Syracuse surges past Pitt women after break

The Pitt women stayed close with No. 12 Syracuse, trailing 38-32 at the half, before the game got away from them.

The Orange outscored the Panthers, 28-8, in the third quarter and pulled away for an 82-50 win Thursday night at Petersen Events Center.

Pitt (9-9, 0-4 ACC), which has lost four in a row, made six field goals and shot 21 percent in the second half. Cassidy Walsh had 13 points, all but three coming in the first half, and three 3-pointers to lead the Panthers.

Digna Strautmane scored 22 points, nine in the pivotal third quarter for Syracuse (15-2, 4-0), which won its ninth game in a row.

Penn State

Ohio State’s Dorka Juhasz’s converted a 3-point play to put the Buckeyes ahead and then made two free throws to seal a 76-71 overtime win against the host Nittany Lions (9-8, 2-4 Big Ten). Ohio State went on a 22-4 run to force overtime after Penn State took the lead with a 28-2 run of its own that began in the third quarter and stretched into the fourth. Teniya Page scored in double-digits in her 34th consecutive game and led the Nittany Lions with 19 points. The Buckeyes improved to 7-8, 3-3.

Michigan State

Jenna Allen scored 16 points and Nia Clouden added 15 to lift the No. 17 Spartans to a 77-60 victory over No. 9 Maryland. Host Michigan State (13-4, 3-3 Big Ten) led almost throughout, racing out to a 20-4 advantage in the first quarter. Maryland (15-2, 4-2) closed to within three at halftime, but Michigan State took control again in the third.

Mississippi State

The No. 7 Bulldogs’ Teaira McCowan had one of the best nights of her career, finishing with as many rebounds (24) as the entire South Carolina team in an 89-74 win. Host Mississippi State (17-1, 5-0 SEC) beat the 15th-ranked Gamecocks (125, 4-1) for just the second time in 14 tries dating to 2011.

TCU

Junior point guard Jaylen Fisher will miss the rest of the season because of ongoing issues with his surgically repaired right knee. He also will not return to the program next season. “It’s something we’ve always known was a possibility given the history and the number of surgeries,” coach Jamie Dixon said. Fisher has had surgery six times in the past three years, Dixon said.

Hofstra

Hofstra won its 13th game in a row, beating visiting UNC Wilmington, 87-72, behind 24 points from Eli Pemberton. The streak is the fourth-longest overall in program history and the second-longest since Hofstra joined Division I in 1966-67.