Die Macht » They then went on a 14-2 run to take a five-point lead

PITTSBURGH -- Plenty of the numbers from Pittsburghs breezy 99-80 victory over Gardner-Webb looked pretty.And none of them mattered to coach Kevin Stallings. Sure shooting 54 percent and never being challenged on Monday night was nice, especially three days after needing double-overtime to hold off Eastern Michigan in Stallings coaching debut with the Panthers. Yet Stallings is more concerned about whether his team is ready for a far sterner test on Thursday against SMU at Madison Square Garden in the 2K Classic.You look at our defensive numbers, they were indicative of a team that was not really wired into play, he said. Thats my fault. Thats my job.Cameron Johnson scored 18 points and made all four of his 3-point attempts for Pitt (2-0). Michael Young put up 18 points and seven rebounds in 15 minutes after being held out of the starting lineup for only the second time in his career due to a minor violation of team rules. Sheldon Jeter added 14 points and a game-high 13 rebounds.Still, the Panthers led the Runnin Bulldogs trade baskets early in the first half and for long stretches in the second. Stallings wonders if his players are getting a little too caught up in the free-flowing offense Stallings brought with him from Vanderbilt.Maybe Ive sent the wrong message about tempo and offense and things like that, Stallings said. Were not ready to beat anybody thats equivalent to us in terms of talent because we dont sustain any type of defensive intensity.At one point in the first half, Stallings pulled the entire starting five off the floor in frustration.I think he just wanted more effort and energy, Johnson said. He cited a lack of focus for that.Not that much was required over the final 30 minutes after a 10-0 burst that included a pair of 3-pointers by Johnson to give the Panthers a 30-14 lead that was never threatened.RUNNIN WITH THE PANTHERSLaQuincy Rideau finished with a career-high 23 points for Gardner-Webb (0-2) while adding eight rebounds and six assists. David Efianayi scored 20 points and Liam OReilly chipped in 14. The Runnin Bulldogs spread the floor to provide Rideau with room to slice his 6-foot-1 frame through the lane.I felt there was little more space where maybe we could attack the paint off the dribble, Gardner-Webb coach Tim Craft said. The problem is we werent converting. Some of the finishes were a little wild.BIG MAN DEBUTPitt junior Rozelle Nix made his long-awaited debut after missing last season with a foot injury. The 6-foot-11, 300-pound Nix entered with just over 4 minutes left and finished with four rebounds and on emphatic block on Gardner-Webbs DJ Laster that sent Nixs teammates erupting off the bench.He got me once like that once, Jeter said. Im not ashamed to admit it. Im not afraid to admit it.BIG PICTUREGardner-Webb: After managing just 44 points in a lackluster loss to SMU in the opener last week, Gardner-Webb was happy to try and keep pace with Pitt in what Craft called a learning experience for a young team that will rely on Rideau and Efianayi -- both sophomores -- to carry some of the scoring load.Pitt: Despite the defensive issues, the Panthers seem to have quickly embraced what Stallings wants to do on the other end of the floor. The Panthers made 13 of 26 3-pointers and finished with 29 assists on 35 field goals.UP NEXTGardner-Webb: plays Eastern Michigan in Indianapolis on Friday.Pitt: faces SMU on Thursday at Madison Square Garden. Danny DeKeyser Jersey . 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Traditional contenders Brazil, Greece and Turkey drew the other three spots to complete the 24-team field for this summers tournament in Spain, basketball governing body FIBA announced Saturday at its meeting in Barcelona. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- UConns winning streak remains alive, just barely.Napheesa Collier scored 28 points and had a big block down in the final few seconds to lead the third-ranked Huskies to a 78-76 win over No. 12 Florida State on Monday night. UConn extended its winning streak to 76 games, the third longest streak in college basketball history.Florida State had a chance to beat the third-ranked Huskies at the end, but Imani Wrights 3-pointer was short allowing the four-time defending national champions to hold on in their opener.There are a lot of happy coaches that watched tonights game saying you got out of there with that one but your time is coming, coach Geno Auriemma said.This is the Huskies first single-digit win in the regular season since a six-point victory over St. Johns in 2013. It is also the first time since the 2011 Sweet 16 against Georgetown (68-63) that they have won by five points or less.The Seminoles trailed 65-59, but had a chance to tie it with 13.7 seconds left when Brittany Brown was fouled on a 3-point attempt by Kia Nurse. She made the first two to get within 77-76, but missed the third. The Huskies could not secure the ball and FSU (1-1) retained possession when it went out of bounds.Shakayla Thomas then drove the lane, but her shot was blocked Collier. Crystal Dangerfield made the first free throw, but missed the second. Imani Wright missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer.I think this kind of woke us up and showed us that we are a different team than last year. We cant just win on talent. We have to play good, fundamental basketball, said Collier, who also had eight rebounds.Saniya Chong scored 16 points and Katie Lou Samuelson added 14 for the Huskies, whose winning streak sits only behind the team record of 90 straight set from 2008-10 and the UCLA mens record of 88 consecutive victories.Wright led Florida State with 25 points while Brown added 16 points and 10 rebounds.I wish we were sitting here obviously on the other side of this having won it, Florida State coach Sue Semrau said. We gave ourselves a chance. We got the ball into two great scorers at the end. Theres no moral victory here. The victory is our growth as our basketball tteam.ddddddddddddIG PICTUREUConn: Auriemma said before the game that this was a new world they were entering after the graduations of Breanna Stewart, Morgan Tuck and Moriah Jefferson. He also said he wasnt going to judge this team based on what happened in November, but considering they were able to hold on to win at the road, that has to give his team a little bit of confidence.Florida State: The Seminoles hung tough without starting point guard Leticia Romero, who missed her second straight game with a hamstring injury.TURNING POINTThe Huskies trailed by four at halftime and then were down 37-30 with 9:08 remaining in the third quarter, which is the largest deficit they have faced during the winning streak. They then went on a 14-2 run to take a five-point lead. The Seminoles would tie it three more times in the second half but could never take the lead.Collier and Chong each scored four points during the run while Samuelson had a 3-pointer at the end.It was a miracle we were down four at halftime. They (Florida State) got everything they wanted in the first half. If we were down 14 that might have been the end, Auriemma said.STAT OF THE NIGHTFlorida State had 16 offensive rebounds but could rarely convert as it was 26 of 72 from the field. That translated to UConn having a 30-24 edge in points in the paint and 12-7 advantage in second-chance points.POLL IMPLICATIONSUConns tough week will continue with second-ranked Baylor up next on Thursday and another road game Sunday against LSU. Florida State might drop a spot or two from 12th, but proved it can stand with the best teams in the country.UP NEXTUConn: The Huskies will have their home opener on Thursday against No. 2 Baylor. UConn is 53-10 against teams in the top 10 since the start of 2008-09 season.Florida State: The Seminoles continue a string of four straight home games to start the season on Thursday against Jacksonville.---More AP college basketball at http://collegebasketball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25---Follow Joe Reedy on Twitter at www.twitter.com/joereedy ' ' '