Deon Thompson scored 20 points to help No. 6 North Carolina spoil Isiah Thomas' college coaching debut and beat Florida International 88-72 on Monday night in the 2K Sports Classic.

Ed Davis added 13 points for the defending national champion Tar Heels (1-0), who had little trouble with the undersized Golden Panthers. North Carolina shot 56 percent and led by double digits much of the way to kick off its centennial season against Thomas, the Hall of Fame player and former NBA coach who took over the long-struggling program in April.

His debut came on the same day his 86-year-old mother, Mary, had open-heart surgery in Chicago.

Marvin Roberts had 18 points for the Golden Panthers (0-1), who shot 37 percent.

This story continues below
Advertisement

North Carolina led 46-30 at halftime, then pushed the margin to 25 points in the first 5 minutes of the second half.

No. 13 California 75, Murray St. 70

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) - Jerome Randle scored 18 points and Patrick Christopher sparked a key second-half run that helped California open its season with a win in the 2K Sports Classic.

Theo Robertson added 14 points, Christopher had 13 and Jamal Boykin scored 12 for the Golden Bears (1-0), who held off a game effort from the Racers (0-1).

The Bears entered the season with its highest preseason ranking since the 1993-94 team led by Jason Kidd and Lamond Murray was No. 6.

Christopher and Robertson hit consecutive 3s early in the second half to start an 11-0 run that gave the Bears a 47-31 lead. The Racers cut it to six on a 3-pointer by B.J. Jenkins with 2:31 remaining, but Robertson got a key offensive rebound and Randle hit an acrobatic layup with 1:22 to go to make it 72-64.

Ivan Aska scored 17 points to lead the Racers, who committed 17 turnovers.

No. 16 Ohio St. 100, Alcorn St. 60

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Evan Turner recorded the second triple-double ever for Ohio State with 14 points, 17 rebounds and 10 assists in the victory in the 2K Sports Classic.

Turner needed one assist for 10 but his teammates missed three straight shots. A bounce pass to Jon Diebler, who had 22 points, led to a 3-pointer with just over 7 minutes left for the triple-double.

William Buford added 19 points, Jeremie Simmons 12 and Walter Offutt 11 for the Buckeyes (1-0).

Jonathan Boyd scored 20 points for the Braves (0-1), who are coached by former NBA star Larry Smith and are coming off a 6-25 season.