Boston College Pummels Pennsylvania 85-65

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Posted 6:12PM on Thursday, March 17, 2005

CLEVELAND (AP) -- Whatever ailed Boston College got fixed in a hurry. The 14th-ranked Eagles shook off their self-doubts and got back to dominating Thursday, rolling to an 85-65 victory over Pennsylvania in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Jared Dudley led a balanced attack with 18 points. Next up is Milwaukee-Wisconsin, which advanced to the second round of the Chicago Regional by upsetting Alabama 83-73 in the earlier game at Cleveland State. On Friday, Boston College will be going against its former mascot. Milwaukee's Bruce Pearl failed to make the Eagles' basketball team as a walk-on and filled in as the feathery mascot for one NCAA tournament game in 1981. Penn (20-9) didn't have a mascot for its big game. Instead, the Quakers came out with fashionable new blue-and-white shoes - a reward for making the tournament - and a determination to keep the arena rocking. Boston College wasn't in the mood for any messing around, not after what's happened lately. The Eagles opened the season with 20 wins, then closed with a 4-4 fade that included a first-game loss to West Virginia in the Big East tournament. Coach Al Skinner used the unexpected time off to fix a few things. Evidently, it was time well-spent. Boston College's defense tightened, holding the Quakers to 33 percent shooting in the decisive first half, when the Eagles led by as many as 22. The only glaring flaw was the Eagles' 19 turnovers, which allowed the Quakers to close in. Penn made a run at the start of the second half behind Tim Begley, the Ivy League's Player of the Year. He hit a long 3 to beat the shot clock, helping the Quakers cut the lead to 54-45. Boston College then concentrated on getting the ball inside to its towering front line for easy baskets or free throws - its usual method - to deny the Quakers their first NCAA win since 1994. Begley finished with 19 points. The arena was still buzzing from Milwaukee's upset when the Eagles took the floor and made a statement. Penn's Ibrahim Jaaber thought he had a steal and breakaway layup in the opening minutes, but Sean Marshall ran him down and emphatically smacked the ball away as it left the willowy guard's hand. Then, Marshall sidled up and talked a little trash as they headed up the court. A few seconds later, Marshall made a 3-pointer from the left wing and yelled out, "C'mon now!" - more of a challenge than a celebration. Skinner's biggest concern vanished eight minutes into the game, when top reserve Jermaine Watson showed he could still hit shots despite stitches in his left hand. Watson needed the stitches after an altercation at his off-campus apartment over the weekend. Watson missed several practices and was tentative with the hand during workouts on Wednesday. It was taped heavily but didn't seem to bother him Thursday - he made a three-point play off a fastbreak layup, then hit a pair of 3s from the top of the key that made it 29-16. The Eagles were whole and in control.