North Carolina gets Paige back

After missing No. 2 North Carolina’s first six games while recovering from a broken bone in his right hand, senior point guard Marcus Paige is expected to play on Tuesday against No. 2 Maryland in the Big TenACC Challenge.

Paige, the Tar Heels’ leading scorer the last two seasons, had been hoping for an injury-free senior season after he played through plantar fasciitis most of last season. But days before the start of the season he broke the third metacarpal in his right, non-shooting hand.

The Tar Heels went 5-1 in his absence with sophomore guards Joel Berry and Theo Pinson starting. Coach Roy Williams said Paige would start Tuesday, likely alongside Berry.

Kentucky 75, Illinois St. 63:

Isaiah Briscoe scored 18 points, Jamal Murray added 16 and No. 1 Kentucky overcame a sluggish first half to pull away from visiting Illinois State.

Playing without injured starting point guard Tyler Ulis (elbow), the Wildcats (7-0) held the Redbirds (3-5) to 29 percent shooting in the second half. Marcus Lee added 13 points and 12 rebounds while DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell scored 22 for the Redbirds.

Self still ticked: Even though the NCAA cleared five-star prospect Cheick Diallo to play for No. 4 Kansas this week, it hasn’t stopped coach Bill Self ripping its investigation.

During a news conference Monday, Self called the months-long saga an exercise in frustration, saying “I don’t think anything done by the NCAA was done in the kid’s best interest at all.”

He missed five games while the NCAA examined course work from a New York prep school.

The 6-foot-9 forward from Mali is expected to take the floor Tuesday against Loyola.

Poll positioning: No. 14 Syracuse was the highest of six newcomers to the AP Top 25. The Orange beat ranked Connecticut and Texas A&M in winning the Battle 4 Atlantis. Providence moved in at No. 23 after beating Arizona in the Wooden Legacy semifinals before losing to Michigan State in the title game.