STORRS, Conn. — Hasheem Thabeet said he was surprised Providence kept trying to challenge him inside.

Thabeet tied a school record by blocking 10 shots and recorded his first career triple-double as No. 2 Connecticut staked its claim to the No. 1 spot in the nation with a 94-61 blowout over the Friars yesterday.

The 7-foot-3 junior had 15 points and 11 rebounds, seven on the offensive glass.

"They keep coming, and I tell them, 'No, you're not going to get an easy shot today,' " Thabeet said. "They kept coming, and I kept blocking and that was why I was effective today."

A.J. Price led UConn (20-1, 9-1 Big East) with 19 points, while Stanley Robinson added 18 and Jeff Adrien 14. It was the Huskies' ninth straight win since losing to Georgetown in the conference opener Dec. 29.

With No. 1 Duke losing earlier in the week to No. 6 Wake Forest and No. 3 Pittsburgh falling to Villanova, UConn is expected to take the top spot in tomorrow's poll.

"We're not No. 1 and so I don't plan on reading the papers or certainly reading the polls until 9 p.m. on Monday night, so I don't know what you're talking about," UConn coach Jim Calhoun joked. "It's just a number that goes by quickly. But if there are 343 teams playing in the country and at some point in the season, especially 21 games into the season ... it's nice. No more. No less."

Randall Hanke had 16 points to lead Providence (14-7, 6-3), which was coming off a win over No. 15 Syracuse and was off to its best start in the Big East since opening 7-2 in 2000-01.

The Friars had been shooting almost 39 percent from 3-point range over the last nine games. They were just 5-of-15 from behind the arc yesterday.

"We're not a team that can rely on one part of our game," first-year coach Keno Davis said. "If a team's going to come out and take away 3-point shots, we've got to be able to drive and get to the free-throw line."

The Huskies broke open a close game by scoring the first 11 points of the second half for a 49-34 lead.

Providence was held without a point for almost 4 minutes, before Marshon Brooks hit a 3-pointer to make it 49-37.

The Huskies went on a 20-0 run later in the half that made it 84-51, and the fans began chanting "Number One."

NO. 3 PITTSBURGH 93, NOTRE DAME 80

PITTSBURGH — DeJuan Blair had 23 points and a career-high 22 rebounds, and the Panthers (19-2, 7-2 Big East), won their 15th straight at home, while handing the Fighting Irish (12-8, 3-6), who got 27 points from Luke Harangody, their fifth straight loss.

Levance Fields scored 17 points, Jermaine Dixon had 16, and reserves Ashton Gibbs and Brad Wanamaker both added 13 for the Panthers, who bounced back from a loss at Villanova on Wednesday.

NO. 4 OKLAHOMA 78, IOWA STATE 68

AMES, Iowa — Freshman Willie Warren scored 29 points, Blake Griffin had 23 points and 15 rebounds, and the Sooners (21-1, 7-0 Big 12) closed the game with a 13-2 run to beat the Cyclones (12-9, 1-5) for their ninth straight win.

Craig Brackins had 19 points and 10 rebounds, and Diante Garrett had 17 points and 10 assists for Iowa State, which has lost 12 straight to ranked opponents dating to 2006.

NO. 5 NORTH CAROLINA 93, N.C. STATE 76

RALEIGH, N.C. — Tyler Hansbrough scored 31 points, Ty Lawson added 16 points and the visiting Tar Heels (19-2, 5-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) rolled past the Wolfpack (11-8, 2-5) for their fifth straight league victory.

North Carolina dominated most of the way, shooting 56 percent to take a 12-point halftime lead then scoring on its first five possessions after the break to push the margin to 18 points.

GEORGIA TECH 76, NO. 6 WAKE FOREST 74

ATLANTA — Iman Shumpert hit a pull-up jumper with one second remaining to lift the Yellow Jackets (10-10, 1-6 Atlantic Coast Conference) over the Demon Deacons (17-2, 4-2), who lost to the ACC's last-place team only three days after beating top-ranked Duke.

Georgia Tech senior Alade Aminu had 10 points, 13 rebounds and six blocks while younger brother Al-Farouq Aminu led Wake Forest with 17 points and 11 rebounds.

NO. 7 LOUISVILLE 69, WEST VIRGINIA 63

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Jerry Smith scored a season-high 20 points and Terrence Williams had eight points, nine rebounds and four assists to help the Cardinals (17-3, 8-0 Big East) hold off the Mountaineers (15-6, 4-4) for their ninth straight victory.

Da'Sean Butler scored 19 of his 23 points in the second half for the Mountaineers, who trailed by 20 points at halftime and got as close as 63-59 with 2:16 remaining.

NO. 8 MARQUETTE 94, NO. 25 GEORGETOWN 82

MILWAUKEE — Wesley Matthews scored 19 of his 23 points in the second half, helping the Golden Eagles (19-2, 8-0 Big East) hand the Hoyas (12-8, 3-6) their fifth straight loss, despite a 22-point effort from DaJuan Summers, playing with a injured foot.

Jerel McNeal scored 26 points and Lazar Hayward added 23 for the Golden Eagles, who have won 11 straight games and remain in a first-place tie with Louisville in the conference.

NO. 10 XAVIER 82, MASSACHUSETTS 80

CINCINNATI — Derrick Brown scored 23 points, B.J. Raymond added 22 and C.J. Anderson had 19 as the Musketeers (19-2, 7-0 Atlantic 10) held off the Minutemen (7-12, 2-4) to extend their winning streak to 10.

The game was in doubt down to the final rebound. Anderson got that off Chris Lowe's purposely missed free throw with 3 seconds left.

