Washington, D.C. roundup

Pittsburgh 74, UNC-Asheville 51

Pittsburgh was bigger, stronger, and more physical. Matt Dickeymade a few more shots that might look good on the Internet.

The result was a well-established norm: A No. 1 seed beat a No.16.

Ashton Gibbs scored 20 of his 26 points after halftime, andPittsburgh kept the top seeds perfect against the 16s in all-timeNCAA Tournament play, pulling away in the second half to beat NorthCarolina-Asheville, 74-51, yesterday.

The Panthers (28-5) led by just 3 points early in the secondhalf, but they eventually showed the scrappy Big South championswhat Big East play is all about.

Gibbs finished 2 points off his career high, set in aquarterfinal loss to UConn in the Big East tournament. He shot 4 for5 from 3-point range in the second half and scored 7 points in a 13-5 run that put the game away.

The Panthers (28-5) advanced to play No. 8 seed Butler in thenext round.

Dickey scored 21 points but was only 2 for 9 from 3-point range.He helped put the Bulldogs (20-14) on the map with a 3-point winnerlate in the regular season, then hit the 3-pointer that sent thegame to OT in a win over Arkansas-Little Rock in a first-round game.

The Bulldogs were chasing down loose balls and blocking shots inthe opening minutes before a 1-for-10 cold spell turned into a 16-2run for the Panthers.

Pitt finished with nearly as many offensive rebounds (22) as UNC-Asheville had total (27). The Bulldogs were 3 for 19 from 3-pointrange.

"Being in the right place at the right time, anticipating whatthey're trying to do offensively, we did a good job," coach JamieDixon said. "We had a good feel for what they were going to do.They're very good, but I think it was more our depth that wore themdown at times."

Cincinnati 78, Missouri 63

Big man Yancy Gates had 18 points - including a pair of 3-pointers that doubled his total on the season - and 11 rebounds,powering the sixth-seeded Bearcats (26-8) into a rematch with BigEast rival Connecticut tomorrow.

Cincinnati, which boasts one of the best defenses in the country,took the lead for good midway through the first half and held No. 11seed Missouri to 38 percent shooting from the field. The Bearcatsshot 62 percent in the second half and 54 percent for the game.

Dion Dixon added 16 points and Cashmere Wright had 11 points andseven assists for the Bearcats, who were victorious in their firstNCAA Tournament game since 2005.

The high-scoring Tigers (23-11) found themselves having to usemore of the shot clock than they'd prefer, and went nearly the last7 1/2 minutes of the first half and the first 3 1/2 of the second -some 11 minutes total - without a field goal. They finished wellbelow their average of 81.4 points per game.

Butler 60, Old Dominion 58

A back-and-forth opener went the eighth-seeded Bulldogs' way whenMatt Howard converted a layup at the buzzer, keeping Butler (24-9)alive as it hopes for a lengthy tournament run for the secondstraight year.

Howard and Shelvin Mack each scored 15 points. Frank Hassell ledthe Monarchs (27-7) with 20 points.

Howard's finisher came on Butler's 32d rebound. ODU had 29, onlythe second time this season the Monarchs were outrebounded.

Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.

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