Another Roadblock Stops No. 2 Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh might have run out of chances.

The No. 2 Panthers missed a second opportunity to ascend to the No. 1 spot in the Associated Press rankings, falling to No. 24 Syracuse, 67-65, Saturday at Syracuse, N.Y.

The Panthers never have been ranked No. 1. In December, after then-No. 1 Alabama had lost to Utah, No. 2 Pittsburgh needed only a victory at Georgia to grab the top spot. But the Panthers lost, 79-67, and Duke moved to No. 1.

After Stanford’s 82-77 victory over No. 1 Arizona on Thursday, Pittsburgh was given another opportunity but lost to the Orangemen. Now it appears No. 3 Texas will move to the top spot. The Longhorns would become the fourth team to be ranked No. 1.

An unlikely hero did in the Panthers (14-3, 5-2 Big East) Saturday.

Jeremy McNeil, who rides the bench more than he plays, made two free throws to tie the score with 46.9 seconds left, then converted his only field-goal attempt with three seconds remaining for the winning basket.

McNeil, the backup to Craig Forth at center, had to know it was his game when he converted the free throws -- he had been four of 14 (28.6%).

“I was feeling pressure, oh yeah,” McNeil said. “I was scared to death. I’m just glad we won. This game was a team effort. My four points at the end wouldn’t have mattered if not for them.”

Before 30,303 -- the largest crowd to see a college basketball game this season -- McNeil came through.

After McNeil’s basket, many in the stands began to storm the court in celebration. But the referees, after Syracuse Coach Jim Boeheim pleaded for order, ruled that eight-tenths of a second remained.

That nearly was all the Panthers needed.

Brandin Knight took an inbounds pass from Jaron Brown and made a 40-foot shot. But after a couple of tense moments with the crowd pouring onto the court again, the shot was ruled too late.

“The clock on the replay probably showed I didn’t make it, but I think we should have had more time,” said Knight, who had seven points and seven assists and played all 40 minutes despite spraining his left ankle in practice Wednesday. “But when you’re on the road, that’s the type of thing you deal with.”

The Panthers had won 12 in a row in Big East play.

“It was a tough loss,” Pittsburgh Coach Ben Howland said. “McNeil stepping up and making those foul shots from a guy that’s not known for his foul shooting -- that was big for them.”

Syracuse (14-3, 5-2 Big East), which trailed by as many as 13 points, won its 14th in a row in the Carrier Dome and avenged a 73-60 loss at Pittsburgh.

No. 3 Texas 78, No. 9 Oklahoma State 65 -- Royal Ivey and T.J. Ford each scored 17 points at Austin, Texas, as the Longhorns (14-3, 5-1 Big 12) ended a 15-game winning streak by the Cowboys (17-2, 6-1).

No. 4 Florida 77, Arkansas 66 -- Freshman Anthony Roberson scored 16 points at Gainesville, Fla., as the Gators (18-2, 7-0 Southeastern Conference) defeated the Razorbacks (6-11, 1-5) and tied a school record with their 14th consecutive victory.

No. 6 Oklahoma 91, Kansas State 89 -- Ebi Ere scored 25 points at Manhattan, Kan., to lead the Sooners (15-3, 6-1 Big 12) to an overtime victory over the Wildcats (11-8, 2-4).

No. 7 Kentucky 87, South Carolina 69 -- The Wildcats (16-3, 6-0 SEC) won their 10th in a row with an easy victory over the Gamecocks (7-10, 1-6) at Columbia, S.C.

No. 8 Louisville 95, No. 19 Indiana 76 -- Freshman Francisco Garcia scored a career-high 23 points at Louisville, Ky., as the Cardinals won their 15th in a row with a victory against the slumping Hoosiers (14-6).

No. 11 Notre Dame 93, Georgetown 92 -- Torrian Jones made a free throw with 5.5 seconds left at South Bend, Ind., to lift the Fighting Irish (18-3, 6-1 Big East) to a double-overtime victory over the Hoyas (10-7, 2-5).

