Penn State Unranked but Still Unbeaten

It was a tough night for the Big Ten’s three nationally ranked teams--No. 10 Iowa, No. 13 Illinois and No. 21 Michigan--as they all fell in conference openers.

Such wasn’t the case for Penn State, a team that entered Big Ten play unbeaten but unranked.

Penn State beat Ohio State, 72-69, at Columbus, Ohio on Wednesday night to match the best start in the school’s 100 years of basketball. The Nittany Lions, one of six unbeaten major college teams, improved their record to 10-0, equaling the starts of the 1922-23 and 1924-25 teams.

Matt Gaudio had 21 points, including five free throws in the final 51 seconds, to lead Penn State. Neshaun Coleman had 20 points for the Ohio State (7-3).

In the Big Ten games involving nationally ranked teams:

Purdue 85, No. 10 Iowa 61--Reserve center Brad Miller had career highs of 23 points and 11 rebounds for the Boilermakers at West Lafayette, Ind. The loss ended a winning streak at nine games for Iowa (11-2). Purdue (11-2) won its seventh game in a row.

Minnesota 69, No. 13 Illinois 64--Sam Jacobson scored 22 points and reserve Bobby Jackson had 17 for the Gophers (9-4) in the Big 10 opener for both teams at Minneapolis. The Illini (11-2) shot 37% from the field and its leading scorer Kiwane Garris had a career-low three points.

Wisconsin 51, No. 21 Michigan 46--Reserve Mosezell Peterson scored 17 points, including a key basket with 20 seconds left, for the Badgers (9-4) in the Big Ten opener for both teams at Madison. Poor shooting in the second half (17%) hurt Michigan (10-4).

OTHER TOP 25 GAMES

No. 2 Kentucky 89, South Carolina 60--Tony Delk had 28 points as the Wildcats (10-1) increased their winning streak to nine games in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams at Columbia, S.C.

No. 6 Georgetown 81, DePaul 61--Allen Iverson scored 24 points for the Hoyas (12-10 in a nonconference game at Rosemont, Ill. DePaul (7-4) declared starter Juan Gay and key reserve Charles Gelatt ineligible before the game.

No. 7 Connecticut 89, West Virginia 79--Big East leading scorer Ray Allen had 23 points for the Huskies (11-1, 3-0) at Morgantown, W. Va. West Virginia (5-4, 0-2) missed 19 of 24 three-point shots.

Miami 75, No. 11 Syracuse 66--The Hurricanes (8-3, 2-1) made 20 of 28 shots in a 50-point second half in a Big East game at Miami. The loss was the second straight for Syracuse (11-2, 2-1).

No. 14 Georgia 74, Mississippi 38--Shandon Anderson led four players in double figures with 19 points for the Bulldogs (10-1) in an SEC opener at Athens, Ga.

No. 17 Mississippi St. 77, LSU 64--Darryl Wilson scored 20 points as the Bulldogs (9-1) beat the Tigers (7-5) for the fifth time in a row in an SEC opener at Baton Rouge, La.

No. 22 Clemson 51, No. 19 Duke 48--Freshman point guard Terrell McIntyre made a three-point shot with 14 seconds for the Tigers (10-0) at Clemson, S.C. in the ACC opener for both teams. Duke (9-3) turned the ball over with two seconds left in its final possession.

Nebraska 85, No. 23 Texas 69--The Cornhuskers (10-3) made a school-record 43 free throws in 59 attempts at Lincoln, Neb. in a nonconference game. Texas (7-3) was called for 38 of 77 fouls.

No. 24 Boston College 95, Rutgers 67--The Eagles (9-2, 2-1) overcame a season-low 12 points byleading scorer Danya Abrams in a Big East game at Piscataway, N.J. Rutgers shot 27% in the first half.