RENO, Nev. (AP) — Maggie Lucas scored 18 points, including six in the final minutes, to help No. 17 Penn State beat Iowa State 66-59 in the opening round of the John Ascuaga’s Nugget Classic on Friday. The Nittany Lions (4-1) will play Nevada (2-2) on Saturday for the tournament championship. The Cyclones (3-1) were within two points with 4:30 left in the game after a Jessica Schroll jumper, but the Nittany Lions closed on a 9-4 run. Lucas matched her season high to lead three Penn State players in double figures. Zhaque Gray scored 14 points and Alex Bentley had 13. Brynn Williamson led Iowa State with 15 points.

Penn State was up 37-28 at halftime and led by as many as 12 in the game. The Nittany Lions overcame 58 percent free throw shooting (15-for-26) and 32 fouls called against them compared to 18 by Iowa State.

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas (AP) — Chris Allen scored 15 points, Royce White pulled down 16 rebounds, and Iowa State won its third-round game Friday at the South Padre Island Invitational, beating Providence 64-54. Tyrus McGee added 14 points for the Cyclones (4-1), who led by just four, 56-52, with 3:17 to play before a Bubu Palo jumper, a pair of McGee free throws and an Allen 3-pointer put the game away. Vincent Council led the Friars (4-1) with 21 points, and Gerard Coleman had 20 points and eight rebounds. The two were a combined 17 for 36 (47 percent) from the field, but their teammates were just 5 for 19 (26 percent).

Iowa State led by as many as seven in the first half, but Providence rallied after halftime to take a 34-33 lead on a Coleman 3-pointer. A White dunk and two Chris Babb 3s quickly put the Cyclones back up by seven.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Rex Burkhead, who started the week with his right foot in a walking boot, ran for 160 yards and a touchdown on a school-record 38 carries and No. 22 Nebraska defeated Iowa 20-7 on Friday. Burkhead pounded away at Iowa’s defense 4 or 5 yards at a time and looked like his old self after being held to a season-low 36 yards in last week’s loss at Michigan. He had eight carries for 39 yards on a 10-play drive that ended with his 2-yard run and a 20-0 lead early in the fourth quarter. Burkhead ran on nine of 15 plays of an 80-yard drive that produced the Huskers’ first touchdown. His 2-yard run around right end converted a fourth-and-1 inside the Iowa 30, and six plays later Kyler Reed scored his first touchdown of the season on a 6-yard pass from Taylor Martinez.

Nebraska’s coaching staff got Burkhead a record 38th carry on the second-to-last play of the game when the Huskers (9-3, 5-3) were in victory formation. Burkhead took a knee for a 3-yard loss. Burkhead came out of the 45-17 loss at Michigan banged up, and he was limited in practice all week. He started and finished strong, breaking a 14-yard run on the Huskers’ first play from scrimmage and then going for 8 and 6 yards. Ameer Abdullah spelled him, but never for more than two consecutive plays.

Nebraska is hoping to land a berth in the Capital One Bowl, if two Big Ten teams are invited to BCS games, or the Outback Bowl. Iowa (7-5, 4-4) could slip to the Meineke Car Care Bowl or TicketCity Bowl. The Hawkeyes avoided getting shut out for the first time in 11 years when Marcus Coker scored on a 2-yard run with 3:26 left. With Nebraska having joined the Big Ten this year, Friday’s game was long touted as the start of a natural rivalry. Iowa is Nebraska’s closest Big Ten opponent, and the farm states split by the Missouri River share a passion for football.

The universities further billed it as the inaugural “Heroes Game” and honored “citizen heroes” from each state at halftime. What happened on the field bore little resemblance to those big Thanksgiving week games Nebraska used to play against Oklahoma and Colorado. The Huskers and Hawkeyes were meeting for the first time since 2000, and Nebraska leads the series 27-12-3. Martinez was 12 of 22 for 163 yards, and Kenny Bell caught five balls for a season-high 93 yards. Cornerback Alfonzo Dennard shut down Marvin McNutt, holding Iowa’s record-setting receiver to two catches for 1 yard through three quarters. McNutt finished with four catches for 29 yards. Coker, averaging 118 yards a game, ran 18 times for 87 yards.

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) – Already eliminated from national championship contention, No. 12 Oklahoma heads into Saturday’s game against Iowa State focused instead on trying to win an eighth Big 12 title. And trying to avoid becoming the Cyclones’ next upset victim. Iowa State (6-4, 3-4) comes in riding the hot hand following the biggest win in the program’s history a week ago against then-No. 2 Oklahoma State. It was the second upset of a Top 25 opponent in the Cyclones’ current three-game winning streak and got them eligible for a bowl game after missing out last season.

The Sooners (8-2, 5-2) dropped out of the national title race after giving up a school-record 616 yards and losing at Baylor last week. They would be eliminated from Big 12 title contention with another loss.

w/ Jim Field

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LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Everything’s in place for No. 22 Nebraska and Iowa to start up a good old-fashioned football rivalry. All that’s missing for their first Big Ten meeting Friday are high stakes, but don’t suggest to Nebraska coach Bo Pelini that there is little to motivate the teams. “It amazes me that people could ask that question,” Pelini said. “Obviously, when you’re an athlete, you compete to compete. It isn’t always about trophies. There is a lot that plays into it. When you go to compete, you go to compete. Trust me, both teams will be out there ready to play.”

The Big Ten and the schools have done all they can to lay the groundwork for a rivalry, contrived or not. Their game is at the end of the regular season, when all the big rivalry games are played, and in the prime day-after-Thanksgiving slot, no less. They even have a trophy for what’s being called the Heroes Game. A sidelight to the game is that citizen heroes from each state will be honored. There’s no shortage of passion among the fan bases. Supporters of the Cornhuskers (8-3, 4-3 Big Ten) and Hawkeyes (7-4, 4-3) have been tossing barbs across the Missouri River seemingly forever. To Hawkeyes fans, Huskers fans are an arrogant bunch always gloating about their team’s five national championships. To Husker fans, Hawkeyes fans are jealous wannabes.

