Pittsburgh Makes an Impression

Pittsburgh might be the beast of the Big East.

The No. 7 Panthers (26-4) rolled through Boston College, 76-62, in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament Thursday at New York.

The Eagles (20-11) broke to a 20-15 lead with six minutes left in the first half, then the Panthers went on a 21-4 run to take a 36-24 halftime lead.

Boston College never challenged after that.

“In a game when you’re down, you have to do damage in the first six or seven minutes of the second half,� Eagle Coach Al Skinner said. “We didn’t. We didn’t execute well and they got transition baskets and built the lead.�

Pittsburgh never panicked and waited for its opportunity. When it came, the Panthers made their move.

“We don’t get concerned when we’re down,� Pittsburgh Coach Ben Howland said. “We defended and rebounded and did what we wanted to do.�

It’s a formula Pittsburgh has used in winning eight games in a row and 11 of the last 12. The Panthers wore down Boston College and had a 40-23 rebounding edge.

“Our players are strong and physical,� Howland said. “We don’t get pushed around. We have depth. We’re nine or 10 deep and all of them are good.�

The Panthers will play No. 20 Miami (24-6), which defeated Georgetown, 84-76, in overtime. The Hoyas are 19-11. St. John’s (20-11) was eliminated with an 83-63 loss to Notre Dame (21-9). The Fighting Irish will play No. 19 Connecticut (22-6), which defeated Villanova, 72-70. The Wildcats are 17-12.

BIG TEN

Iowa (17-14) extended its season with an 87-72 victory against Purdue (13-18). The Hawkeyes play Wisconsin today.... Michigan (11-17) took advantage of Northwestern’s sluggish play to start both halves and defeated the Wildcats, 72-51. The Wolverines play Ohio State today. Northwestern is 16-13.

BIG 12

Andy Ellis scored 27 points and Andre Emmett added 24 at Kansas City, Mo., as Texas Tech defeated Texas A&M;, 80-71, in a game interrupted by the collapse on press row of veteran author and sportswriter Bob Hammel. Hammel, 66, the former sports editor of the Bloomington Herald-Times and a friend of Red Raider Coach Bob Knight, was sitting courtside when he collapsed with about 6:30 left in the second half. The co-author of Knight’s recently released autobiography, Hammel was taken away on a stretcher. Kansas City TV station WDAF said Hammel had a low blood-sugar diabetic seizure and was expected to recover. While paramedics attended to Hammel, Knight went across the court several times to watch closely. After the game, Knight jumped into a waiting patrol car and went immediately to St. Luke’s hospital, where Hammel was hospitalized. Texas Tech (22-7) will play Oklahoma State today. The Aggies finished 9-22.

Missouri (21-10) defeated Iowa State, 79-59, ending the Cyclones’ season at 12-19. The Tigers (21-10) will play Texas today.... Blair Wilson scored 24 points as Colorado (15-13) withstood two Nebraska (13-15) rallies for a 67-60 victory. The Buffaloes’ reward is quarterfinal game today against No. 1-ranked Kansas.... Matt Seibrandt made a game-winning free throw with 1.4 seconds left as Kansas State (13-15) defeated Baylor, 74-73. The Bears finished 13-15 and the Wildcats advanced to play Oklahoma today.

CONFERENCE USA

Marcus Oliver scored a career-high 26 points and Houston scored an 80-74 victory against Memphis (22-9) at Cincinnati. The Cougars (18-13) will play No. 13 Marquette (25-5), an 84-76 winner against Louisville (18-12), in a semifinal game today.... Tournament favorite and No. 5-ranked Cincinnati cruised to a 79-57 victory against South Florida (19-12) and will play Charlotte, a team it has beaten twice, in the semifinals. The 49ers (18-10) defeated Tulane, 78-69, ending the Green Wave’s season at 14-15.

SOUTHEASTERN

Arkansas (14-15) had its disappointing season end with a 68-61 loss to Tennessee at Atlanta. The Volunteers will play Alabama today in the quarterfinals.... Louisiana State advanced with a 69-62 victory against Vanderbilt (16-14). The Tigers (17-13) will play Georgia today.... Udonis Haslem had 22 points and 10 rebounds to lead No. 11 Florida past Auburn, 81-63. The Tigers finished 12-18. The Gators will play Mississippi State today.... Rolando Howell’s basket 16.9 seconds remaining lifted South Carolina (17-13) past Mississippi (20-10). The Gamecocks will play defending tournament champion Kentucky tonight.

OTHER CONFERENCES

Atlantic Coast--Delvon Arrington scored a career high 24 points at Charlotte, N.C., as Florida State (12-16) scored a 91-84 overtime victory against Clemson (13-17) and advanced to a quarterfinal game today against Maryland.

Atlantic 10--Saint Joseph’s (18-11) NCAA tournament hopes were dashed in an 81-74 loss to Dayton (20-9) at Philadelphia. The Flyers will play Xavier (23-5), which advanced with a 65-59 overtime victory against Massachusetts (14-16). Saint Bonaventure (17-11) advanced with an 81-66 victory against Dequesne (9-19) and will play LaSalle (15-16), a 72-66 winner against Temple (15-14).

Ivy--T.J. McHugh had 21 points and eight rebounds at Philadelphia to help Yale (20-9) defeat Princeton, 76-60, in an Ivy League playoff game. The Bulldogs will play Penn on Saturday at Easton, Pa., with an automatic NCAA tournament berth at stake. The Tigers are 16-11.

Mid-American--Keith McLeod’s three-point basket with six seconds left at Cleveland lifted Bowling Green (23-7) to a 60-58 victory against Akron (10-21). The Falcons will play Ball State (20-10), a 62-50 winner against Miami of Ohio (13-18). Also advancing to the semifinals were Kent State (25-5), an 82-70 winner against Marshall (15-15), and Toledo (16-13), a 62-54 winner against Central Michigan (9-19).

Mountain West--Top-seeded Wyoming (21-7) needed overtime to edge Air Force, 69-67, at Las Vegas. Tom Bellairs had 20 points for the Falcons (9-19). San Diego State (19-11), a 62-51 winner against Brigham Young (17-11), will play the Cowboys in today’s second round. Utah (21-7) advanced with a 69-66 victory against Colorado State (12-18) and will play the winner of the New Mexico-Nevada Las Vegas game.

Western Athletic--Tulsa (25-5) rolled to a 72-53 victory against Boise State (13-17) at Tulsa, Okla., and will play Fresno State (19-13) a 72-69 winner against Louisiana Tech (20-9). Nevada (17-12), a 72-66 winner against Southern Methodist (15-14), will play Hawaii (25-5), which scored a 71-56 victory against San Jose State (10-22).