College Basketball Roundup : Providence Beats Pitt, Moves Up a Notch

Matt Palazzi broke out of a shooting slump with 22 points and Eric Murdock scored 19 of his 21 in the second half Tuesday night to lead Providence to an 88-78 victory over Pittsburgh in a Big East Conference game at Providence, R.I.

The victory lifted Providence (17-4 overall, 6-4 in the Big East) into a tie for second place with Seton Hall and Syracuse.

The Friars had a 63-38 lead with 10 minutes left, but Brian Shorter, who scored 27 points, rallied the Panthers (11-10, 4-6) to within 10 points.

Murdock put Providence back in control by scoring seven points in 45 seconds for a 77-64 lead with 5:04 remaining.

Maryland 98, Clemson 87--Tony Massenburg scored 21 of his 24 points in the second half and the Terrapins turned back the Tigers at College Park, Md., for their first Atlantic Coast Conference victory of the season.

John Johnson scored 25 points and freshman Jerrod Mustaf added 24 for Maryland (8-13, 1-7).

Coach Bob Wade played his starting five the entire second half and the Terrapins made 17 of 18 free throws to ensure the victory.

Elden Campbell scored 20 points for Clemson (14-6, 4-4).

Villanova 77, Boston College 69--Doug West scored 16 points and the Wildcats rallied to down the Eagles in a Big East game at Villanova, Pa.

Boston College (8-11, 1-8) took a 57-52 lead on a basket by Dana Barrows with 9:39 left, but Villanova (13-10, 4-5) took command with nine straight points that gave the Wildcats a 66-60 lead.

Barrows scored 28 points for Boston College.

DePaul 78, Dayton 50--Brad Nieman scored 22 points, including six of seven three-point shots, and the Blue Demons routed the Flyers at Dayton, Ohio.

After trailing in the early minutes, DePaul (15-9) rolled to a 47-30 halftime lead on the way to its fifth straight victory.