US crusies, eyes Russia showdown
SOCHI, Russia — With just one game to prepare for its Olympic showdown with Russia, the United States men’s hockey team decided to cram an entire tournament’s worth of hard work and highlights into one spectacular opener.
Paul Stastny scored twice during a six- goal barrage in the second period, and the Americans got off to a roaring start in Sochi with a 7- 1 victory over Slovakia in preliminary- round play Thursday.
Ryan Kesler, David Backes, Phil Kessel and Dustin Brown also scored as the U. S. battered Slovakia for six consecutive goals in a 13: 51 span, turning what was expected to be a tough matchup into a laugher with their relentless offense.
“I guess you never really expect to beat a team like that 7- 1, and you never do it in a tournament like this,” captain Zach Parise said. “We just capitalized on the chances we had, moved the puck well and used our speed.”
Although their goal celebrations declined from elation to excitement to sheepishness while the score skyrocketed, the Americans answered any lingering questions about their offensive abilities and their aptitude on the big Olympic ice by decimating a Slovak roster studded with NHL players.
“You have to do a lot of skating out there on the big ice, but I think we handled it all right,” said Kessel, who led the U. S. with two goals and an assist.
Jonathan Quick made 22 saves in his Olympic debut for the U. S., which hopes to improve on its silver- medal finish in Vancouver despite a roster that isn’t thought to have the offensive power of Canada, Russia or Sweden.
In their only warmup for Saturday’s game against Alex Ovechkin and the host Russians, the Americans had more than enough potency to leave Slovakia’s two goalies battered.
“For the first time on the big ice for most of us, I thought we did pretty well,” Stastny said. “Our strengths are our puck possession and our speed, and we were really able to use both of them. All four lines just kind of clicked, and so did our D- men.”
Jaroslav Halak stopped 20 shots before getting pulled when Stastny tipped home Kevin Shattenkirk’s pass to put the Americans up 5- 1 with their fourth goal in 12: 04. Peter Budaj replaced Halak, but Kessel and Brown piled on goals in the next 1: 47.
Tomas Tatar scored for Slovakia, which traveled to Sochi without high- scoring Marian Gaborik and veteran defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky due to injury. Nobody anticipated such a defensive collapse by a talented roster anchored by Stanley Cup- winning defenseman Zdeno Chara.
Slovakia’s last two Olympic appearances have been humiliations: The Slovaks blew a third- period lead and lost to Finland in the bronze medal game in Vancouver, depriving them of their nation’s first Olympic hockey medals.
“We’re going to be better,” said Tatar, the Detroit Red Wings’ young forward. “We had a solid first period and then tied it. We’ve just got to play way better in our defensive zone. I think we’re going to be ready to play the next game. We have a lot of talent in our locker room, and we’re going to sort it out.”
John Carlson opened the scoring for the U. S. in the first period, and Tatar tied it with a nasty wrist shot in the opening minute of the second. Kesler put the Americans back ahead 1: 02 later with a one- timer through Brown’s screen, and Stastny scored 1: 06 later on a fat rebound of Max Pacioretty’s shot.
The U. S. didn’t let up until Brown redirected Carlson’s pass to make it 7- 1, sending the once- boisterous Slovak crowd into frustrated silence at Shayba Arena.
Patrick Kane, T. J. Oshie and James van Riemsdyk added two assists apiece, with the speedy Kane looking particularly comfortable on the wide Olympic ice. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS PITTSBURGH — Seven games separate No. 1 Syracuse from an undefeated regular season. Maybe it will be a lucky seven after a buzzer- beater kept the Orange on the course to perfection.
Tyler Ennis took the inbounds pass with 4.4 seconds left and dribbled up court, weaving through Pitt’s defense. He had the option of shooting or passing to Trevor Cooney.
The freshman guard decided to shoot, and made a 35- footer at the buzzer and Syracuse remained unbeaten with a 5856 victory over No. 25 Pitt on Wednesday night.
“I saw someone ran over to Trevor and I just had to beat one guy,” Ennis said. “I knew they weren’t going to let Trevor get it. I just had to get some space. I knew I could get open for a second.”
Pitt senior forward Talib Zanna called it a “lucky” shot. Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim disagreed.
“It’s a little lucky, but I didn’t hear Duke saying they were lucky when they drove the length of the court and made an off- balance 3 to tie the game,” Boeheim said, alluding an overtime victory for his team over the Blue Devils on Feb. 1. “I didn’t hear anybody say they were lucky. You have to do it. You have to make the play. The ball goes in. That’s not luck.”
