheeled inside, scoring on consecutive hook shots.

Then when freshman MJ Collins drained a corner 3 to cap a 7-0 run, Tech had a 63-41 lead with 10:51 left.

Tech shot 53% from the floor and committed just five turnovers. Lehigh made 37% of its shots while committing 11 turnovers.

–Field Level Media

The Missouri Tigers will seek tighter defense while the Pennsylvania Quakers will aim for more efficient offense when the teams meet Friday in Columbia, Mo.

The Tigers (1-0) opened their season with a 97-91 victory over Division I newcomer Southern Indiana at home Monday. Meanwhile the Quakers (0-1) fell 78-50 at Iona Monday.

Missouri seemed ready to put away Southern Indiana, but then the Screaming Eagles made eight consecutive shots from 3-point range to create a tense finish.

First-year Missouri coach Dennis Gates hopes his team learned from that experience as it prepares for another nonconference game at Mizzou Arena.

“I could have easily gone zone, but I did not want to,” Gates said. “I could have stopped certain things from happening. It’s important that we continue to get better and learn about ourselves. I could have went to a man press or a zone press. I chose not to do those things because every game is precious, and every game is a teaching moment.”

Forward Kobe Brown, Missouri’s leading returning scorer, scored 20 points and grabbed 14 rebounds against Southern Indiana. Transfer point guards Sean East II and Nick Honor combined for 22 points and 10 assists.

The Quakers missed 22-of-25 shots from 3-point range in the loss at Iona and shot just 32.7 percent overall from the field.

“It was a good environment for college basketball,” Penn coach Steve Donahue told the Daily Pennsylvanian. “I think it’s a fun place . . . I thought it got the best of us during that (23-4) run in the first half.”

Donahue returns a veteran team that edged Princeton for the top spot on the Ivy League’s preseason media poll after finishing 9-5 in league play last season.

Due to injuries and illnesses, Donahue spread responsibility across his roster last season while using 13 different starting lineups. The Quakers return nine players who scored in double figures at least twice.

Leading the way is guard Jordan Dingle, who led the league in scoring with a 20.8 scoring average. Dingle scored a team-high 16 points against Iona.

–Field Level Media

More is being asked of a couple of Iowa players, and early indications are they’ll be able to answer.

The Hawkeyes will count heavily on Tony Perkins and Filip Rebraca this season. The duo will have another chance to show its capabilities Friday night when North Carolina A&T visits for a game in Iowa City, Iowa.

“Tony Perkins has aggressiveness,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said after his guard scored 16 in the opener. “He has skills. He is shooting the ball outside. He is driving the ball. He always had a pull-up game. He is getting to the rim. We put the ball in his hands a little bit more, and he is even more effective.”

Rebraca secured his 20th career double-double, though just his second for the Hawkeyes since transferring from North Dakota, when the Hawkeyes opened the season by throttling visiting Bethune-Cookman 89-58 on Monday.

The experience is there with Rebraca starting 36 games at center last season. An upgrade in production could make the Hawkeyes more formidable.

“That’s what I wanted him to do,” McCaffery said of Rebraca’s double-double. “It was always in there, and now you’re seeing it.”

Among the early priorities this season for the Aggies was improving their perimeter shooting. By making 17 shots from 3-point range in an opening rout of Edward Waters to tie a program record, it was a much-needed step.

“That was an area we wanted to improve, on our 3-point shooting,” interim coach Phillip Shumpert said. “We couldn’t stop talking about it. We’ve got some guys that can hit shots, so we must continue to try to get them open looks.”

The Aggies made a one-season stopover in the Big South Conference last year before joining the Colonial Athletic Association. So, it’s not just a roster transition like many teams are dealing with, but there has been a coaching change and a new conference affiliation since N.C. A&T’s final game last March.

The new season brought a matchup with Edward Waters first. The Aggies cruised as expected.

“We figured it would be a good tune-up before we play against an actual Division I opponent like Iowa on Friday,” Shumpert said.

The keys for the Aggies could be forward Marcus Watson, who once was in Oklahoma State’s program before a season with New Mexico State, and forward Duncan Powell, who’s the program’s all-time highest-rated recruit but sat out last season because of injuries.

–Field Level Media

Texas A&M will look to continue its hot shooting against visiting Abilene Christian on Friday in College Station, Texas.

The Aggies (1-0) made nearly half of their 3-point shots in a season-opening blowout of Louisiana-Monroe on Monday.

Wade Taylor IV scored a game-high 18 points on 4-of-6 shooting from 3-point range and Dexter Dennis made 3 of 4 attempts from behind the arc to finish with 11 points. Hayden Hefner added two 3-pointers off the bench as the Aggies shot 46.2 percent (12 of 26) from deep and never trailed in an 87-54 victory.

Henry Coleman III chipped in 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting to go along with seven rebounds and four assists for the Aggies, who shot 50.8 percent overall.

Texas A&M outrebounded the Warhawks 47-36 and converted 16 turnovers into 25 points, in addition to forcing Louisiana-Monroe to shoot 16 for 59 (27.1 percent) from the field and 2 for 20 (10.0 percent) from distance.

“I don’t ever want to take for granted how hard it is to win a game,” Texas A&M coach Buzz Williams said. “I thought we were a little choppy, which some of that may have been first-game jitters.”

Abilene Christian opened the season with a 65-56 win over visiting Jackson State on Monday.

The Wildcats (1-0) had a 20-point halftime lead trimmed to four with 4:36 to go, but Tobias Cameron hit a 3-pointer and a layup during a 7-0 run over the next 2:03 to secure the victory.

Cameron tied his career high with 18 points, including four 3-pointers, to go along with six rebounds and two blocks. Airion Simmons had 13 points and five rebounds as the only other ACU player to finish in double figures.

“I guess I am a little bit of a vet, but being in those situations, playing big minutes is still kind of new to me,” said Cameron, a senior who started 17 of 36 games last season. “But just the confidence the staff and my teammates have in me really helps. I just kept trying to push through, push through.”

–Field Level Media