No. 22 UConn slogs past VCU

Upset opportunity eludes Rams at Atlantis

R.J. Cole scored 26 points and Isaiah Whaley hit two late 3-pointers in his return to the lineup, helping No. 22 Connecticut outlast VCU 70-63 in overtime for third place at the Battle 4 Atlantis on Paradise Island in the Bahamas.

Whaley had 16 points for the Huskies (6-1), including a tying 3 with 1:05 left in regulation and the go-ahead 3 with 3:54 to go in OT. He also came up with a punctuating three-point play with 4.5 seconds left, celebrating his breakaway basket by with celebratory punches and two head-butts on the padded basket support.

The 6-foot-9 graduate forward missed Thursday’s loss to Michigan State after fainting briefly after playing 43 minutes during a double-overtime win against No. 19 Auburn in Wednesday’s first round.

UConn won despite shooting just 33% while committing 22 turnovers.

Jayden Nunn scored 21 points for the Rams (3-4), who led by four late in regulation. VCU shot 36% and was 14 of 24 from the freethrow line.

This was a defensive-oriented game with physical play, with neither team leading by more than four points after halftime until overtime.

MORE REGION/STATE New Orleans 79, VMI 71:

Derek St. Hilaire scored 22 points to help the host Privateers (3-4) overcome the Keydets (3-4) at the UNO Classic.

VMI center Jake Stephens had 17 points and eight rebounds. Kamdyn Curfman scored 15 and Sean Conway and Brennan Watkins had 14 apiece for the Keydets, who trailed throughout the second half.

MORE TOP 25

No. 3 Purdue 97, Omaha 40:

Zach Edey scored 20 points in 16 minutes for host Purdue, which used a huge size advantage to outrebound the Mavericks 53-22 and outscore them in the paint 48-16. The Boilermakers

improved to 6-0 for the first first since 2015-16 and just the fourth time in coach Matt Painter’s tenure.

Omaha (1-5) was led by Darrius Hughes with 13 points. It lost its fifth straight — all on the road. Purdue was the highest ranked team the Mavericks have played in their 11-year Division I era, and the disparity was clear from the opening moments. Trailing 3-0, the Boilermakers scored 29 straight points.

No. 15 Tennessee 80, Tennessee Tech 69: Brandon Huntley-Hatfield scored eight of his 12 points during a key second-half spurt in Knoxville.

Olivia Nkamhoua led Tennessee with 18 points. Kennedy Chandler had 15 points and five steals. John Fulkerson scored 14 points, and Santiago Vescovi finished with 13.

The Vols (4-1) looked sluggish for much of the game, and the Golden Eagles (2-4) led 35-34 at halftime. It took a second-half 12-2 run to help Tennessee — a 21.5point favorite — avoid the upset.

Jr. Clay led Tennessee Tech with 19 points.

ACC

Georgia Tech 61, Georgia Southern 59:

Michael Devoe scored 15 of his 26 points in the second half for Georgia Tech, which rallied from a 12-point halftime deficit in Atlanta.

The Yellow Jackets (5-1) got 11 points from Kyle Sturdivant and 10 from Rodney Howard in winning their fifth straight. It was their first meeting in 25 years against the Eagles (4-2) in a series they lead 4-2 dating back to 1953. Devoe, second in the nation making 65% of his 3-pointers, was 5 of 9 behind the arc.

Elijah McCadden and Cam Bryant scored 14 points for Georgia Southern and Kamari Brown had 13.

Miami 69, North Texas 63: Isaiah Wong scored 14 of his 21 points in the second half to rally Miami in a consolation game of the ESPN Events Invitational in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.

The Hurricanes (4-2) trailed by as many was 14 in the first half and were down 40-28 at the break. Kameron McGusty’s layup put Miami on top to stay, 63-61, at the 2:35 mark.

Thomas Bell scored 18 points and Tylor Perry 14 off the bench for North Texas (2-3), which only shot 32% in the second half.

Clemson 91, Charleston Southern 59: Nick Honor’s 17 points and seven assists guided the host Tigers (5-2) past the Buccaneers (2-4).

Al-Amir Dawes scored 16 points for Clemson. Tahlik Chavez scored 14 for CSU, hitting four 3-pointers.

Boston College 73, Columbia 60: DeMarr Langford scored 15 points and grabbed seven rebounds as Boston College (4-3) snapped a three-game skid with a home victory.

Jaeden Zachary added 14 points, Makai Ashton-Langford 11 and Brevin Galloway nine for the Eagles.

Liam Murphy and Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa led Columbia (2-4) with 19 and 17 points, respectively. Murphy drained five 3-pointers.

Women

REGION/STATE

Missouri State 76, No. 24 Virginia Tech 68: Jasmine Franklin scored 21 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and went 9 of 10 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter in a San Juan Shootout opener in Puerto Rico.

Missouri State (4-1) led 23-9 after one quarter, hitting three 3-pointers, going 7 of 14 overall and 6 for 6 from the free-throw line. The Hokies (5-1) never recovered as Missouri State was 15 of 16 on free throws in the fourth quarter.

Abigayle Jackson scored a career-high 18 points, Sydney Wilson 16 and sixth-year senior and Missouri Valley Conference MVP Brice Calip 10 in picking up her 101st career win.

Tech scored nine straight points in the second quarter to get within five but Missouri State surged ahead 36-26 at the half. The lead was double figures throughout the third quarter and never closer than eight in the fourth.

Elizabeth Kitley scored 21 points and Kayana Traylor 12 for Tech, which plays Tennessee-Martin today.

Rhode Island 80, Virginia 70: Rhode Island coach Tammi Reiss, who played in three Final Fours as a guard for U.Va., and her Rams (7-0) beat the Cavaliers (1-5) at John Paul Jones Arena.

Dez Elmore led the Rams with 22 points. Chanell Williams scored 19 points, 14 at the freethrow line. URI took more free throws (44, making 35), than fieldgoal attempts (41, making 20).

Camryn Taylor led the Cavaliers with 22 points and six rebounds. Amandine Toi had 17 points and three assists.

URI went ahead to stay in the third quarter and started the fourth with a 10-2 run.

TOP 10

No. 1 South Carolina 79, Elon 38:

Aliyah Boston scored 12 points and blocked three shots for host South Carolina, which had a 16-point lead trimmed to 33-27 early in the third quarter. But the Gamecocks responded with a 16-0 run to put away the Phoenix (4-1) and improve to 7-0 for the first time since the 2016-17 season.

Zia Cooke finished with 11 points and Destanni Henderson had 10. Ariana Nance led Elon with 13 points, matching her career high.

No. 6 Baylor 62, Arizona State 52:

NaLyssa Smith scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds on the second day of the Cancun Challenge in Mexico. The Bears (5-1) held the Sun Devils (2-4) to 27% shooting through three quarters and then weathered a late ASU surge.

Jordan Lewis added 15 points and Queen Egbo 11 for Baylor.

Mael Gilles scored 10 points and grabbed 14 rebounds for the Sun Devils.

No. 18 South Florida 57, No. 7 Stanford 54: Sydni Harvey hit a 3-pointer from the wing with 2.8 seconds left, giving the Bulls (5-2) a victory over the Cardinal (4-2) in the Baha Mar Hoops Pink Flamingo Championship tournament in the Bahamas.

Led by Harvey’s 15 points, USF posted its second victory over a top-10 opponent this week and only the third overall for the program — the Bulls also beat No. 9 Oregon in the Bahamas event. South Florida’s Bethy Mununga matched a career high with 23 rebounds and had six points.

Cameron Brink had 23 points and 11 rebounds for Stanford.