NEW YORK -- Until last week, Semi Ojeleye had not appeared in a game for nearly two years and even when he played at Duke, the minutes were limited.Since then, Ojeleye has been putting in the work away from the court and so far it is paying off much to the delight of SMU coach Tim Jankovich.Ojeleye continued his torrid start by scoring 20 of his 24 points in the second half and SMU defeated Pittsburgh 76-67 in the first semifinal of the 2K Classic at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night.Of course, its enjoyable when a guy sits out, (is) a transfer and you hope he has success, Jankovich said. But Ill triple that because Semis one of the most outstanding young men that you could ever be around your entire life and on top of that he is arguably the hardest worker away from practice time in terms of the time he puts in.Hes a machine, literally, and were like blown away. Weve been around a lot of hard-working guys. I have not been around a guy you set your clock by this guy. Its each and every day and he cant get enough.Ojeleye scored 46 points in 23 games in two seasons with Duke before transferring to the Mustangs following the 2014-15 season. The junior forward surpassed his point total from Duke in the first half when he shot 2 of 7 and then surged past it with several outstanding athletic plays during the second half.Just staying confident, Ojeleye said. Nothing changed in the locker room. I didnt think about what the stats were. I kept trying to do the same stuff I was doing in the first half.Ojeleye missed his first two shots of the second half before starting to roll. He made a 3-pointer about 3 1/2 minutes into the half to give the Mustangs the lead for good and capped his 9-for-17 showing by converting a transition layup in the final minute.Ojeleyes 7-for-10 showing in the final 20 minutes was part of a second half when the Mustangs shot 57 percent after missing nine straight shots to end the first half.Besides Ojeleyes impressive showing, Shake Milton added 14 points while Ben Moore contributed 12.Michael Young scored nearly half of his 22 points at the foul line for Pittsburgh. Jamel Artis added 20 for the Panthers, who had averaged 96 points in home wins over Eastern Michigan and Gardner-Webb.Hes athletic, Young said of Ojeleye. He can really get up vertically and he can make some shots. We knew that going in. He got it going in the second half and guys like that we got to take away air space and make them uncomfortable.BIG PICTURESMU: The Mustangs came into the game playing effective defense by allowing 54 points per game and for the most part they continued it. Their defense forced several traveling violations, including one with about 13 1/2 minutes left which resulted in an unsportsmanlike technical and ejection for Sterling Brown. Brown was handed the technical for emphatically applauding in the face of Artis after his defense resulted in a traveling violation.Pittsburgh: The Panthers have struggled defensively and other than the final five-plus minutes of the first half, their defensive issues continued. The Panthers have allowed an average of 82 points so far and even when Stallings started instructing his players to press, it was unsuccessful. Turnovers also continued to be an issue as Pittsburgh committed 13, resulting in 11 fewer field-goal attempts.FAMILIAR COACHING MATCHUPJankovich and Stallings worked together at Vanderbilt. Jankovich was an assistant under Stallings from 1999 to 2002 and the Commodores made two NIT appearances. Jankovich also coached at Illinois State from 2007-2012 over a decade after Stallings coached there.ANOTHER JETER IN NEW YORKFor the second college game at Madison Square Garden, there was a Jeter on the court. Unlike Dukes Chase Jeter, who wears the number two -- the same as the former Yankees captain -- Pittsburghs Sheldon Jeter wears number 21, the same as Pirates Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente. Jeter had averaged 13 points in his first two games but was held to five points on 2-of-8 shooting.UP NEXTSMU: Will play in the 2K Classic championship game Friday.Pittsburgh: Will play in the 2K Classic consolation game Friday. Custom Angels Jerseys . The 18-year-old American had five birdies in her bogey-free round for a 17-under total of 196. Lee held the overnight lead but mixed three birdies with two bogeys for a 70. Cheap Custom Angels Jersey . - Blake Griffin had 30 points and 12 rebounds, J. http://www.customangelsjersey.com/ . -- Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Alrdridge were again the go-to duo for the Trail Blazers against the Kings. Angels Jerseys China .J. Ellis hit two-run homers and the NL West champion Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the San Diego Padres 4-0 Saturday night. Fred Lynn Jersey Large . Scott Kazmir allowed four hits in seven shutout innings, Michael Brantley hit a two-run homer in a three-run first inning and the Indians maintained their hold on an AL wild-card spot with a 4-1 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. LINCOLN, Neb. -- Nebraska left an empty chair for Sam Foltz at the table where he would have signed autographs at fan day Wednesday evening. The All-Big Ten punters locker stall remains the way he left it, and will throughout the season. Same for his lifting station in the weight room, with 325 pounds on the bar.Now his teammates must get ready to play football.Preseason practice begins Thursday, five days after the team traveled to Grand Island for the funeral of Foltz, who died in a July 23 car crash in Wisconsin that also killed former Michigan State punter Mike Sadler.Its going to be tough. Its really going to hit me tomorrow at our first practice when Sam isnt there warming up with us, kicker Drew Brown said.Coach Mike Riley and players met with the media Wednesday, and to a man they promised to honor Foltzs memory by the way they play this season.Foltz was a big presence, opposite the stereotypical specialist who is isolated on the sideline. An outstanding athlete, Foltz could keep up with or beat his teammates in running drills and in the weight room. Riley said he wouldnt have been surprised if Foltz had been one of the team captains this year.Linebacker Josh Banderas said Foltz played an integral role in establishing an environment of hard work and commitment to playing for each other and the state of Nebraska.As a leader of the team, thats what he would have wanted us to do through the whole season, Banderas said, so thats going to be the mindset and the culture were going to live by.Riley said the best tribute to Foltz would be for everyone in the program to approach the game the way Foltz did.If I could be as happy doing my job and as enthusiastic as Sam was, Riley said. He loved it, was proud of his craft and worked at it like a pro, and he did it with a lot of fun, a lot of joy.Brown and Foltz were in Wisconsin to work at a kicking camp the weekend Foltz and Sadler died in a crash about 30 miles west of Milwaukee.ddddddddddddBrown and Foltz were among a group traveling to a residence where they would spend the night. Brown and Foltz rode in separate vehicles.Authorities said Sadler, with Foltz in the front passenger seat, lost control on wet pavement and crashed into a tree. LSU kicker Colby Delahoussaye, who was in the back seat, survived.Brown, wearing Foltzs No. 27 on a neck chain Wednesday, said his last day with Foltz was like any other he had spent with his closest friend on the team.We are always joking around, just making fun of each other, Brown said. At the same time, we had a camp to do. It was raining all day so the camp was delayed. We were just getting our work done and went to one of the coachs houses to hang out and have a good time. Everything happened after that.Quarterback Tommy Armstrong Jr. said he and his teammates have drawn closer together since Foltzs death. The Huskers will wear a SF27 decal on their helmets and on other gear this season.There are a lot of guys who are looking forward to the season -- definitely the senior class that came in with `Foltzy -- and want to get out there and play for him, Armstrong said.A moment of silence was observed during fan day, and then the 6,500 attendees watched a video tribute to Foltz on the Memorial Stadium big screen.Also Wednesday, the athletic department announced it would award the Sam Foltz Memorial Scholarship to a football player who embodies Foltzs leadership, excellence in the community and in the classroom. The departments Hero Leadership Award will be renamed the Sam Foltz Hero 27 Leadership Award to honor 27 athletes across all sports who exhibit a commitment to leadership and service. ' ' '