Cincy Sporting News » Conference

Buckeyes tip PSU, 38-14

admin — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 13:28:21 +0000

Associated Press

Devon Torrence #1 of the Ohio State Buckeyes intercepts a pass in the third quarter against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Ohio Stadium on November 13, 2010 in Columbus, Ohio. Torrence returned the interception 34-yards for a touchdown in the Buckeyes' 38-14 win over the Nittany Lions.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — As the Ohio State Buckeyes left the field trailing 14-3 at halftime on Saturday, their fans really let them hear it.

By the end of the game, those boos had turned to cheers.

Devon Torrence tipped and snagged an interception and returned it 34 yards for the go-ahead touchdown, and the Buckeyes (No. 9 BCS, No. 8 AP) ran off the final 35 points for a 38-14 win.

“We know how much our fans are obsessed with Ohio State football,” said wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher, who caught a ricochet off a defender for a quirky 58-yard score in the 21-0 fourth quarter. “Booing us? I probably would have booed us.”

Travis Howard added another interception and brought it back 30 yards for a TD, also in the fourth.

“Obviously, I didn’t pay attention to it,” defensive end Cameron Heyward said of the boos. “It’s going to happen. But we had to respond in the second half.”

They certainly did. The two defensive scores gave Ohio State six interception returns for touchdowns in the last seven meetings with Penn State (6-4, 3-3 Big Ten).

The victory sent the Buckeyes (9-1, 5-1) into a critical showdown at Iowa next week tied for first place in the conference with Michigan State and Wisconsin.

Instead of win No. 401 for Nittany Lions coach Joe Paterno, the second-half scores tagged him with his 133rd loss.

“There were a lot of things involved,” he said of his team’s second-half collapse. “I didn’t think they [the Buckeyes] did much different in the second half.”

The comeback from an 11-point deficit was the biggest in coach Jim Tressel’s 10 years in Columbus.

“They played their fannies off in the second half,” Tressel said of his Buckeyes. “I’m awfully proud of them.”

The game swung on one play.

With a 14-10 lead on second-and-9 at the Nittany Lions 37 midway through the third quarter, Penn State quarterback Matt McGloin fired a pass into the left flat meant for Michael Zordich. Torrence, a former outfielder in the Houston Astros system, had slipped off coverage of another receiver, sliding inside and streaking in front of Zordich.

“I saw it and jumped it,” Torrence said. “I had to tip it to myself.”

He flicked the ball up in the air once, juggled it off his shoulder and then finally collected it, racing for the touchdown and a 17-14 lead.

“He kind of baited me,” McGloin said. “At first he was rolling with Derek [Moye] and he came off. He just made a nice play.”

Ohio State then forced a punt and on second-and-23 from his own 42, Buckeyes quarterback Terrelle Pryor lobbed an arching pass down the middle of the field for DeVier Posey, with D’Anton Lynn and Drew Astorino pounding him as the ball arrived. But the ball squirted directly to Sanzenbacher trailing the play.

Lynn stood, hands on his hips, stunned as the Buckeyes celebrated in the end zone.

Howard then stepped in front of McGloin’s pass to end any drama.

Pryor, who was 8 of 13 for 139 yards with one interception and two scores, also hit Jake Stoneburner with a late TD pass.

The Buckeyes, down 14-3, were pinned deep in their own territory in the third quarter. But they covered 96 yards — actually 98 because they had a false start penalty before they ran a play. For the most part, they stayed on the ground, with Boom Herron, who had a career-best 190 yards on 21 carries, going the final 5 yards through a gaping hole for a TD.

Then came the interception that flipped the game.

Tressel improved to 27-4 in November games as Ohio State’s head coach — and 3-4 in the week after a bye.

The Nittany Lions, angry that they were listed as 2 1/2-touchdown underdogs, appeared to be the team that was rested and focused early.

McGloin, who finished 15 of 30 for 159 yards with the two interceptions, hit Justin Brown on a 23-yard score and Moye on a 6-yarder. They were the first touchdown passes Penn State had thrown in Ohio Stadium since joining the Big Ten in 1993, and gave the Lions the most points they’ve scored there in that span.

Torrence’s return helped the Buckeyes forget about the ugly first half and the torrent of boos.

“The halftime locker room was not a fun place,” Tressel said. “But it was not a place that looked like there was any quit in anybody.”

SEC exploring expansion just in case

admin — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 04:59:09 +0000

Associated Press

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Southeastern Conference commissioner Mike Slive says the league isn’t considering adding teams but is working on a plan to keep up with other conferences if they expand just in case.