Maybe someday the Legends Division title will be decided by this game. Not this year, though. This year it’s all about jockeying for better bowl position. Nebraska has hopes of landing in the Capital One Bowl if a second Big Ten team receives a berth in a BCS game. The Outback, Insight and Gator also are possibilities for both teams. Nebraska is looking to lock up at least a nine-win season for the fourth straight year and an above-.500 conference record after an embarrassing 45-17 loss at Michigan last week. Iowa is going for a third win in four games, which would secure at least an eight-win season for the fourth straight year. The Big Ten assigned Iowa and Nebraska to the same division and let the Hawkeyes’ game with Wisconsin drop off the schedule for now.

Call it a wash, Hawkeyes coach Kirk Ferentz said. “We traded one team from the east that wears red uniforms that is really good and picked up one from the west that is really good and wears red uniforms,” he said. “It’s one tough team to another. That’s the nature of this conference, though. I think we’re all really pleased about Nebraska joining the league. It’s made us a stronger league, but with that strength comes more challenge, and this is certainly going to be a challenge for us.”

There are only two players from the state of Nebraska on the Iowa roster; no native Iowans are on the Huskers’. It’s been a red-letter game for Iowa quarterback James Vandenberg, though. The junior from Keokuk, Iowa, had a scholarship offer from former Nebraska coach Bill Callahan, and athletic director Tom Osborne told Vandenberg that the offer stood after Callahan was fired. Ferentz came along with an offer, and Vandenberg accepted. But Vandenberg said he was impressed with the Huskers.

“The one thing you notice when you go on visits there is how passionate their fan base is,” he said. “They live and breathe Nebraska football just like everybody in Iowa lives and breathes Iowa football. It’s great to be able to play such a quality opponent at such a venue.”

Nebraska is playing a nationally televised game on the day after Thanksgiving for the 22nd straight year. The tradition dates to the days of the Oklahoma-Nebraska rivalry in the Big Eight. Ferentz said he’s excited about the increased exposure his team will receive. “How can that be a bad thing, unless we go out there and play bad?” he said. “What the heck, I think it’s a great opportunity for our guys to play. They (Nebraska) have had that, enjoyed that. I don’t want to call it a luxury, but I remember that for many years, I used to watch them as a kid. Didn’t they play Oklahoma on Friday? It’s a good thing for us. We’re excited to get invited to the party.”

KJAN Sports w/Ric Hanson

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – A person familiar with the situation tells The Associated Press that the Kansas City Chiefs have claimed former Denver Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton off waivers. The person spoke Wednesday on condition of anonymity because the Chiefs had not announced the move. Coach Todd Haley declined to discuss Orton when asked about him earlier in the day. Kansas City was in the market for a veteran quarterback after Matt Cassel went down with a season-ending injury to his throwing hand. Orton became available when the Broncos waived him Tuesday. The former Chicago Bears starter, who passed for more than 3,000 yards each of his first two seasons in Denver, was benched six weeks ago after getting off to a 1-4 start. The Broncos eventually decided to go with Tim Tebow as the starter, making Orton expendable.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – Campbell built a big lead in the first half. Iowa’s run never happened. Eric Griffin scored 23 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and blocked six shots to lead the Fighting Camels to a 77-61 lead over Iowa. Campbell is 5-0 for the first time since 1976, the year before it moved up to Division I. “I couldn’t say I saw this coming,” Campbell coach Robbie Laing said. “I had just as much curiosity as the fans as to what was going to happen.” The Fighting Camels shot 62 percent from the field to overcome 22 turnovers in their second win  against a major conference team in as many years.

Iowa (3-2) cut the deficit to 54-49 with 10 minutes remaining. The Hawkeyes couldn’t get any closer down the stretch. Griffin, a 6-foot-8 senior with a long wingspan, hit 10 of 11 shots. He’s now shooting 75.5 percent from the floor. Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said Griffin might be the best player his team faces all year.

Darren White scored 17 points for Campbell, which blocked 10 shots. Trey Freeman added 15 points. McCaffery tried several times to ignite his team that looked lethargic from a 23-point loss three days earlier against Creighton. During a media timeout midway through the first half – with the Hawkeyes trailing 18-13 – Iowa’s second-year coach banged his clipboard on the floor and barked directions. McCaffery tossed the clipboard a second time, standing up to yell at his players.

McCaffery shuffled his lineup to start the second half, sitting three starters for reserves. Things boiled over in the final minutes when McCaffery picked up a technical foul. It was too late for Iowa, which shot 36 percent and was outrebounded 34-29. “We didn’t have the defensive intensity you need to play a team of this caliber,” McCaffery said. “I don’t think it was just that. We weren’t executing on offense. We weren’t doing anything effective on either end of the floor.” Matt Gatens led Iowa with 17 points. Devyn Marble added 14 points.

Campbell, which rejoined the Big South Conference this season, made its only NCAA tournament appearance in 1992. Laing said that’s the goal for this team. “These kids think they can win,” Laing said. “They think they’re supposed to win. They really do.” Campbell led by as many 16 points in the first half, using a 12-2 run over a six-minute stretch to build a 38-22 advantage with three minutes left. The Hawkeyes scored the next nine points – including seven from Gatens – to cut the halftime deficit to 38-31. Iowa center Andrew Brommer returned after missing the last two games with a knee injury. He had four points and three rebounds in nine minutes.

w/ Jim Field

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