Panthers Let the Irish Fall Hard

The main criticism of No. 6-ranked Pittsburgh this season had been that the Panthers had not defeated a quality opponent. No one can say that now.

Ontario Lett scored 10 consecutive points to start Pittsburgh’s rally in the first half, then used his size and muscle to power a 16-0 run in the second half and the Panthers overwhelmed No. 5 Notre Dame, 72-55, Monday night at Pittsburgh.

“I was sick to my gut all day about this game,” Pittsburgh Coach Ben Howland said. “I’m relieved this is over.”

Notre Dame (12-2), denied its fourth victory over a Top-10 opponent, was held scoreless for nearly nine minutes while Pittsburgh (11-1) turned a 42-38 deficit into a 54-42 lead with 9:12 remaining.

“Defense and rebounding wins games,” Howland said. “Our guys are proud of the way they play defense.”

Pitt is 42-1 under Howland when holding teams to 60 points or below.

No. 14 Kansas 83, Iowa State 54 -- Nick Collison scored 31 points, a career high, and the Jayhawks (10-3) won their 12th consecutive conference opener and extended their record winning streak in Big 12 Conference regular-season games to 21.

Jared Homan had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Cyclones (10-2, 0-1), who suffered their worst loss at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa, which opened in 1971.

No. 23 Texas Tech 75, San Diego State 63 -- Kasib Powell had 22 points as the visiting Red Raiders improved to 10-1.

WOMEN’S TOP 25

No. 1 Duke 69, Clemson 53 -- Alana Beard scored 16 of her 26 points in the second half to rally the Blue Devils at Durham, N.C., in their Atlantic Coast Conference opener.

Beard scored six of Duke’s first nine points in the second half and had 13 rebounds to help the Blue Devils (13-0) outrebound the Tigers, 39-32.

Iciss Tillis scored 19 points for Duke, including 12 in a span of 6:19, when the Blue Devils pulled away in the second half after trailing, 31-28, at halftime.

Amanda White led Clemson (9-4, 1-1) with 16 points.

Michigan State 67, No. 7 Purdue 62 -- Lindsay Bowen made a three-point basket with 24.5 seconds remaining, and finished with 21 points to help the Spartans (7-5, 1-1 Big Ten) win at East Lansing, Mich.

Bowen had five three-point baskets and made two free throws with 4.1 seconds to go to seal the victory. She made her six free throws, extending her streak to 32 in a row.

Liz Shimek had 19 points and nine rebounds for the Spartans, who overcame three six-point deficits in the second half.

Shereka Wright led the Boilermakers (11-2, 0-1) with 18 points and 12 rebounds.

No. 11 Arkansas 75, Louisiana Lafayette 57 -- Shameka Christon scored a season-high 28 points at North Little Rock, Ark., to lead the Lady Razorbacks (12-3) past the determined but turnover-plagued Ragin’ Cajuns.

Charlotte Green scored 22 points to lead Louisiana-Lafayette (3-8), which mostly stayed close fdespite 23 turnovers.

No. 14 Mississippi State 72, Alabama Birmingham 50 -- Tan White had 13 of her 15 points in the first half, including a three-point basket that put the Bulldogs (11-2) ahead to stay at Starkville, Miss.

White’s three-pointer ended a 6-6 tie with 14:55 remaining in the first half. Mississippi State led, 37-31, with 18:22 remaining when it went on an 11-3 run.

Seneca Anderson’s layup with 14:54 to go made the score 48-34, and Alabama Birmingham (4-9) never got closer. Michelle Smith led the Blazers with 15 points.

No. 14 Vanderbilt 78, Duquesne 56 -- Jenni Benningfield had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Chantelle Anderson scored 20 points to lead the Commodores at Pittsburgh.

The Commodores (10-3) got 13 points and 10 assists from Ashley McElhiney.

Duquesne (7-5) was led by Beth Friday with 14 points and 15 rebounds.

No. 17 Penn State 83, No. 9 Minnesota 53 -- Kelly Mazzante scored 17 of her 22 points in the first half, when the Nittany Lions took control with a 10-0 run at State College, Pa., that helped knock the Gophers from the ranks of the undefeated.

The run gave the Nittany Lions (11-3, 2-0 Big Ten) a 27-17 lead with 4:20 left in the half. Mazzante made a three-pointer during the run and scored nine more points in the last 6:15 of the half. Lindsay Whalen had 22 points for Minnesota (12-1, 1-1).