Bulldogs hold off slumping No. 13 Volunteers
Caliya Robinson had 16 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 of her 6 blocks in a critical last-minute possession Sunday as Georgia (125, 3-1 SEC) defeated No. 13 Tennessee (12-4, 1-3), 66-62, giving the Lady Vols a three-game losing streak for the first time in 33 years.
Tennessee, which had never lost three-consecutive Southeastern Conference games, lost to Missouri, Kentucky and Georgia by a total of eight points. The first two games were at home, the first time they lost consecutive home games since December 1996.
With the Bulldogs leading 63-62, Robinson blocked Evina Westbrook’s layup attempt with 19.6 seconds remaining and then she blocked Rennia Davis’ short jumper with one second on the shot clock.
Tennessee couldn’t get a shot off before the shot clock expired. The Lady Vols had to foul twice to get Jenna Staiti to the free-throw line, where she made both.
Notre Dame
Marina Mabrey scored 18 points and No. 1 Notre Dame (16-1, 4-0 ACC), dominated from start to finish in a 78-48 victory against visiting Wake Forest (9-7, 0-3). Leading scorer Arike Ogunbowale got a rare day off. Ogunbowale, who had 30 points Thursday in Notre Dame’s 82-68 win against No. 2 Louisville, saw her 37game double-digit scoring streak end.
Connecticut
Katie Lou Samuelson scored 19 points to reach the 2,000-point milestone and No. 3 Connecticut (14-1, 3-0 American) overcame a sluggish start to beat South Florida (10-7, 1-2), 63-46. The Huskies have never suffered a conference loss in the AAC. Samuelson is the 10th Connecticut player to reach 2,000 points.
N.C. State
The best start to a women’s basketball season in N.C. State history rolled on with little resistance from host Virginia. Erika Cassell had 15 points and 10 rebounds, and the eighthranked Wolfpack (17-0, 4-0 ACC) remained the only unbeaten Division I women’s team with a 66-38 victory against the Cavaliers (7-10, 1-3). “Some fans might not enjoy it as much, but I just love seeing our team go out and defend the way we are,” coach Wes Moore said.
Syracuse
Junior guard Tiana Mangakahia scored 34 points and had 10 rebounds and 10 assists for her first tripledouble and No. 12 Syracuse (14-2, 3-0 ACC) defeated North Carolina s (9-8, 0-3), 90-77. The Orange won their eighth in a row and improved to 6-0 at home.
Michigan
Michigan’s men set the mark for the best start in school history Sunday night, winning its 17th game in a row, by beating Northwestern, 80-60, in a game where the Wolverines never trailed. It was Michigan’s sixth double-digit win in a row. The Wolverines, now 6-0 in the Big Ten, have won all but one of their Big Ten games by double digits.