Villanova eliminates Syracuse

Scottie Reynolds scored 22 points and Villanova used some hot shooting in the second half to defeat Syracuse, 82-63, Wednesday in the opening round of the Big East tournament at New York.

Villanova (20-11) made eight three-pointers after halftime in what amounted to an NCAA tournament elimination game. Syracuse fell to 19-13.

In other Big East games: Joe Alexander scored 22 points as West Virginia (23-9) defeated Providence (15-16), 58-53. . . . Sam Young scored 21 points as Pittsburgh (23-9) held on to beat Cincinnati, 70-64. The Bearcats finished 13-18. . . . Jerel McNeal scored 21 points and Marquette (23-8) held Seton Hall (17-15) scoreless over the final five minutes of a 67-54 win.

Atlantic 10

Marcus Johnson scored eight points in overtime and made the game-winning shot with 32 seconds left as Dayton (21-9) held off St. Louis (16-15), 63-62, in a first-round game at Atlantic City, N.J.

Pat Calathes had 23 points and St. Joseph’s (19-11) used a 21-3 first-half run to break the game open in an 80-62 win over Fordham (12-17). . . . Rodney Green made a go-ahead free throw with 23 seconds to play and La Salle (15-16) rallied from a late seven-point deficit for an 82-79 victory over Duquesne (17-13). . . . Michael Gerrity’s two free throws with less than a second to play gave Charlotte (19-12) a 75-73 victory over Rhode Island (21-11).

Conference USA

Randy Culpepper scored 25 points and made seven three-pointers to lead Texas El Paso (18-12) to a 71-49 first-round victory over Southern Methodist (10-20) at Memphis, Tenn.

Jerome Jordan had 18 points, 14 rebounds and eight blocks to lead Tulsa (18-12) to a 66-49 victory over East Carolina (11-19). . . . Kevin Sims scored 14 points, including two free throws with 6.4 seconds left, and Tulane (17-14) rallied from 10 points behind for a 48-47 victory over Marshall (16-14). . . . Jeremy Wise scored 23 points as Southern Mississippi (18-13) held off Rice (3-27) for a 59-50 victory.

Northeast

Jean Cajou and Kelly Beidler each scored 15 points and Mount St. Mary’s (Md.) earned a trip to the NCAA tournament with a 68-55 win over Sacred Heart (18-14) at Fairfield, Conn. Mount St. Mary’s is 18-14.

Big Sky

Deonte Huff scored 17 points to lead Portland State (23-9) to a 67-51 victory over Northern Arizona (21-11) and its first trip to the NCAA tournament in the championship game at Portland, Ore.