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College basketball
Syracuse keeps West Virginia reeling
By wire services
Published February 21, 2006
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Terrence Roberts, who had a combined 10 points and 12 rebounds in his previous three games, had 16 points and 10 rebounds as Syracuse beat No.14 West Virginia 60-58 on Monday.
It was the fourth loss in five games for West Virginia (18-8, 9-4 Big East), which won its first eight conference games. And it was the first victory over a ranked team this season for Syracuse (19-8, 7-6), which has won three of four since losing five of six.
Eric Devendorf scored 17 for the Orange, who won despite one of the worst shooting games of senior guard Gerry McNamara's career. He scored five on 2-of-14 shooting. But he had nine assists, and his lone 3-pointer gave him 372, ninth all-time in NCAA history.
After Darryl Watkins converted a give-and-go with McNamara to give Syracuse a 47-44 lead midway through the second half, the lead changed hands three times before Kevin Pittsnogle made one of the Mountaineers' 12 3-pointers (on 33 attempts) to tie it at 58 with 3:57 left.
But that was it for the Mountaineers, who did not attempt a free throw for the game. (Syracuse was 4-of-7.) Pittsnogle missed twice. Mike Gansey missed another. Joe Herber committed a turnover, and Patrick Beilein missed from way beyond the 3-point line.
Roberts, who gave the Orange a 58-55 lead with a dunk over Pittsnogle, took a pass from McNamara and made a hook in the lane with 2:25 left for the winning basket.
After McNamara missed a drive with 39 seconds left, Beilein missed his 3-pointer with 5.1 seconds left.
Top 25
NO. 25 NEVADA 74, IDAHO 68: Nick Fazekas had 26 points and 15 rebounds for the visiting Wolf Pack, who have won eight in a row. Nevada (21-5, 10-3 WAC) used a 13-3 run to lead 32-15 with 4:09 left in the first half. The Vandals (4-19, 1-10) cut it to 56-48 with 6:45 left and had a shot to get closer. But Tanoris Shepard missed a runner in the lane, and Brett Ledbetter was called for a technical after a verbal exchange with Fazekas at the other end. Marcelus Kemp made both free throws, and Nevada wasn't threatened from there.
NO.18 MICHIGAN ST.: Starting forward Matt Trannon is out indefinitely with a broken jaw. The senior, who was averaging 4.7 points and 4.3 rebounds, was hurt late Saturday when he collided with teammate Shannon Brown and Michigan's Graham Brown.
DUKE ON TOP AGAIN: Duke moved back to No.1 in the Associated Press poll, replacing the only other team to hold the top spot this season. The Blue Devils were second the past four weeks to Connecticut, who lost to Villanova last week.
Villanova jumped from fourth to second (the highest ranking in school history), and Connecticut dropped to No.3. Memphis, the other team to get a first-place vote, fell one place to fourth.
Northern Iowa, which beat then-No.24 Bucknell in double overtime Saturday, returned after falling out for a week. It's tied for No.25 with Nevada, which reached No.17 earlier this season.
ARKANSAS: The school was fined $5,000 by the conference because 20-25 fans rushed the court after Saturday's victory against Florida, a violation of a policy that went into effect Dec.1, 2004. The only other school fined this season was Tennessee when its fans rushed the court after a victory against Florida on Jan.21.
VANDERBILT: Senior guard Mario Moore returned after a medical leave of absence. Neither he nor the school disclosed the reason for the leave that kept Moore, averaging 6.3 points a season after leading the team at 13.5, out since Feb.7.
Nation
MISSOURI: University president Elson Floyd ordered an independent investigation into the departure of coach Quin Snyder. Snyder resigned Feb.10, one day after saying he would stay for the rest of the season. The Kansas City Star reported soon after that athletic director Mike Alden sent assistant Gary Link to tell Snyder he could resign or be fired at the end of the season. Alden first denied it but Monday said he sent Link to see if Snyder might want to "step away" from the job.
Women
NO. 2 N. CAROLINA 69, NO. 17 BC 62: Ivory Latta had 23 points and nine steals for the host Tar Heels. The Eagles (19-8, 6-6 ACC) shot 50 percent, made eight 3-pointers and led by seven in the first half. But North Carolina (25-1, 12-1) used a 10-2 second-half run to take a 52-40 lead with 10:55 left. The 5-foot-6 Latta capped the run by stripping the ball from 6-4 Lisa Macchia in the post, picking up the loose ball and going all the way for a layup.
NO. 6 OHIO ST. 69, NO. 14 MICHIGAN ST. 38: Jessica Davenport scored 18 of her 22 in the first half for the host Buckeyes in coach Jim Foster's 600th victory. The Spartans (20-8, 10-5) trailed 26-19 with 5:30 left in the first half. But the Buckeyes (23-2, 13-1) ended the half with a 16-4 run.
POLL: Tennessee, at No.5, is ranked for the 500th time. The Vols have appeared in every poll but 14 since it was created in 1976, including the past 373. Duke remained No.1 with 39 of 45 first-place votes. North Carolina, at No.2, received the others.
[Last modified February 21, 2006, 00:43:09]
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