Skid Continues at Wake

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) Travis McKie scored 19 points and Wake Forest beat Xavier 66-59 on Wednesday night for its third straight win.

Codi Miller-McIntyre had 16 points, C.J. Harris added 15 and the Demon Deacons (7-5) erased their only deficit of the second half by scoring 12 straight points. They matched their longest winning streak under third-year coach Jeff Bzdelik.

Travis Taylor had 18 points - but just two in the second half - and 10 rebounds for the Musketeers (7-6).

They rallied from 11 points down and took a 49-48 lead on Jeff Robinson's jumper with just under seven minutes left.

But Xavier came up empty on eight straight possessions and went scoreless for 4 1/2 critical minutes, and the Demon Deacons took over.

Freshman Devin Thomas gave Wake Forest the lead back with a reverse layup on the next trip down court. Miller-McIntyre delivered the dagger with just under four minutes left when he rattled in a long 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down to make it 57-49.

Xavier didn't get closer than seven the rest of the way, and Wake Forest made five of eight free throws in the final two minutes to seal it.

Thomas finished with a season-high 14 rebounds and drew a key charge that prolonged Xavier's untimely drought. Miller-McIntyre, considered the centerpiece of the Demon Deacons' highly regarded seven-man freshman class, had just his fourth double-figure game and first since Nov. 27 against Nebraska.

He helped the Demon Deacons claim their fourth three-game winning streak in two-plus seasons under Bzdelik. They haven't won four in a row since 2009-10, when Dino Gaudio was still in charge.

Xavier freshman Semaj Christon, who entered averaging 13.4 points, finished with 14 on 3-of-11 shooting but was 8 of 10 from the free-throw line.

Taylor had 16 points and seven rebounds in the first half and scored 14 of Xavier's first 20 points, but managed just one shot in the second half.

Neither team led by more than eight until the Demon Deacons assembled a 16-5 run that started in the first half and ended early in the second. Freshman Tyler Cavanaugh's open 3 a minute later made it 42-31.

But Wake Forest managed just one basket during the next 8 1/2 minutes while the Musketeers reeled off eight straight points during an 18-6 spurt. They took their first lead of the half at 49-48 on Robinson's long jumper with just under seven minutes left but managed just two field goals the rest of the way.

Robinson finished with 10 points for Xavier.

Wake Forest took a 2-1 lead in the series that resumed after year's hiatus. It began in 2010 as a tribute to Prosser, who took both schools to four NCAA tournaments apiece before his death in 2007 of a heart attack at age 56.