The commissioner said Monday that the 12-member SEC hasn’t talked to any institutions about joining and has no plans to do so. The expansion exploration is just an internal look at the potential advantages and disadvantages in case there is a “significant shift in the conference paradigm,” he said.

Slive didn’t elaborate on how much expansion would fit that billing.

“But I’ll know,” he said.

League expansion has been a hot topic since the Big Ten announced in December that it was considering expanding.

SEC teams have won the past four national titles in football and have lucrative TV deals with CBS and ESPN.

“That doesn’t cry for change,” Slive said. Any changes would only be made if the league deems it necessary to maintain its prominent position, he said.

“We’ve always been known to be a creative league, be on the cutting edge,” Slive said. “We’re not going to allow ourselves in any way, shape or form, to be anything less than what we are now.”

He declined to talk about what factors the SEC might look for in potential new members.

“The important thing is we’re paying attention, we’re going to be strategic, we’re going to be thoughtful, but we’re not going to relinquish our role as one of the premier conferences,” he said.

Slive spoke to editors and writers from the Southeast Region of the Associated Press Sports Editors across the street from his office in downtown Birmingham.

Georgetown-West Virginia Preview

admin — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 14:11:02 +0000

STATS LLC

Big East Conference Tournament

Georgetown’s rich basketball history includes seven Big East tournament titles — a league record the 22nd-ranked Hoyas will try to extend Saturday.

For now, West Virginia would be happy with one.

Along with the championship of arguably the nation’s most competitive conference, the seventh-ranked Mountaineers may also have a chance to grab a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament if they beat Georgetown at Madison Square Garden.

While the Hoyas have long felt at home on Broadway, West Virginia (26-6) came to Manhattan with a starting lineup comprised entirely of New York-area natives. They’ve muscled the Mountaineers to the brink of their first Big East title.

“It would mean the world to me, just because it would be the first one, and I was part of the team,” star forward Da’Sean Butler said. “It would be something special.”

West Virginia, which lost to Syracuse in the 2005 final, hasn’t had an easy path to a second title game appearance.

The third-seeded Mountaineers were the only one of the Big East’s top four seeds to survive Thursday’s quarterfinals, beating Cincinnati 54-51 behind Butler’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer. The senior had 24 points as West Virginia outlasted Notre Dame 53-51 in a semifinal Friday.

The team’s 1-3-1 zone defense has helped hold the two opponents to 33.7 percent shooting.

“It’s tremendous, I’ve been here a number of times. We’ve been to the semifinals pretty much every year but my freshman year,” Butler said. “… We can’t blow this opportunity. I’m looking forward to this game tomorrow really bad. It’s just an honor to be in this game.”

Georgetown (23-9) will be appearing in the Big East final for the third time in the last four seasons and the 13th time since the tournament began in 1980.

Another Hoyas tradition has been standout centers, including Patrick Ewing, Dikembe Mutombo and Alonzo Mourning. Greg Monroe’s name may not fit alongside those players quite yet, but he could be on his way after another stellar performance in Friday’s other semifinal.

Monroe had 23 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists to lead Georgetown over Marquette 80-57. The sophomore was also three assists shy of a triple-double Thursday in a 91-84 quarterfinal upset of top-seeded Syracuse.

“We know that Greg is a phenomenal player,” Georgetown guard Chris Wright said. “It’s not like he just started doing this in the Big East tournament. We know he can pass, we know he can score.”

Wright had 27 points against the Orange and is averaging 19.0 during the tournament, but if the eighth-seeded Hoyas want to win it all they’ll have to earn a victory for the fourth straight day.

They haven’t needed to do that for any of their previous seven titles, but Monroe said it has been in the team’s plans all week.

“At the end of the day, now it’s the championship game,” Monroe said. “I know as a team we came here to win this tournament, and I mean, (Saturday) the lights are going to be on. We have to be prepared to play.”

Georgetown knocked West Virginia out of the 2008 Big East tournament semifinals, but has since lost back-to-back meetings with the Mountaineers, including an 81-68 defeat in Morgantown on March 1.

That was part of West Virginia’s current five-game winning streak, but coach Bob Huggins hasn’t been thrilled with his team lately.

The Mountaineers overcame a 13-point halftime deficit to beat then-No. 9 Villanova 68-66 in overtime last Saturday, shot 35.0 percent against Cincinnati, and nearly squandered a 10-point lead in the final six minutes against the Fighting Irish.