No. 12 Kansas 81, Nebraska 51 -- Keith Langford and Kirk Hinrich each scored 17 points at Lincoln, Neb., as the Jayhawks (15-5, 5-1 Big 12) routed the Cornhuskers (9-11, 1-6).

Boston College 95, No. 14 Connecticut 71 -- Troy Bell scored 26 points as the Eagles (10-8, 3-4 Big East) handed the Huskies (13-4, 4-2) their worst loss ever at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Conn. Former Fairfax High player Craig Smith had 20 points for Boston College.

No. 15 Georgia 67, No. 21 Mississippi State 63 -- Chris Daniels scored 16 points at Athens, Ga., for the Bulldogs (13-5, 5-2 SEC). Mississippi State, which had a three-game winning streak stopped, fell to 13-5 and 3-4.

No. 16 Creighton 88, Drake 68 -- Larry House scored 23 points as the Blue Jays (19-2, 9-1 Missouri Valley Conference) shot 67% in the second half at Des Moines, Iowa. Drake is 7-13 and 2-7.

No. 18 Marquette 82, Cincinnati 76 -- Robert Jackson scored 21 points at Cincinnati as the Golden Eagles (15-3, 7-1 Conference USA) never trailed in defeating the Bearcats (13-5, 6-2).

No. 23 Alabama 75, Louisiana State 66 -- Maurice Williams scored 27 points at Tuscaloosa, Ala., as the Crimson Tide (13-5, 3-4 SEC) defeated the Tigers (12-7, 1-6) and ended a three-game losing streak.

No. 25 Missouri 73, Colorado 70 -- The Tigers (13-4, 4-2 Big 12) extended their winning streak over the Buffaloes (12-7, 2-4) to eight with the victory at Columbia, Mo.

OTHER GAMES

Willie Deane scored 21 points at Iowa City, Iowa, to lift Purdue (14-4, 6-1 Big Ten) to an 80-77 overtime victory over Iowa (11-6, 3-3), putting the Boilermakers into first place in the Big Ten.... Jerry Holman scored 18 points at Minneapolis as Minnesota (12-6, 4-3 Big Ten) handed Michigan (13-8, 6-2) its second consecutive loss with an 87-80 victory.... Velimir Radinovic scored five of his 12 points during a 17-3 second-half run as Ohio State (10-9, 3-5 Big Ten) rolled to a 65-52 victory over Northwestern (8-10, 0-7) at Columbus, Ohio.

Blake Stepp scored 26 points at Spokane, Wash., to lead Gonzaga (16-5, 7-0 West Coast Conference) to a 96-62 rout of Santa Clara (11-9, 2-5).... Jason Keep scored 22 points at Portland, Ore., to lead San Diego (10-9, 4-2 WCC) to a 78-77 victory over Portland (9-11, 2-5).... Jake Sullivan scored 26 points at Ames, Iowa, to lead Iowa State (12-6, 2-5 Big 12) to a 74-70 victory over Baylor (9-8, 0-6).... Ron Slay scored 21 points at Auburn, Ala., as Tennessee (11-6, 4-3 SEC Conference) held on for a 60-57 victory over Auburn (15-5, 4-3).

Dayton (15-3, 7-0 Atlantic 10) notched its eighth consecutive victory by cruising past La Salle, 75-70, at Philadelphia. The Explorers are 8-10 and 2-5.... Brandon Miller scored 22 points at Indianapolis as Butler (17-3, 7-1 Horizon League) rolled to a 73-57 victory over Cleveland State (7-14, 2-6).... Antonio Gates scored 28 points at Kalamazoo, Mich., to lead Kent State (15-2, 8-1 Mid-American) to a 78-71 victory over Western Michigan (12-6, 4-5).

Matt Nelson scored 21 points at San Diego to lead Colorado State (14-5, 3-1 Mountain West Conference) to a 72-69 victory over San Diego State (11-7, 2-3).