Pitt scoots past Syracuse

Carl Krauser and Chevon Troutman led Pittsburgh’s second consecutive comeback from a 17-point deficit against a ranked opponent, withstanding long scoreless stretches to drive the No. 20 Panthers to a 76-69 victory over No. 4 Syracuse on Saturday night in Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh, rallying much as it did the previous Saturday in beating then-No. 16 Connecticut 76-66, took command with a 13-0 run midway through the second half as the Orange failed to score for 6 1/2 minutes.

Krauser scored all 19 of his points in the second half after not scoring for nearly 23 minutes and Troutman, held scoreless for the first 14 1/2 minutes, had 18 points and nine rebounds for Pitt (14-3, 4-2 Big East).

Gerry McNamara scored 26 points on 7-of-17 shooting and Hakim Warrick had 25 for the Orangemen (20-2, 7-1).

Syracuse opened a 22-5 lead by holding Pitt to two field goals in the first 10 minutes of the game.

(1) Illinois 89, Minnesota 66: Roger Powell Jr. scored 21 points and Deron Williams added 18, leading the top-ranked Fighting Illini (21-0, 7-0 Big Ten) to a romp over the Golden Gophers (14-6, 4-3) in Champaign, Ill.

Illinois opened the game with a 10-1 run and stretched its conference winning streak to 17 games, tying a school record set from 1914-16.

(3) North Carolina 110, Virginia 76: The Tar Heels (17-2, 6-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) ended five years of frustration in Charlottesville, Va., blowing out the Cavaliers (10-8, 1-7) from the opening tip.

Jawad Williams scored 23 points on 8-for-10 shooting, Sean May had 20 and Raymond Felton 16 for North Carolina, which won for the fourth time in the teams’ last 11 meetings.

(5) Wake Forest 94, Miami 82: Eric Williams had 23 points and 11 rebounds and reserve Trent Strickland added a season-high 13 points, helping the Demon Deacons (17-3, 5-2 ACC) beat the Hurricanes (13-6, 4-4) in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Justin Gray finished with 20 points and Wake Forest improved to 10-0 at home.

(6) Kansas 90, (16) Texas 65: Wayne Simien scored 27 points and the Jayhawks (16-1, 6-0 Big 12) routed the Longhorns (15-5, 4-3) in Lawrence, Kan., handing Rick Barnes his worst Big 12 loss as Texas’ coach.

The Longhorns fell to 0-5 in Allen Fieldhouse since the Big 12 was formed in 1996.

(7) Kentucky 68, Arkansas 67: Kelenna Azubuike scored 13 points, Rajon Rondo added 12 and Patrick Sparks added a key basket with 24.2 seconds left, helping the Wildcats (16-2, 7-0 Southeastern Conference) escape from Fayetteville, Ark., with a win over the Razorbacks (14-6, 2-5).

Ronnie Brewer scored 18 points, Darian Townes added 16 and Olu Famutimi finished with 13 points for Arkansas.

(8) Boston College 64, Georgetown 49: Craig Smith had 20 points and eight rebounds, and the Eagles (18-0, 7-0 Big East) remained unbeaten with a win over the Hoyas (13-6, 5-3) in Boston.

Jared Dudley scored 13 for Boston College, which is one victory short of the longest winning streak in school history – 19 straight in 1968-69.

(12) Louisville 105, Tulane 69: Francisco Garcia had 21 points and five other Louisville players also scored in double figures, leading the Cardinals (18-3, 6-2 CUSA) to a rout of the Green Wave (8-11, 2-6) in New Orleans.

Louisville never trailed in winning its seventh straight game and 12th in its last 13. Louisville has won by an average of 32.9 points during its streak.

Iowa State 74, (13) Oklahoma 66: Curtis Stinson scored 23 points and the Cyclones (9-8, 1-5 Big 12) relied exclusively on their short-range game to beat the Sooners (16-3, 5-1) in Ames, Iowa, ending Oklahoma’s win streak at 10.

Jared Homan added 14 points, Will Blalock scored 11 and Rahshon Clark 10 for Iowa State, which did not make a basket outside 10 feet. Last in the league in 3-point shooting, the Cyclones were 0 for 6 from long range, but it didn’t matter because they got it done in the paint, outscoring the Sooners 48-28 in that area.

(14) Alabama vs. Georgia: The Crimson Tide’s game against the Bulldogs in Tuscaloosa, Ala., was postponed until tonight because of freezing rain in Georgia. The Bulldogs were unable to leave Atlanta because of the icy conditions.

(15) Michigan State 92, Oakland (Mich.) 75: Maurice Ager scored 22 points and the Spartans (14-3) pulled away in the second half to beat the Golden Grizzlies (5-13) in non-conference play in East Lansing, Mich.

Shannon Brown, Chris Hill and Kelvin Torbert each had 13 points for Michigan State, which has won 11 of its last 12 and all 10 home games this season.

(18) Wisconsin 76, Penn State 50: Kammron Taylor scored 20 points to lead the Badgers (14-4, 5-2 Big Ten) over the Nittany Lions (7-13, 1-6) in State College, Pa.

With leading scorer Alando Tucker out of the lineup because of a right foot injury, Taylor carried the load, shooting 7 for 14 from the floor and finishing one point short of his career high.

(21) Cincinnati 87, Houston 68: James White scored a career-high 25 points and added 10 rebounds to lead the Bearcats (17-3, 6-1 CUSA) to a victory over the Cougars (12-9, 3-4) in Cincinnati.

Jason Maxiell also had 10 rebounds, 14 points and eight blocks, helping the Bearcats roll to their 10th straight victory over Houston.

(23) Iowa 72, Indiana 57: Pierre Pierce, one of four Iowa starters benched at the beginning of the game, scored 25 points to lead the Hawkeyes (15-5, 3-4 Big Ten) to a win over the Hoosiers (9-9, 4-3) in Iowa City, Iowa.

After a lackluster performance in an overtime loss at Northwestern on Wednesday, Iowa coach Steve Alford started four reserves instead of Pierce, Jeff Horner, Erek Hansen and Greg Brunner.

LSU 69, (24) Mississippi State 62: Brandon Bass had 26 points, 11 rebounds and a handle on Mississippi State star Lawrence Roberts as the Tigers (11-6, 4-2 SEC) upset the Bulldogs (16-5, 4-3) in Baton Rouge, La.

Bass and Glen Davis teamed up to limit Roberts, the SEC’s leading scorer and rebounder, to 15 points and 12 rebounds. Roberts entered the game averaging 18.8 points a game.