“I’m starting to have a lot of confidence in our guys screwing up enough to let them back in the game,” Huggins said. “… I’m not very happy about it, we’re going to keep trying to fix it, but at the end of the day we’re 26-6 and playing for a Big East championship.”

Kansas, Kentucky, Syracuse and Duke are the most likely No. 1 seeds for the NCAA tournament, but a win may put West Virginia in consideration.

Big East Conference Tournament 3-13-2010

admin — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 14:01:48 +0000

Big East Conference Tournament

Monroe leads Hoyas into Big East title game

Associated Press
NEW YORK — Greg Monroe had 23 points and 13 rebounds, and No. 22 Georgetown finally got the better of Marquette in a 80-57 victory Friday night that sent the Hoyas to the Big East tournament title game for the third time in four years.

Butler, No. 7 West Virginia survive Notre Dame

Associated Press
NEW YORK — Da’Sean Butler, West Virginia’s last-second hero in the quarterfinals, scored 24 points to lead the seventh-ranked Mountaineers to a 53-51 victory over Notre Dame on Friday night in the Big East tournament semifinals.

UP NEXT

West Virginia vs. Georgetown for Big East title
9:00 PM ET, March 13, 2010
Madison Square Garden, New York, NY

Big East Conference Tournament 3-12-2010

admin — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:14:42 +0000

Big East Conference Tournament

West Virginia sinks Cincinnati at the buzzer in Big East tournament

Associated Press
NEW YORK — West Virginia became the only one of the conference’s top four seeds to advance to the semifinals when Da’Sean Butler took an inbounds pass and banked in a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Mountaineers (No. 6 ESPN/USA Today, No. 7 AP) a 54-51 victory over Cincinnati on Thursday night. (Full Story)

Wright leads Georgetown past top-seeded Syracuse

Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Chris Wright scored 27 points and No. 22 Georgetown sailed past No. 3 Syracuse with an impressive second-half surge, beating the top-seeded Orange 91-84 in the Big East tournament quarterfinals Thursday.

Though still a strong candidate for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, Syracuse (28-4) sustained a potentially costly loss when starting center Arinze Onuaku injured his right knee with 5:07 remaining.

Hayward helps Golden Eagles hold off Wildcats

Associated Press
NEW YORK — Lazar Hayward gave Marquette the lead for good with a 3-pointer with 1:51 to play, then added the clinching free throws with 3.2 seconds left, and the Golden Eagles went on to another close win, 80-76 over No. 10 Villanova on Thursday in the Big East tournament quarterfinals.

Fifth-seeded Marquette (22-10) will face eighth-seeded Georgetown in the semifinals Friday night. The loss for fourth-seeded Villanova (24-7), coupled with top-seeded Syracuse’s 91-84 loss to the Hoyas earlier, dropped the teams that had earned double byes to 0-2 – and both came against teams they had beaten twice during the season.

Harangody, Notre Dame hold off Pittsburgh 50-45

Associated Press
NEW YORK — Draining the shot clock on nearly every possession and relying on stout defense, Notre Dame is playing its best basketball of the season at the perfect time.

Luke Harangody came off the bench and hit three key free throws in the final two minutes, helping the Fighting Irish hold off No. 16 Pittsburgh 50-45 in the Big East tournament quarterfinals Thursday night for their season-best sixth straight victory.

Big East Conference Tournament 3-11-2010

admin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:42:05 +0000

Big East Conference Tournament

Vaughn leads Cincy over Louisville in Big East

Associated Press

NEW YORK — Cincinnati has rebounded quite well in getting comfortable at the Big East tournament.

The 11th-seeded Bearcats again used a huge advantage on the boards to beat sixth-seeded Louisville 69-66 on Wednesday night to advance to the quarterfinals. They are the only team to play in the opening round still playing, and it was rebounding that keyed both close wins. (Full Story)

Clark, Monroe spur No. 22 Hoyas past South Florida

Associated Press

NEW YORK — Georgetown coach John Thompson III has a remarkable knack for making a difficult game sound simple.

Take, for instance, his approach to guarding Dominique Jones. The South Florida star ripped apart the Hoyas the last time the two teams met, and was coming off an impressive performance that helped his team reach the second round of the Big East tournament.

“I just yelled at the guys, ‘Guard him!’” Thompson said, grinning.

They sure listened, and didn’t stop with the league’s second-leading scorer. The No. 22 Hoyas frustrated South Florida all over the court in a 69-49 second-round victory Wednesday, propelling them into a marquee matchup with regular-season champion Syracuse.

