Arizona Gives No. 1 Purdue a Scare

Less than a week after knocking off powerhouse Tennessee, Purdue had to escape its own upset in its first game as the top-ranked team Thursday.

Freshman Kelly Komara made a three-point shot and a driving layup in the final 3:33 as the Boilermakers escaped with a 65-58 victory over Arizona at Tucson.

“She doesn’t play like a freshman at all,” Purdue Coach Carolyn Peck said. “She brings a great spark to our team. She adds some excitement. When you see a freshman come off the bench with that kind of confidence, it makes the upperclassmen think, ‘Hey, we need to move on.’ ”

The Boilermakers (2-0), in trouble all night, outscored the Wildcats 8-2 over the last 2 1/2 minutes. Arizona (1-2) didn’t score in the last 2:03.

Purdue had vaulted to No. 1 by stunning three-time defending national champion Tennessee, 78-68, on Sunday, ending the Lady Vols’ 46-game winning streak.

No. 3 Louisiana Tech 88, Florida State 72--Shaka Massey scored six of her 20 points during a crucial second-half run to lead the Lady Techsters to a season-opening victory at Tallahassee, Fla.

Florida State (1-1) was within 70-62 with 7:56 left to play, but the Lady Techsters went on an 8-1 run over the next 4:12. Tech’s pressure defense forced three turnovers in six possessions during the run.

Latavia Coleman scored a career-high 30 points to lead the Seminoles, who shot only 34.3% from the field.

No. 5 North Carolina 88, North Carolina Wilmington 43--Nikki Teasley scored a 17 points in only 19 minutes as the Tar Heels cruised to victory at Chapel Hill, N.C.

LaQuanda Barksdale added 14 points for the Tar Heels (4-0), while starter Chanel Wright and reserve center LaShonda Allen had 12 each.

Overmatched Wilmington (1-1) shot only 23% (15 of 64) from the field and trailed by as many as 51 points in the second half. LaTonia Beale scored nine points to lead the Seahawks.

No. 9 Alabama 96, Samford 52--Dominique Canty scored 23 points to lead the Crimson Tide to victory at Birmingham, Ala.

Canty made 11 of 18 field goals and added six rebounds and four steals for Alabama (3-0). The Bulldogs (0-1) have lost their two meetings with their neighboring powerhouse by a combined 200-95.

No. 10 Rutgers 60, Indiana 53--Shawnetta Stewart had 12 points and eight rebounds and made two steals in the final minute as the Scarlet Knights (3-0) defeated the Hoosiers (2-1) in the semifinals of the women’s preseason NIT at Fort Collins, Colo.

No. 13 George Washington 69, William & Mary 48--Petra Dubovcova, who sat out most of her freshman season with a knee injury, had 25 points and 11 rebounds and even took four charges as the Colonials (2-0) rolled past the Tribe (2-1) at Washington.

Dubovcova, a 6-foot-3 forward from Slovakia and one of the most highly touted recruits in school history, was 11 for 16 from the field.

Colorado State 80, No. 20 Florida 65--Katie Cronin scored 25 points and had 10 rebounds at Fort Collins, Colo., as the Rams (3-0) advanced to the title game of the women’s preseason NIT by upsetting the Gators (2-1).

No. 24 Illinois 76, Stanford 58--Susan Blauser scored 20 points, and Melissa Parker had 17 as the Illini won at Stanford, sending the Cardinal to the first 0-3 start in the program’s 25-year history.

Tauja Catchings added 14 points for Illinois, which won a season opener on the road for only the second time in eight tries. Blauser also had 18 of Illinois’ 48 rebounds.

Stanford, which fell out of the rankings for the first time in 11 years after season-opening losses to Arkansas and Duke in the Four in the Fall tournament last week, lost for only the second time in its last 61 games at Maples Pavilion.

Daily Report / No Charges Against Hampton Coach

No charges will be filed against the Hampton University women’s basketball coach, her husband and an assistant coach who police say were suspected of trying to play a con game.

The decision was greeted with relief at the Virginia school, where Coach Patricia Bibbs said no other outcome was possible “because we knew that we had done nothing wrong.”

Police chief Ken Walker said Thursday that the woman who made the accusation was no longer sure of the identity of people who attempted to con her out of money in a Wal-Mart parking lot Monday night.

Walker said that after examining the store’s security tape, police discovered that the three could not have been involved.