Pitt pulls away to remain perfect

Carl Krauser scored a career-high 28 points and No. 11 Pittsburgh held off Penn State flurries in each half for an 84-71 victory yesterday in State College, Pa., and the Panthers' third 7-0 start in as many seasons. The Panthers beat the Nittany Lions (5-4) for a fourth consecutive season in an intrastate series that has continued despite an interruption in their long-competitive football rivalry. But this one wasn't nearly as one-sided as the previous three seasons, when Pitt won by an average of 28 points.

Chevon Troutman and Antonio Graves scored 18 points each for Pittsburgh, which finally played a relatively close game after winning its first six by an average of 26.5 points. The Panthers trailed, 30-29, late in the first half after leading, 13-2, early and needed a Krauser-led 8-1 run to open a 60-47 lead after the Lions got it to 52-46. Krauser had 17 points in the second half and the Panthers scored the final 6 points in the last 1 1/2 minutes after Penn State closed to 78-71 on two free throws by freshman Mike Walker.

Illinois 83, Oregon 66 -- Luther Head had 23 points on 8-of-10 shooting and all five starters reached double figures, leading the top-ranked Illini (9-0) in Chicago.Bryce Taylor had 19 points to lead the Ducks (4-1). Head started and finished a 15-7 run with 3-pointers, giving Illinois a 30-18 lead with 8:33 left in the first half. Illinois went the next 3:18 without a field goal, but closed the half with an 11-7 run, capped by Head's alley-oop from Brown, and took a 43-29 lead into halftime.

Kansas 96, Louisiana-Lafayette 51 -- The No. 2 Jayhawks (6-0) quickly took care of business at home as Keith Langford had 19 of his 24 points in a torrid first half. Langford and most of the other Kansas starters went to the bench with more than 10 minutes left. After a slow start following knee surgery, Langford has totaled 62 points in his last three games. He was 7 for 9 in the first half as the Jayhawks rolled up a 54-22 lead.

Louisiana-Lafayette (3-4) was led by Tiras Wade and Brian Hamilton with 12 points apiece. The Ragin' Cajuns never got closer than 35 points after the first few minutes of the second half.

Georgia Tech 64, Air Force 42 -- Luke Schenscher scored 15 points in Atlanta and the Yellow Jackets, ranked No. 3, overcame Air Force's slow-paced offense to remain unbeaten. Georgia Tech (6-0), which tries to run at every opportunity, was forced into a game that was totally out of character. It attempted a season-low 40 shots and failed to make a 3-pointer for the first time since 1987.

But the Yellow Jackets still managed to dominate, leading, 32-12, at halftime and holding the Falcons (6-3) to just under 28 percent (15 of 54) from the field.

Syracuse 86, Binghamton 56 -- The No. 4 Orange bounced back from their first loss of the season with a home rout, fueled by 20 points from Hakim Warrick and 18 from Gerry McNamara. Syracuse (8-1), a loser to No. 5 Oklahoma State in the Jimmy V Classic, took command early in the second half after leading by just 8 at intermission and defeated the Bearcats (2-5) for the fourth straight time since they moved up to Division 1.

Kentucky 73, Indiana 58 -- Patrick Sparks scored 16 points and the 10th-ranked Wildcats dominated Indiana inside in a rout in Louisville, Ky. Chuck Hayes added 14 points and nine rebounds for Kentucky (6-1), which has won five straight games and 12 of the last 14 in its annual series against Indiana (2-4).

N.C. State 94, Liberty 60 -- Julius Hodge had 27 points and finished an assist and a rebound short of the second triple-double of his career, leading the No. 12 Wolfpack at home.Freshman Andrew Brackman had a season-high 13 points for N.C. State (7-0), which matched its best start under ninth-year coach Herb Sendek.

Louisville 74, Florida 70 -- At Gainesville, Fla., Taquan Dean scored 22 points, Francisco Garcia added 19, and the 13th-ranked Cardinals (5-1) withstood a late rally by the Gators (5-2).

Arizona 67, Utah 62 -- Channing Frye netted 19 points despite foul trouble and Hassan Adams slammed home a rebound with 40 seconds to play, allowing the 15th-ranked Wildcats (6-2) to escape in Tucson and give Lute Olson his 1,000th coaching win at all levels.

Alabama 75, Temple 71 -- Earnest Shelton had 22 points, and the No. 18 Crimson Tide (8-1) hit six free throws in the final 62 seconds to dodge an upset by the Owls (3-4) in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Michigan St. 78, Stanford 53 -- Paul Davis scored 20 points and keyed a first-half surge that lifted the 20th-ranked Spartans (5-2) over the Cardinal (2-4) in Auburn Hills, Mich.

G. Washington 79, St. Francis (Pa.) 65 -- At Loretto, Pa., Pops Mensah-Bonsu provided 17 points and the No. 21 Colonials (6-1) used a 20-2 run late in the first half to take control.

Mississippi St. 83, Arkansas-Little Rock 53 -- Lawrence Roberts (27 points) scored the first 10 points for the No. 22 Bulldogs (7-2) and keyed a 21-0 first-half run at Starkville, Miss.

Marquette 63, Wisconsin 54 -- At Milwaukee, Travis Diener scored 29 points despite playing with a sprained ankle and the Golden Eagles (9-0) never trailed in beating the 24th-ranked Badgers (5-2).

Gonzaga 75, Saint Louis 45 -- Adam Morrison had 20 points and the No. 25 Bulldogs (7-1) cruised at home despite getting just 2 points from Ronny Turiaf, 21 below his average.