Florida State 91, Little Rock 49 UConn off to record-setting start
Azura Stevens scored 26 points to lead six UConn players in double figures and the Huskies (33-0) opened their NCAA Tournament with a record-setting 140-52 rout of Saint Francis (Pa.) (24-10) in Storrs, Conn.
The tournament’s top seed set a record for points in a tournament game and all-time NCAA records for points in a period (55 in the first) and a half (94 in the first).
And UConn’s 88-point margin of victory was the second-biggest in tournament history. Baylor beat Texas Southern by 89 in the 2017 tournament.
The previous record for points in a tournament game was 121. The previous mark for points in a half was 80 and for a quarter was 45.
Stevens also had 10 rebounds. Katie Lou Samuelson had 18 points and 10 assists and Kia Nurse finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Napheesa Collier had 25 points and nine assists.
UConn shot 65 percent from the floor, 73.6 percent in the first half, and outscored the No. 16 seed 96-10 in the paint.
Quinnipiac 86, Miami 72
Jen Fay led a balanced ninth-seeded Quinnipiac offense with 19 points and the Bobcats (28-5) beat Miami (22-11) in Storrs, Conn., eliminating the Hurricanes from the women’s NCAA Tournament for a second consecutive season. Paula Strautmane added 15 points and Edel Thornton and Carly Fabbri each had 14 for Quinnipiac, which extended its winning streak to 23 games, a new school record.
Duke 72, Belmont 58
Leaonna Odom scored a career-high 25 points, including nine in Duke’s dominant third period, and the fifth-seeded Blue Devils (23-8) beat No. 12 seed Belmont (31-4) in Athens, Ga. Duke led only 32-31 at halftime before outscoring Belmont 21-9 in the third period.
Georgia 68, Mercer 63
Caliya Robinson had 23 points and 16 rebounds, Mackenzie Engram added 21
points and 10 rebounds, and Georgia (26-6) held off Mercer (30-3) in Athens, Ga.
Que Morrison finished with 10 points and nine rebounds for the fourth-seeded Lady Bulldogs, who advanced to face Duke on Monday night.
Shakayla Thomas scored 26 points and third-seeded Florida State (26-6) defeated No. 14 seed Little Rock (23-10) in Tallahassee, Fla.
It is a tournament high for Thomas, eclipsing the 23 she scored against Western Illinois in the first round last year. Thomas, a 5-foot-11 senior forward who was playing in her 12th NCAA Tournament game, was 11 of 15 from the field in 19 minutes. She scored Florida State’s first six points and had 16 in the first half as the host team was ahead 53-30 at halftime.
Buffalo 102, South Florida 79
Cierra Dillard scored a career-high 36 points and No. 11 seed Buffalo (28-5) got its first women’s NCAA Tournament victory
as it defeated sixth-seeded South Florida (26-8) in Tallahassee, Fla.
It is the first time in an NCAA Tournament game that a Mid-American Conference team has gone over 100 points. It is also the first time since 1995 that Buffalo has scored more than 100 points.
Central Michigan 78, LSU 69
Tinara Moore scored 25 points to help 11th-seed Central Michigan (29-4) get its first women’s NCAA Tournament win with a victory over No. 6 LSU (19-10) in Columbus, Ohio
The Chippewas, who had lost in their first three trips to the NCAAs, got in the tournament for the first time in five years by upsetting Buffalo in the Mid-American Conference Tournament.
Ohio State 87, George Washington 45
Stephanie Mavunga scored 22 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as third-seeded Ohio State (28-6) routed No. 14 George Washington (19-10) in Columbus, Ohio.
Alexa Hart had 12 points and Kelsey Mitchell added 11 points and seven rebounds as the Buckeyes never trailed, took off in the second half and overwhelmed the Colonials, who had earned a tournament bid by winning the Atlantic 10 Tournament.
Oklahoma State 84, Syracuse 57
Freshman Jaden Hobbs scored a career-high 27 points, Loryn Goodwin and Kaylee Jensen added 19 and No. 9 seed Oklahoma State (21-10) beat No. 8 Syracuse (22-9) in Starkville, Miss.
The 5-foot-8 Hobbs made 8 of 9 3point attempts, blowing the game open single-handedly by making four 3-pointers in quick succession late in the third quarter.
Arizona State 73, Nebraska 62
Robbi Ryan scored 16 points and Kianna Ibis added 14 to lead No. 7 seed Arizona State (22-12) over No. 10 Nebraska (2111) in Austin, Texas.
The Sun Devils opened up a tight, defensive struggle with a 14-0 run late in the third quarter. Jamie Ruden scored five in the stretch and the Sun Devils pushed the lead as high as 16 early in the fourth quarter when Reili Richardson converted a 3-point play.
Florida Gulf Coast 80, Missouri 70
China Dow scored 21 points and played stingy defense in the paint against Missouri star Sophie Cunningham, and No. 12 seed Florida Gulf Coast (31-4) pulled off an upset in the Lexington Regional with a win against the fifth-seeded Tigers (24-8) in Stanford, Calif.
Cunningham took over on the low block to get Missouri going and scored a season-high 35 points – most by a Tigers player in an NCAA tournament game – and made 14 of 16 free throws. But she didn’t get much help.
UCLA 71, American 60
Monique Billings scored 20 points and had 10 rebounds, Kennedy Burke added 15 points to lead UCLA (25-7) to a win over American University (26-7) in Los Angeles. Jordin Canada had 10 points and 11 assists for the Bruins.