Miami uses big rally to beat Oklahoma State in March Madness
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Haley Cavinder scored 12 of her 16 points in the second half and made what proved to be the decisive free throw with 8.9 seconds left to pull off a 17-point second half rally Saturday that gave ninth-seeded Miami a 62-61 victory over eighth-seeded Oklahoma State.
The comeback was tied for the fifth-largest comeback in tourney history. But it wasn’t over until Naomie Alnatas’ 10-footer rolled off the rim at the buzzer following a 5-second call on the Hurricanes.
Miami (20-12) will play top-seeded Indiana on its home court Monday night with a ticket to the Sweet 16 at stake.
Cavinder also had eight rebounds and six assists while Jasmyn Roberts added 12 points and Destiny Harden had 11 points and five rebounds.
Anna Gret Asi led Oklahoma State (21-12) with 16 points and four 3-pointers including one with 5.3 seconds to go that gave the Cowgirls a shot to win it.
NO. 1 INDIANA 77, TENNESSEE TECH 47
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Sydney Parrish scored 19 points and had eight rebounds to lead Indiana past Tennessee Tech.
All-American center Mackenzie Holmes cheered on her Indiana teammates from the bench while resting a sore knee. Grace Berger had 17 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three blocks and Lilly Meister added seven points and three blocks in her first career start.
Indiana (28-3) faces the winner of Saturday’s second game between eighthseeded Oklahoma State and ninth-seeded Miami.
Maaliya Owens had 17 points and nine rebounds to lead Tennessee Tech (23-10), which had won its previous eight games.
NO. 12 FLORIDA GULF COAST 74, NO. 5 WASHINGTON STATE 63
VILLANOVA, Pa. — Maddie Antenucci’s 3-pointer bounced four times before going through the net as part of her game-changing spree from beyond the arc that sent Florida Gulf Coast into the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a win over Washington State.
Sha Carter scored 24 points and Tishara Moorehouse had 16 for the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament champion Golden Eagles (33-3).
The Eagles sent the Shania Twain karaoke club out of Washington State (23-11) home early after a surprising run to win the Pac-12 Tournament. Tara Wallack led the Cougars with 16 points.
NO. 4 VILLANOVA 76, NO. 13 CLEVELAND STATE 59
VILLANOVA, Pa. — Maddy Siegrist became the fifth women’s player in NCAA history to score 1,000 points in a season and the first-team AP All-American had 35 points to lead Villanova into the NCAA Tournament’s second round with a win over Cleveland State.
The Wildcats (29-6) will play No. 12-seed Florida Gulf Coast (33-3) on Monday for the right to advance to the Sweet 16. The Eagles topped Washington State 74-63 in Saturday’s first game.
Villanova’s 29 wins this season tie the 1981-82 team for most in program history.
The two-time Big East Player of the Year, Siegrist got hot early and reached her milestone 1,000th-point bucket in style. Siegrist followed her shot after she missed a jumper from the elbow, crashed the boards and stripped the ball from a Cleveland State defender that had grabbed the rebound. She tossed up a fadeaway and banked in the bucket.
Destiny Leo scored 25 points for the Horizon League Tournament champion Vikings.
NO. 2 UCONN 95, NO. 15 VERMONT 52
STORRS, Conn. — Aaliyah Edwards scored a career-high 28 points, Dorka Juhasz added a double-double and UConn routed Vermont, giving the Huskies a 29th straight win in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
Juhasz scored 15 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, the Hungarian’s 13th double-double this season for the sixth-ranked Huskies.
NO. 7 BAYLOR 78, NO. 10 ALABAMA 74
STORRS, Conn. — Ja’Mee Asberry scored 26 points, including three key foul shots in the final minute, and Baylor overcame an early 18-point deficit to beat Alabama.
Sarah Andrews and Caitlin Bickle each added 14 for the Bears (20-12), whose rally tied for the third biggest comeback in tournament history. Baylor closed the game on a 7-0 run, all from the foul line.
NO. 4 TENNESSEE 95, NO. 13 SAINT LOUIS 50
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Jordan Horston scored 21 points and Rickea Jackson added 18 as Tennessee Lady remained perfect when opening the NCAA Tournament on their home court, routing Saint Louis.
Jordan Walker added 11 points and Tess Darby had 10 for the Lady Vols (24-11). They will try to advance to a second straight Sweet 16 in the Seattle 3 region.
NO. 12 TOLEDO 80, NO. 5 IOWA STATE 73
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Quinesha Lockett scored 24 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as Toledo knocked off Iowa State.
Toledo became the second 12 seed to win Saturday, joining Florida Gulf Coast not long after its win over Washington State. Toledo now will play No. 4 seed Tennessee, a 95-50 winner over 13th-seeded Saint Louis, on Monday night for a spot in the Sweet 16 in the Seattle 3 region.
NO. 3 OHIO STATE 80, NO. 14 JAMES MADISON 66
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Cotie McMahon scored 18 points to help Ohio State pull away for a win over James Madison.
McMahon made her team’s first 3-pointer with 5:18 left in the third quarter to give Ohio State (26-7) a 44-43 lead, and the Buckeyes didn’t give up the advantage from there on out.
They trailed by as many as 16 in the first half before going on a 12-0 run.
NO. 6 NORTH CAROLINA 61, NO. 11 ST. JOHN’S 59
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Deja Kelly had a go-ahead three-point play with 2 seconds left and North Carolina hung on for a win over St. John’s.
The Tar Heels faced their first deficit of the game when Danielle Patterson sank a 3-pointer with 6:39 left to play.
The Red Storm led for the next four-plus minutes until Paulina Paris was fouled in transition and made the ensuing free throw to tie the game at 54.