Marquette shakes off St. John’s, advances to Big East quarterfinals

Associated Press

NEW YORK — When Marquette plays another Big East team no one is allowed out of their seat in the final minutes.

How about this stat?

In their 19 games against conference foes this season, the Golden Eagles have had 12 games decided by three points or less. They have won six of the last seven of those, the latest a 57-55 victory over St. John’s on Wednesday in the second round of the Big East tournament.

Healthy Harangody guides Notre Dame into Big East quarterfinals

Associated Press

NEW YORK — With a healthy Luke Harangody back in top form, Notre Dame stopped Seton Hall in its run-and-gun tracks to take another big step toward the NCAA tournament.

Harangody had 20 points and 10 rebounds off the bench, and the Fighting Irish shut down Seton Hall’s high-octane offense for a 68-56 victory in the second round of the Big East tournament Wednesday night.

Big East Conference Tournament 3-10-2010

admin — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:32:42 +0000

Big East Conference Tournament

Rutgers 68, Cincinnati 69
NEW YORK — Lance Stephenson picked up the hardware, then helped Cincinnati finally get a Big East tournament win.

The New York native was selected the conference’s Rookie of the Year on Tuesday afternoon. About 6 hours later, he backed up the choice by making the game-deciding free throw with 1.8 seconds to play and the Bearcats beat Rutgers 69-68 in the opening round. (Full Story)

DePaul 49, South Florida 58
NEW YORK — Dominique Jones had 20 points and nine rebounds, and South Florida beat DePaul 58-49 in the Big East tournament opener Tuesday for its fourth straight victory.

St. John’s 73, Connecticut 51
NEW YORK — For the fifth straight year, Connecticut left the Big East tournament without winning a game. And for the second time in the run, there won’t be an NCAA tournament bid to offset the hurt.

St. John’s ran away from the Huskies 73-51 on Tuesday, extending their Big East tournament losing streak to six games and beating them for the first time since February 2002, a stretch of nine games.

Providence 106, Seton Hall 109
NEW YORK — Seton Hall and Providence raced up and down the court, playing little defense in a one-sided game that felt like a school-yard mismatch most of the night.

That is, until Providence nearly pulled off a colossal comeback.

Herb Pope had 27 points and 11 rebounds, and Seton Hall built a huge second-half lead before barely holding off a furious Friars rally for a 109-106 victory in the first round of the Big East tournament Tuesday night.

Big East Men’s Basketball Scores: Feb. 18th

admin — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 14:23:22 +0000

(5) Syracuse 75, (10) Georgetown 71
WASHINGTON — The rivalry between Syracuse and Georgetown has featured dozens of games that have gone back and forth, seven that went to overtime and a handful of blowouts.

(21) Pittsburgh 58, Marquette 51
MILWAUKEE — It was a sure sign that Pittsburgh (No. 21 ESPN/USA Today, No. 19 AP) was about to take control: Dante Taylor throwing down his third uncontested dunk in the space of a little more than two minutes.

Feb. 19th Upcoming Games:

No games scheduled for this day in the Big East

Big East Men’s Basketball Scores: Feb. 12th

admin — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 11:50:21 +0000

(4) West Virginia 95 (23) Pittsburgh 98
PITTSBURGH — The very first basketball game in West Virginia history was against Pitt in 1903, and there have been 179 games in the Backyard Brawl rivalry since then. Not one was like this.

Feb. 13th Upcoming Games:

Providence Friars at Villanova Wildcats
2:00 PM ET, February 13, 2010
Wachovia Center, Philadelphia, PA

Cincinnati Bearcats at Connecticut Huskies
12:00 PM ET, February 13, 2010
XL Center, Hartford, CT

South Florida Bulls at Marquette Golden Eagles
8:30 PM ET, February 13, 2010
Bradley Center, Milwaukee, WI

Big East Men’s Basketball Scores: Feb. 11th

admin — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 15:27:08 +0000

Louisville 55, St. John’s 74
NEW YORK — D.J. Kennedy scored 15 points, Justin Burrell matched his season high with 14 and St. John’s snapped a five-game losing streak with a 74-55 victory over Louisville on Thursday night. (Full Story)

Notre Dame 87, Seton Hall 90
NEWARK, N.J. — Jeremy Hazell rebounded from one of his worst games of the season to score 35 points to lead Seton Hall to a 90-87 victory over Notre Dame on Thursday, snapping the Pirates’ three-game losing streak.

Feb. 12th Upcoming Games:

(4) West Virginia at (23) Pittsburgh
9:00 PM ET, February 12, 2010
Petersen Events Center, Pittsburgh, PA