Rough week for Blue Jays
UConn women hit 93 straight in their streak
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — In a week when three top-10 teams in the AP Top 25 lost, No. 7 Creighton might have taken the biggest hit.
The Bluejays lost Saturday to Marquette in their first game without point guard Maurice Watson Jr., who suffered a season-ending knee injury. Creighton (18-2) is now in transition, figuring out how to play without the nation’s assist leader (8.5 per game).
It’s going to take some time for Creighton to adjust, as evidenced by the 102-94 home loss to Marquette.
“When they made a little bit of a run we didn’t react very well,” Creighton coach Greg McDermott said afterward. “That’s probably where we missed Maurice the most. We just didn’t have a voice there, nobody to turn to on the floor that we were accustomed to. Offensively, we were fine.”
Creighton still has games against No. 13 Butler (Jan. 31), No. 22 Xavier (Feb. 4) and No. 1 Villanova (Feb. 25) on its Big East schedule.
TOP-10 LOSSES: Third-ranked UCLA and West Virginia, which was tied with Creighton at No. 7, were this week’s other top-10 losers.
The Bruins (19-2) lost at home Saturday to No. 14 Arizona, 96-85, the latest high-scoring show for an attack that came into the weekend ranked No. 1 in KenPom’s offensive efficiency. But coach Steve Alford wasn’t happy with his team’s defense against the dribble.
“It’s definitely better for something like this to happen now than later in the season,” La Cueva graduate Bryce Alford said.
It was a worse week for the Mountaineers (15-4), who first blew a 15-point lead in the final 9 minutes of regulation before losing 89-87 at home to Oklahoma in overtime. They followed that with a 79-75 loss at Kansas State on Saturday.
Top 25 men
(22) XAVIER 86, GEORGETOWN
75: In Cincinnati, Edmond Sumner overcame a painful left shoulder and led a second-half surge that swept the Musketeers (14-5, 4-3 Big East) to a victory over the Hoyas (10-10, 1-6), ending the Musketeers’ three-game losing streak. Top 25 women
(1) UCONN 100, TULANE 56: In Storrs, Conn., Katie Lou Samuelson scored 32 points and the Huskies
(18-0, 6-0 American) extended their record winning streak to 93 games with a rout of the Green Wave (127, 3-3). (3) MARYLAND 80, RUTGERS 71: In College Park, Md., Shatori Walker-Kimbrough scored 19 points, Kaila Charles added 16 and the Terrapins (19-1, 7-0 Big Ten) bounced back from a lackluster first half to beat the Scarlet Knights (6-15, 3-5). (6) NOTRE DAME 77, NORTH
CAROLINA 55: In Chapel Hill, N.C. Brianna Turner had 24 points, 12 rebounds and six blocks to help the Fighting Irish (18-3, 6-1 ACC) beat the Tar Heels (12-8, 1-6), a win that gave Muffet McGraw her 750th victory at the school. (7) FLORIDA STATE 82, (17) VIRGINIA TECH 54: In Blacksburg, Va., Leticia Romero scored 18 points, the Seminoles (19-2, 7-1 ACC) took the lead early and pulled away in a victory over the Hokies (16-3, 3-3). (8) WASHINGTON 87, WASHINGTON STATE 44: In Pullman, Wash., Chantel Osahor grabbed a Pac12-record 30 rebounds and scored 20 points to lead the Huskies (19-2, 7-1 Pac-12) to a rout of the Cougars. Kelsey Plum scored 29 points for Washington. (9) LOUISVILLE 66, (23) SOUTH FLORIDA 52: In Tampa, Fla., Myisha Hines-Allen scored 27 points and added 12 rebounds as the Cardinals (18-4) beat the Bulls (15-3). (10) STANFORD 66, (18) ARIZONA
STATE 56: In Stanford, Calif., Erica McCall scored 18 points and the Cardinal (17-3, 7-1 Pac-12) beat the Sun Devils (14-5, 5-3). (11) OREGON STATE 81, COLORADO 57: In Corvallis, Ore., Kolbie Orum and Katie Tudor combined for7-1 Pac-12)30 points rolled and overthe Beaversthe Buffaloes(18-2, (11-8, 1-7).
(13) UCLA 71, USC 67: In Los Angeles, Jordin Canada and Kennedy Burke each scored 23 points for the Bruins (15-4, 6-2 Pac-12) in their second win in four days over the Trojans (10-9, 1-7). SYRACUSE 81, (14) MIAMI 48: In Syracuse, N.Y., Brittney Sykes scored a season-high 29 points with 11 rebounds, four assists, three blocks and three steals, and the Orange (14-7, 5-2 ACC) beat the Hurricanes (14-5, 3-4). (15) DUKE 67, BOSTON COLLEGE
44: In Chestnut Hill, Mass., Lexie Brown scored 22 points and the Blue Devils (17-3, 5-2 ACC) forced 25 turnovers in a victory over the Eagles (8-12, 5-2). (16) OHIO STATE 88, ILLINOIS 64: In Columbus, Ohio, Kelsey Mitchell made six 3-pointers and scored 22 points to lead the Buckeyes (17-5, 7-1 Big 10) over the Illini (8-12, 3-4). (20) OKLAHOMA 68, OKLAHOMA
STATE 62: In Norman, Okla., Maddie Manning scored 11 of her 20 points in the fourth quarter and the Sooners (15-5, 6-2 Big 12) rallied for a win over the Cowgirls (12-6, 2-5). (21) N.C. STATE 65, CLEMSON 53: In Raliegh, N.C., Dominique Wilson scored 16 points, Miah Spencer added five assists and the Wolfpack (155, 5-2 ACC beat the Tigers (11-9, 0-7).
(25) TEXAS A&M 54, LSU 52: In College Station, Texas, Anriel Howard hit a jumper with four seconds left and the Aggies (15-5, 5-2 SEC) scored the last five points to overcome a 15-point, second-half deficit and beat the Tigers (14-6, 3-4).