The Orange ( 24- 0, 11- 0 ACC) and Wichita State are the lone undefeated teams in Division I.
Zanna, who led Pitt ( 20- 5, 8- 4) with 16 points and 14 rebounds, hit two free throws after being fouled on a layup to give the Panthers a 56- 55 lead before Ennis’ winner.
Pitt coach Jamie Dixon called a timeout after the free throws to set his defense. That also allowed Syracuse to draw up a play designed for its fearless freshman.
“We guarded it about as well as you could guard it,” Dixon said. “He made about a 40- footer. We did what we were supposed to do. If we had to do it again. … We did the right things.”
C. J. Fair led Syracuse with 14 points.
No. 6 Villanova 87, DePaul 62
ROSEMONT, Ill. — Darrun Hilliard scored 22 points, JayVaughn Pinkston had 14 points and 11 rebounds and Villanova rolled to its sixth straight win.
The Wildcats ( 22- 2, 10- 1) made a season- high 15 3- pointers and had five players score in double figures in an efficient tuneup for Sunday’s Big East showdown with Creighton. James Bell had 16 points and Ryan Arcidiacono finished with 14, including four 3s.
Brandon Young had a seasonhigh 27 points for DePaul ( 10- 15, 2- 10), which has lost seven in a row.
No. 14 Kentucky 64, Auburn 56
AUBURN, Ala. — Andrew Harrison scored 16 points to help Kentucky overcome shooting struggles.
The Wildcats ( 19- 5, 9- 2 Southeastern Conference) won their fourth consecutive game despite making just 17 of 55 shots ( 30.8 percent). They made 9 of 12 free throws over the final 2 minutes to put away the Tigers ( 11- 11, 3- 8) while scoring 16 points below their season average.
Julius Randle had 12 points and 12 rebounds for Kentucky, which held a commanding 49- 36 overall advantage. Aaron Harrison scored 10 points.
Chris Denson, the SEC’s leading scorer, led Auburn with 26 points, including 17 in the second half. KT Harrell was 2- of- 15 shooting and missed all seven 3- point attempts to finish with seven points, 12 below his average.
No. 20 Memphis 76, UCF 70
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Joe Jackson scored 18 points and Shaq Goodwin added 14 as Memphis used a late rally to defeat Central Florida.
The Tigers ( 19- 5, 8- 3 American Athletic Conference) crafted a 15- 2 run to break open a tight game. Chris Crawford and Michael Dixon finished with 10 points each for Memphis.
Tristan Spurlock led the Knights ( 9- 13, 1- 10) with 18 points and 10 rebounds, while Isaiah Sykes scored 14 points.
No. 24 Connecticut 83, South Florida 40
HARTFORD, Conn. — DeAndre Daniels scored 12 points to lead a balanced UConn offense.
Freshman Kentan Facey added 10 points for the 24th- ranked Huskies ( 19- 5, 7- 4 American Athletic Conference), who held the Bulls to just 12 baskets and 24 percent shooting.
Musa Abdul- Aleem had eight points for South Florida ( 12- 13, 3- 9).
UConn held the Bulls to just four baskets in the first half and led 45- 14 after a dunk by Lasan Kromah just before the halftime buzzer. UConn opened the second half on a 17- 3 run and led by as many as 47.
Texas A& M 83, LSU 73
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Jamal Jones scored 19 points as Texas A& M earned its first victory over LSU as a fellow Southeastern Conference.
The Aggies ( 14- 10, 5- 6), after making 1 of 19 3- pointers in a loss to Georgia Saturday, rebounded by sinking 10 of 23 ( 43 percent) from the 3- point line, including 5 of 10 from Jones.
Shavon Coleman paced LSU ( 15- 8, 6- 5) with a game- high 21 points.
Georgia 75, Mississippi St. 55
STARKVILLE, Miss. — Charles Mann scored 19 points, Juwan Parker added 16 and Georgia overcame a slow start to rout Mississippi State.
Georgia ( 13- 10, 7- 4 SEC) trailed 22- 8 midway through the first half and needed more than six minutes to make its first field goal. Georgia rallied for a 2827 halftime lead and stretched its advantage to as many as 23 points.
It was a miserable shooting night for Mississippi State ( 1311, 3- 8), which made just 3 of 25 attempts ( 12 percent) from 3- point range. Craig Sword led Mississippi State with 10 points.