UConn women reach 25th straight Sweet 16
STORRS, Conn. – Napheesa Collier scored 23 points and top-seeded UConn beat in-state neighbor Quinnipiac 71-46 on Monday night to advance to a 25th straight Sweet 16.
Azura Stevens added 14 points and Kia Nurse chipped in with 13 for the Huskies (34-0), who found themselves in a much slowerpaced game than their 140-52 firstround rout of Saint Francis (Pa.).
But Connecticut was not threatened in this one either. They opened with a 9-2 run and never trailed.
Jen Fay had 12 points to lead the ninth-seeded Bobcats (28-6), who saw their school-record 23-game winning streak snapped.
Quinnipiac got plenty of open looks, but hit just four of 24 shots from 3-point range, including just one of 12 from in the first half.
UConn shot 59 percent, held Quinnipiac to just 17 baskets on 56 shots (30 percent), and led 33-18 at halftime.
A pair of free throws by Stevens gave the Huskies their first 20point lead late in the third quarter and it was 54-31 going into the fourth.
The Huskies were too big for the Bobcats, who had no player on the court over 6-foot tall.
They outrebounded Quinnipiac 33-21 and outscored them 28-14 in the paint.
It was just the second meeting between the two programs. The first, a 117-20 UConn win, came almost 20 years ago after Quinnipiac made the jump from Division II.
Quinnipiac senior Carly Fabbri, the coach’s daughter, finishes her career with a 113-26 record and three trips to the NCAA Tournament, where teams she was on went 3-3.
The win was the Huskies’ 115th in their NCAA Tournament history against 18 defeats. The 86.5 winning percentage is the best in the history of the NCAA Tournament.
UConn’s seniors will end their careers undefeated (79-0) in Connecticut, including 32-0 at Gampel Pavilion.
The Huskies play fifth-seeded Duke on Saturday in Albany, New York. The Huskies have not played a game outside the state of Connecticut since Feb. 24.
Buffalo 86, Florida State 65
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Cierra Dillard scored 22 points and 11thseeded Buffalo shocked No. 3 seed Florida State to advance to the Sweet 16 of the women’s NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history.
The Bulls, who were one of the last four to earn an at-large berth in the 64-team field, shot 47.4 percent from the field and went 24 of 26 from the foul line. They also held the Seminoles to 3 of 25 on 3-pointers and 33.8 percent from the field.
Buffalo (29-5) won’t have far to go for the regional semifinal as it will face defending champion and second-seeded South Carolina on Saturday in Albany, New York.
It is the first time that in eight games that Florida State (26-7) has dropped an NCAA Tournament contest when it has been the host.
Buffalo seized control late in the first half.
The game was tied at 28 with 2:05 remaining when the Bulls closed the half with a 10-2 run, including eight straight points by Dillard, to take a 39-30 lead at halftime.
Duke 66, Georgia 40
ATHENS, Ga. – Leaonna Odom scored 16 points and fifth seed Duke’s defense was dominant, holding fourth seed Georgia to two second-quarter points.
Lexie Brown and Erin Mathias each had 14 points for Duke (24-8), which will play UConn in the Albany Regional on Saturday.
Georgia (26-7) made only 1 of 19 shots in the second period. The Lady Bulldogs set season lows for fewest points in a period and game and lowest field-goal percentage (24.0) in a game.
The Lady Bulldogs missed their first 13 3-pointers before Simone Costa sank a 3 midway through the final period.
Central Michigan 95, Ohio State 78
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Presley Hudson scored 28 points and No. 11 seed Central Michigan stunned No. 3 Ohio State to earn the school’s first trip to the Sweet 16. Cassie Breen threw the ball high in the air as the clock wound down and the joyous Central Michigan players jumped, screamed and hugged as they celebrated the biggest win in school history.
The Chippewas advance to face No. 2 Oregon in Spokane, Washington, on Saturday.
All-American guard Kelsey Mitchell led Ohio State (28-7) with 28 points but hit just 11 of her 29 shots from the floor. Mitchell ended her storied career as the secondleading scorer in NCAA history, but it was wasted as the Buckeyes were denied their third straight trip to the Sweet 16. Mitchell passed Jackie Stiles and finished with 3,402 points.
Breen had 22 points, and Tinara Moore added 20 points and 10 rebounds in Central Michigan’s balanced attack.