KANSAS STATE 85, NO. 11 TEXAS 81

AUSTIN, Texas — Denis Clemente tied a Big 12 record with 44 points, helping the Wildcats (14-7, 3-4) end the Longhorns' (15-5, 4-2) 19-game home winning streak.

Clemente tied the conference mark set last season by former Wildcat Michael Beasley. He went 6-for-6 on 3-pointers and his two free throws with 6.9 seconds left in overtime put the game away.

NO. 23 WASHINGTON 84, NO. 14 ARIZONA STATE 71

TEMPE, Ariz. — Justin Dentmon scored 30 points, freshman Isaiah Thomas added 25, and the Huskies (16-5, 7-2 Pac-10) made eight straight free throws over the final 1:56 to hand the Sun Devils (16-5, 5-4) their second straight home defeat.

Washington led by 19 points in the second half before Arizona State closed to 74-68 when Derek Glasser made three free throws after being fouled on a 3-point attempt with 1:58 left.

NO. 16 PURDUE 67, MICHIGAN 49

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — E'Twaun Moore scored 17 points and Robbie Hummel added 13 as the Boilermakers (17-4, 6-2 Big Ten) pulled away after Manny Harris, the Wolverines' (14-8, 4-6) leading scorer, was ejected for throwing an elbow.

Harris, averaging 17.8 points per game, was ejected after hitting Purdue guard Chris Kramer in the nose with an elbow. Purdue outscored Michigan 40-20 after Harris' foul.

NO. 17 UCLA 97, STANFORD 63

LOS ANGELES — Darren Collison, Alfred Aboya and Jrue Holiday all scored 15 points and the Bruins (17-4, 6-2 Pac-10) put away the Cardinal (13-6, 3-6) with a 40-14 run bridging halftime in their easy victory.

Holiday added six rebounds and five assists for the Bruins, while Michael Roll had 12 points and Josh Shipp 11 in UCLA's fifth consecutive win over the Cardinal, including a three-game sweep last season.

NO. 18 MEMPHIS 83, HOUSTON 68

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Robert Dozier had 19 points and 10 rebounds, and Doneal Mack added 18 points to lead the Tigers (18-3, 7-0) past the Cougars (12-7, 3-3) for their 49th consecutive Conference USA win.

Antonio Anderson had 16 points, Shawn Taggart 11 and Tyreke Evans 10 for the Tigers. Aubrey Coleman had a career-high 35 points and grabbed nine rebounds for the Cougars, who have lost three straight.

NO. 20 GONZAGA 64, SAN DIEGO 47

SPOKANE, Wash. — Austin Daye scored 17 points, Josh Heytvelt added 13 and the Zags (16-4, 7-0 West Coast Conference) beat the Toreros (12-10, 4-3) for their eighth straight victory after losing three in a row in late December.

Danny Brown led San Diego with 11 points. The Toreros shot just 33 percent in the game and were outrebounded 44-25.

PORTLAND 84, NO. 22 ST. MARY'S 66

PORTLAND, Ore. — Nik Raivio scored 27 points and the Pilots (15-7, 6-1 West Coast Conference) ended the first half with a 24-8 run for a 36-29 lead they never lost in beating the Gaels (18-3, 5-2), who were playing without leading scorer Patrick Mills (broken hand).

Portland moved into second-place in the conference behind No. 20 Gonzaga. The Pilots, winners of six straight, host the Bulldogs on Thursday night.

SOUTH CAROLINA 78, NO. 24 KENTUCKY 77

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Zam Fredrick scored 24 points and Devan Downey's turnaround jumper with 3 seconds left lifted the Gamecocks (16-4, 5-2 Southeastern Conference) over the Wildcats (16-6, 5-2) for only their second victory in 23 games in Lexington.

The sophomore guard had been quiet, failing to score until the final 2 minutes of the first half. But he finished with a flurry, scoring 23 points, all but four in the second half.

WAC

UTAH STATE 83, FRESNO STATE 77

FRESNO, Calif. — Gary Wilkinson scored 33 points on 14-of-17 shooting, Jared Quayle added 18 and the Aggies (21-1 overall, 9-0 Western Athletic Conference) extended their winning streak to 16 games by outlasting the Bulldogs (9-13, 1-6) in overtime.

Sylvester Seay led Fresno State with 20 points, including a dramatic shot from well beyond halfcourt after receiving an inbounds pass with 0.6 seconds left in regulation.

After Utah State scored the first five points in overtime, Fresno State stormed back to tie the game at 77-77, but would not score again.

NEVADA 69, IDAHO 65

MOSCOW, Idaho — Luke Babbitt scored 25 points, including a 3-pointer with 4:16 left to trigger a 13-4 run, as the Wolf Pack (13-8, 6-2) rallied to beat the Vandals (10-11, 4-4).

The Vandals led 61-56 after Brandon Wiley's layup with 4:42 left before the Wolf Pack started their comeback. With 1:57 left, the Wolf Pack went ahead to stay 65-63 on a putback by Dario Hunt.

Joey Shaw had 15 points and Armon Johnson added 10 for the Wolf Pack. Mac Hopson scored 19 points and Trevor Morris hit four 3-pointers and finished with 13 for Idaho.

SAN JOSE STATE 53, LOUISIANA TECH 51

RUSTON, La. — Adrian Oliver scored 15 points, including two consecutive baskets for a 51-46 lead with 56 seconds to play, and Justin Graham hit two free throws with 27 seconds, helping the Spartans (11-10, 5-5) hold off the Bulldogs (2-8, 8-15).

Magnum Rolle, who had 19 points, 12 rebounds and six blocks, pulled the Bulldogs within 53-51 on a layup with 18 seconds left, but missed a game-tying shot with 4 seconds left.