Pitt holds ISU to 23% shooting

GREENSBORO, N.C. >> Nelly Cummings scored 13 points and No. 11 seed Pittsburgh held sixthseeded Iowa State to 23% shooting in a 59- 41 victory in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday.

Jamarius Burton added 11 points and Greg Elliott had 10 for coach Jeff Capel’s Panthers, who stormed to a 22-2 lead after Iowa State missed its first 11 shots. Things didn’t get much better for the Cyclones, who had three stretches in which they missed at least eight consecutive shots.

Pitt (24-11), which edged Mississippi State in the First Four, moves on to Sunday’s secondround Midwest Region game against third- seeded Xavier, which had to rally from 13 points down to beat No. 14 seed Kennesaw State.

“What an unbelievable defensive performance,” Capel said. “We were a really good defensive team for the majority of the year except for the last month of the season — and we’ve really dialed back in these past two games and played at an elite level.”

Gabe Kalscheur and Jaren Holmes each had 12 points for Iowa State (19-14), which reached the Sweet 16 last year in coach T. J. Otzelberger’s first season.

The Cyclones, who had lost nine of their previous 13 games, didn’t make a field goal until Holmes’ short jumper with 9:53 left in the first half, which drew a sarcastic cheer from Iowa State fans.

Iowa State’s poor start came while shooting at the same basket that officials worked to fix before the game, causing a brief delay.

“Iowa State asked us during pregame warmups to check if the rim was level,” the NCAA said in a statement. “Building personnel checked it and made a minor adjustment prior to the game beginning. We offered them additional warmup time but they declined.”

Otzelberger said he wasn’t sure if the issue with the basket might have gotten into his players’ heads and contributed to their poor shooting, saying, “you’d have to ask the players.”