Dino Gaudio listed all the little things his Wake Forest team did right during its rapid rise to No. 1. Then, he watched his Demon Deacons finally do them again.
They ran, they rebounded, they defended - and, not coincidentally, they got two of their most dependable scorers back on track.
Jeff Teague scored 27 points, freshman Al-Farouq Aminu added a season-high 26, and No. 7 Wake Forest bounced back yesterday after a surprisingly lopsided loss by routing visiting Boston College, 93-76.
"We've got to remember who we are," Gaudio said. "We're a defensive team, hard-nosed. On offense, we are a fast-break, inside-scoring basketball team, and we've got to be a good rebounding team."
James Johnson had 12 points and 10 rebounds, and L.D. Williams added 11 points for the Demon Deacons (18-3, 5-3 Atlantic Coast Conference), who used a big surge during the final 20 minutes to bounce back from a 27-point loss at Miami and claim their second double-digit win over the Eagles (18-7, 6-4).
No. 5 Louisville 60, St. John's 47: : Jerry Smith scored a season-high 21 points for the visiting Cardinals (18-4, 9-1 Big East).
Sean Evans had 12 points for the Red Storm (12-11, 3-8), which has lost three of four.
No. 23 Illinois 66, No. 12 Purdue 48: : Mike Davis scored 14 points and had a career-high 16 rebounds as the host Illini (19-5, 7-4 Big Ten) took advantage of the absence of Boilermakers star Robbie Hummel, out with a hairline fracture in his back.
Purdue fell to 18-5 and 6-4.
No. 22 Washington 75, Stanford 68: : Quincy Pondexter scored 20 points and the Huskies (17-6, 8-3 Pacific-10) ended a 15-game losing streak at Stanford (14-7, 4-7).
More ACC men
Virginia Tech 91, North Carolina State 87, OT:: A.D. Vassallo hit four free throws in the final 16.4 seconds of overtime to lead the host Hokies (15-7, 5-3) over the Wolfpack (12-9, 2-6).
Virginia Tech, which will play at Maryland on Saturday, rallied from a late 18-point deficit in the win, its first after six losses to North Carolina State.
Top 25 women
No. 2 Oklahoma 93, Oklahoma State 75: : Courtney Paris broke the NCAA Division I rebounding record and set two Big 12 scoring marks in leading the visiting Sooners (20-2, 8-0 Big 12) to their 16th straight victory.
Paris had eight rebounds, finishing the game with 1,823 for her career, breaking the record of 1,815 set by Wanda Ford of Drake from 1983 to 1986.
Paris also broke the Big 12 career scoring record of 2,480 points, set by Baylor's Sophia Young from 2003 to 2006, and Young's Big 12 field-goals record of 1,034. Paris has 2,481 points and 1,037 field goals.
No. 11 Florida 66, No. 12 Tennessee 57: : Sha Brooks scored 29 points to lead the Gators (22-2, 8-1 SEC) to their first home victory over the Lady Vols (17-6, 6-3) since Jan. 21, 1997.
Tennessee coach Pat Summitt had won her 1,000th game Thursday night.
State men
Juniata 80, Goucher 72: : The visiting Eagles (6-16, 4-7 Landmark) went on an 8-0 scoring run in the final minute to beat the Gophers (5-15, 3-8).
Goucher's Marcus Cotton had his first double double of the season (17 points, 12 rebounds).
State women
Hofstra 56, Towson 53: : Freshman Nicole Capurso (12 points) made a three-pointer that turned out to be the game-winner with 1:16 left.
The win completed the season sweep by Hofstra (14-8, 6-5 Colonial Athletic Association).
Shanae Baker-Brice finished with 17 points for the Tigers (13-8, 5-6).
New Hampshire 73, UMBC 65: : Carlee Cassidy had a game-high 24 points in a losing effort for the visiting Retrievers (12-10, 4-5 America East).
The Wildcats (6-17, 4-5) led 32-17 at the half.
Marist 86, Loyola 53: : The host Red Foxes (21-3, 12-2 Metro Atlantic Athletic) used a 17-2 first-half run to take control and beat the Greyhounds (8-15, 3-10).
Leading 18-8 with 11:19 on the clock in the first half after Loyola's Siobhan Prior (14 points) hit one of her four three-pointers, Marist scored 17 of the next 19 points.
Juniata 74, Goucher 57: : The host Gophers (5-15, 1-10 Landmark) never bounced back after the Eagles (12-10, 6-5) took a 15-point lead.
Amber Smith (Institute of Notre Dame) finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds for her fourth consecutive double double and 10th of the season.