UH’s late charge catches Rutgers

Serithia Hawkins put back an offensive rebound for the decisive basket as Houston defeated Rutgers 53-51 on Saturday night at Hofheinz Pavilion.

The Cougars (4-5) went on a 15-3 run over the final five minutes to surge ahead 51-49 with 33 seconds remaining before Kandiss Barber of the Scarlet Knights tied it.

Chyanne Butler then missed a jumper, but Hawkins gathered the rebound and scored for the lead.

Rutgers (2-9) took over with nine seconds to play but failed to score.

Jasmyne Harris led the Cougars with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Victoria Harris paced the Scarlet Knights with 13 points. NOTRE DAME 75, DEPAUL 61

Arike Ogunbowale scored 13 of her 17 points in the first quarter to help the No. 2 Irish defeat the No. 16 Blue Demons at Chicago.

Lindsay Allen and Brianna Turner each added 14 points to help the Irish (9-1) overcome 27-of-61 shooting.

Jessica January and Brooke Schulte each had 19 points for DePaul (6-3). MISSISSIPPI ST. 72 SOUTHERN MISS 50

Brenna Richardson scored a season-high 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the No. 5 Bulldogs over the Golden Eagles at Hattiesburg, Miss.

The Bulldogs (9-0) never trailed, jumping out to a 21-6 lead by the end of the first quarter. Brittanny Dinkins led the Golden Eagles (9-2) with 18 points. FLORIDA ST. 93, UAB 47

The No. 7 Seminoles rode a 49-20 rebounding edge to a win at Birmingham, Ala.

Six players pulled down at least five rebounds for the Seminoles (10-1). Brittany Brown paced the Seminoles with 17 points.

Rachael Childress scored nine points to lead the Blazers (4-4). TEXAS A&M84 A&M-CORPUS CHRISTI 55

Anriel Howard led the Aggies with a career-high 20 points and 10 rebounds at College Station.

The Aggies (7-2) jumped out to a 44-31 halftime lead and maintained control of the Islanders (4-4).

The Islanders’ Brittany Mbamalu led all scorers with 21 points. SYRACUSE 109 NIAGARA 60

Brittney Sykes had 23 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists as the No. 20 Orange raced past the Purple Eagles at Syracuse, N.Y.

The Orange (8-3) led 32-8 after one period and 62-19 at halftime.

The Purple Eagles (4-5) were led by Tiffany Corselli with 12 points. WEST VIRGINIA 91 S.C. UPSTATE 33

Lanay Montgomery and Kristina King each scored 16 points as No. 13 Mountaineers routed the Spartans at Morgantown, W.Va.

West Virginia (10-0) has won 31 consecutive non-conference games.

Brittney Delva led the Spartans (4-6) with 12 points.

From web and wire reports