Texas knocks off No, 6 NC State to advance to Sweet 16

Brooke McCarty scored 23 points and No. 3-seed Texas got a put-back basket from Joyner Holmes with 4 seconds left to the send the Longhorns to the Sweet 16 for the third year in a row with an 84-80 win Sunday over No. 6 North Carolina State in the Lexington Region

Lashann Higgs had given Texas a two-point lead when she made one free throw with 8 seconds left but missed the second. Holmes grabbed the rebound, missed her first shot, grabbed the rebound then made the second to seal the win. Holmes finished with 16 points and nine rebounds.

Texas (25-8) had to overcome a 31-point scoring effort by Wolfpack senior guard Miah Spencer, who fouled out with 1:03 to play when she tangled with McCarty, the Big 12 player of the year, away from the ball.

Dominique Wilson added 27 points for the Wolfpack but a go-ahead basket with 8 seconds left was waived off with an offensive foul.

North Carolina State (239) missed going to its first Sweet 16 since 2007. OHIO STATE 82, KENTUCKY 68 >> Tori McCoy scored six straight points midway through the fourth quarter to help Ohio State withstand Kentucky’s furious rally from a 19-point second-half deficit and escape.

The fourth-seeded Wildcats trailed 50-31 early in third but closed to 65-64 with 6:04 remaining. The fifth-seeded Buckeyes answered with eight straight points behind McCoy.

Ohio State (28-6) held on from there to earn its second straight Sweet 16 appearance in the Lexington Regional next week at Rupp Arena.

McCoy finished with 14 points and a team-high 12 rebounds and Shayla Cooper scored 15 for the Buckeyes, who committed a season-low six turnovers.

Makayla Epps had 21 points and Evelyn Akhator had 14 points with a careerhigh 23 rebounds in their final games for Kentucky (2211), which had sought its second consecutive Sweet 16 berth at home.

Bridgeport Region

MARYLAND 83, WEST VIRGINIA 56 >> Destiny Slocum nailed a 70-foot shot to cap a pivotal second quarter for Maryland, and the Terrapins went on to defeat West Virginia.

Brionna Jones had 22 points and 11 rebounds, Slocum scored 21 and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough added 19 for third-seeded Maryland (32-3), which will next face the winner of Monday’s game between No. 2 seed Duke and Oregon.

Teana Muldrow led West Virginia (24-11) with 16 points. Leading scorer Tynice Martin was limited to 10 points on 3 of 18 shooting.

The game turned in the second quarter, when Maryland outscored West Virginia 26-8 to take a 38-24 lead. After opening with a 23-4 run, the Terrapins gave up two straight baskets — the last with 4 seconds left — before Slocum reared back with both hands behind her head and launched a shot from just outside the opposite arc that hit nothing but net.

The 5-foot-7 freshman was immediately swarmed by her teammates while the fans in Maryland’s home arena stood and cheered.

Oklahoma City Region

MISSISSIPPI STATE 92, DEPAUL 71 >> Blair Schaefer scored 18 points, Jazzmun Holmes added 14 and Mississippi State beat DePaul 92-71 on Sunday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Second-seeded Mississippi State used a 14-0 run in the middle of the third quarter to turn a tight game into a 61-43 advantage.