TALLAHASSEE, FLA. ? Al Thornton is so important to Florida State that Seminoles coach Leonard Hamilton almost feels guilty about it.

Still, Hamilton isn’t shy about going to his team’s biggest strength.

Thornton scored 28 points, including two free throws with four seconds left, and Florida State upset No. 4 Florida, 70-66, Sunday night.

“It’s a shame he has to go out and get 28 points every night for us to win,” Hamilton said. “Tonight we had to go with Al.”

Thornton scored 18 in the second half, missing just once from the floor. He finished 10-for-16 for the game and also had nine rebounds.

“There’s no doubt he was ready to play tonight,” Hamilton said.

No. 1 UCLA 61, UC Riverside 38

Los Angeles – Arron Afflalo scored 13 points to help UCLA beat UC Riverside, giving the Bruins a 6-0 record for the first time since they won the 1995 national championship. Luc Richard Mbah a Moute had 12 points and 12 rebounds.

No. 2 Pitt. 74, Auburn 66

Auburn, Ala. – Aaron Gray had 16 points and 12 rebounds and made two key plays late to help Pittsburgh hold on.

No. 20 UConn 106, Texas Southern 55

Storrs, Conn. – A.J. Price scored 20 points, and Hasheem Thabeet tied a Connecticut record with 10 blocked shots to help the Huskies win their 26th straight home game.

Miami 90, No. 21 Georgia Tech 82

Coral Gables, Fla. – Jack McClinton had 22 points, and Anthony Harris added 21 to help Miami beat Georgia Tech in the Atlantic Coast Conference opener for both schools.

Notre Dame 81, No. 23 Maryland 74

Washington – Kyle McAlarney scored a career-high 18 points and keyed a decisive second-half run to help Notre Dame hand the Terrapins their first loss of the season.

No. 24 Nevada 77, Cal. 71

San Jose, Calif. – Ramon Sessions scored eight straight points in the final minutes, and Nevada got a victory in the Pete Newell Challenge.

No. 25 Virginia 67, N. C. State 62

Charlottesville, Va. – Sean Singletary hit a tiebreaking 16-foot jumper with 1:03 left, and Virginia won its conference opener for the first time in 12 seasons. J.R. Reynolds and Will Harris scored 14 apiece for Virginia (5-1, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference).

Big 12 Men

Missouri 73, Evansville 54

Columbia, Mo. – Missouri coach Mike Anderson gave his team a special message heading into its first game after its biggest win of the season.

“He said, ‘A pat on the back will set you back,'” Missouri guard Keon Lawrence said.

And though Lawrence acknowledged the Tigers entered Sunday’s game against Evansville with Thursday’s win over Arkansas still in the back of their minds, they rebounded from a lackluster first half to beat Evansville.

Missouri (9-0) had its second-worst shooting day of the season, 44 percent, and its pressure defense didn’t seem to bother the Purple Aces much during the first half. But an even slower shooting day from Evansville (4-3), 28 percent from the field, helped the Tigers grab an early lead and then pull away in the second half.

Drake 80, Iowa State 78

Ames, Iowa – Al Stewart scored on a driving layup with 4.4 seconds left, and Drake endured a review of Iowa State’s shot at the buzzer before celebrating a victory over the Cyclones.

Stanford 70, Texas Tech 59

San Jose, Calif. – Stanford prevented Bob Knight from winning his 876th game, with Lawrence Hill scoring 19 points in the opening game of the Pete Newell Challenge.

Big 12 Women

No. 15 Stanford 73, No. 25 Texas Tech 49

Stanford, Calif. – Candice Wiggins scored 19 points, and Brooke Smith added 14 in helping Stanford to its third straight win over Texas Tech. Jayne Appel added 11 points, seven rebounds and four blocks for the Cardinal (4-3).