No. 16/17 Buckeyes Top James Madison, 72-44

box score

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – Evan Turner followed up his triple-double with 24 points and 17 rebounds and No. 16 Ohio State recovered from a listless spell to beat James Madison 72-44 on Thursday night in the 2K Sports Classic.

David Lighty added 14 points and William Buford had 12 for the Buckeyes (2-0), who advance to meet sixth-ranked defending national champion North Carolina in the semifinals next Thursday night in Madison Square Garden.

Turner had the program's second recorded triple-double in Monday night's opener, going for 14 points, 17 rebounds and 10 assists in a 100-60 win over Alcorn State. He finished with four assists and two steals Thursday night.

Pierre Curtis had nine points for James Madison (1-0), which was 21-15 last season.

Turner received a standing ovation from a crowd of 11,356 when he left the game with just over 5 minutes remaining.

Dallas Lauderdale, who had missed the exhibition game and the season opener with a broken bone in his hand, also received a nice ovation when he entered the game at the 14:50 mark of the first half. Ohio State's starting center last season played 13 minutes and had two points and four rebounds.

The Buckeyes broke out to a 10-2 lead in the opening 3 1/2 minutes but then went into a deep freeze. The Dukes pulled even at 16 on Matt Parker's 3-pointer with 8:37 left.

But Ohio State finished the half on an 11-5 run. Turner, who had 13 points and eight rebounds at halftime, hit a shot behind the arc with 5 seconds left for a 34-25 lead.

After the Dukes scored the first point of the second half, the Buckeyes went on a 10-0 run with Jon Diebler and Lighty each hitting a 3. James Madison scored the next four points before Ohio State went on another 10-0 run, this time Lighty scoring five points and Turner three.

The Dukes had won the only previous meeting between the schools, upsetting the Buckeyes 55-48 in the first round of the 1982 NCAA tournament in Charlotte, N.C.