LSU continues title defense
Flau’jae Johnson had 24 points and 12 rebounds, Angel Reese put up her 26th double-double of the season and LSU beat UCLA 78-69 in the Sweet 16 on Saturday to continue its quest for a second straight national title.
Reese had 16 points and 11 rebounds before fouling out late in the game for the Tigers, who closed the game on a 14-2 run. Aneesah Morrow had 17 points and Mikaylah Williams added 12.
LSU advanced to Monday’s Elite Eight.
Lauren Betts had 14 points and 17 rebounds for UCLA, which finished the season at 27-7. Londynn Jones and Gabriela Jaquez also had 14 points apiece and Kiki Rice scored 13 for the Bruins.
LSU led by seven points at halftime, but after making just two of their first 20 shots from 3-point range, the Bruins hit four of their next five.
Consecutive 3-pointers from Jones keyed an 11-2 run that gave UCLA the lead at 45-44, and the teams were tied at 48 headed into the fourth quarter.
But the Tigers closed the game on a run of their own after trailing 67-64 with 2:46 left.
Johnson had two early 3-pointers in the first half. Her spinning baseline drive and layup highlighted an 8-0 LSU spurt that put the Tigers up 25-18.
The Bruins made just one of 16 shots from behind the arc before Jones’ 3-pointer from the left wing just before the halftime buzzer. That ended an 8-0 LSU run and cut what had been a 10-point lead to 34-27.
The game was played hours after The Washington Post released a much-anticipated story about LSU coach Kim Mulkey, over which she had threatened legal action, warning it would be a “hit piece.” Instead, it was a profile highlighting both positive and negative aspects of her career and describing her as a colorful personality who “wears feathers almost as dramatically as she ruffles them.”
She wore a loud, multicolored sparkling print suit on Saturday.
Top seed Texas uses dominant defense to cruise past Gonzaga: Vic Schaefer took a moment in the aftermath of one his team’s more dominant performances this season to encapsulate what Texas has accomplished.
Overlooked among the other No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, the Longhorns looked every bit the part of a title contender this March Madness overwhelming Gonzaga 69-47 on Friday night in the Sweet 16.
“It’s amazing what this group has accomplished. They’re remarkable young ladies. Unbelievable kids. They work their guts out every day. They pay the price to be where they are right now,” Schaefer said. “I mean, these young ladies are going to be so good in the real world when they’re done playing basketball. But I don’t want their basketball to be done, because I love coaching them. Man, I had a ball tonight. Watching those kids play like that, are you kidding me?”
Aaliyah Moore had 16 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, Shaylee Gonzales added 15 points, and the top-seeded Longhorns used a smothering defense to roll past fourth-seeded Gonzaga in the Portland 4 Regional semifinal.