Oregon women top Georgia, reach Sweet 16
Sedona Prince scored 22 points and Alamo Region sixth-seeded Oregon beat No. 3 Georgia 57-50 on Wednesday in the women’s NCAA Tournament in San Antonio to advance to its fourth straight Sweet 16.
Nyara Sabally scored six straight points to break open a tie game and give the Ducks a 54-48 lead with less than a minute to go. She finished with 15 points, including 10 in the second half, and nine rebounds.
Oregon (15-8) is in the tournament for the 16th time overall, but this Ducks team came in less heralded than those led by Sabrina Ionescu, who missed out on her final chance at a national title last year because of the pandemic.
Jenna Staiti had 18 points and nine rebounds for Georgia (21-7). MISSOURI STATE 64, WRIGHT STATE 39 >> Elle Ruffridge scored 20 points with five 3-pointers, Jasmine Franklin had 11 points and 11 rebounds and the fifthseeded Lady Bears (23-2) are going to their second consecutive Sweet 16 after knocking off the 13th-seeded Raiders (19-8).
Ruffridge and Franklin are among nine current Missouri State players who were also part of the Sweet 16 team two years ago that lost to Stanford, the same team it will play in the Alamo Region semifinal Sunday.
LOUISVILLE 62, NORTHWESTERN 53 >> Kianna Smith scored 16 points and the No. 2 seed Cardinals (25-3) rallied from an early 18-point deficit to beat the seventh-seeded Wildcats (16-9).
Hemisfair Region
MARYLAND 100, ALABAMA 64 >> The second-seeded Terrapins (27-2) and their offensive juggernaut rolled into the Sweet 16, getting 19 points from Angel Reese and overwhelming the No. 7-seed Crimson Tide (17-10).
Maryland came into the tournament with the nation’s highest-scoring offense and has yet to take its foot off the gas. The Terps are averaging 99 points in their two tournament wins after scoring 91.3 per game in the regular season.
Maryland hit the 100- point mark for the seventh time this season.
Jasmine Walker led Alabama with 23 points.
Mercado Region
ARIZONA 52, BYU 46 >> Aari McDonald had 17 points with 11 rebounds and the third-seeded Wildcats (18-5) outlasted the No. 11 seed Cougars (19-6), advancing to the Sweet 16 for the first time since coach Adia Barnes was a player for Arizona in 1998.
Arizona finally went ahead to stay on a 3-pointer by Sam Thomas with 3:47 left, not long after McDonald’s 3 cut its deficit to one.
TEXAS A&M 84, IOWA STATE 82, OT >> Jordan Nixon banked in a short jump shot at the buzzer in overtime, giving her 35 points and lifting the No. 2-seeded Aggies (25-2) over the seventh-seeded Cyclones (17-11).
Nixon scored seven of A&M’s nine points in OT, pushing the Aggies into the Sweet 16 for a third straight time.
Joens had 32 points and 18 rebounds for Iowa State, which went 16 for 30 from 3-point range.
INDIANA 70, BELMONT 48 >> Grace Berger scored 17 points to lead the fourth-seeded Hoosiers (17-9) over the No. 12-seeded Bruins (21-6).