Kymora Johnson scored 28 points and forced both the first and second overtime period for No. 10 seed Virginia as it buried No. 2 Iowa 83-75 in the biggest upset of the Women’s NCAA Tournament thus far on Monday in second-round Sacramento 4 Region action at Iowa City.
Paris Clark put up 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists for the Cavaliers (22-11), who have become the first women’s team to advance from the First Four to the Sweet 16.
The Cavaliers went from ahead by seven to down by nine as Iowa dominated the third quarter. A personal 8-0 run from Clark with two 3-pointers shaved the deficit down, and Johnson’s tying 3-pointer with 2:11 left stood as the final points of regulation, as Iowa missed its final five attempts of the fourth quarter.
Both teams held brief leads in the first overtime, but the Hawkeyes nudged ahead by two in the final seconds before Johnson’s jumper in the paint tied it at 65-65 with 13 seconds left. But it was all Cavaliers in the second overtime, as they scored 11 of the first 13 points and salted it away from the foul line.
Romi Levy scored 13 points and Caitlin Weimar had 12 for Virginia, which made 18 of 23 free throws compared to Iowa’s feeble 8-for-16 effort. Ava Heiden pumped in 26 points, Chazadi Wright had 21 and Hannah Stuelke compiled 15 points, 19 rebounds and six assists for Iowa (27-7), which was tested by No. 15 seed FDU in the first round but eked out a 58-48 victory.
No. 1 UConn 98, No. 9 Syracuse 45
Azzi Fudd matched her career highs of 34 points and eight 3-pointers as the Huskies steamrolled the Orange in Fort Worth Region 1 play to reach the Sweet 16 for the 32nd straight NCAA Tournament at Storrs, Conn.
Sarah Strong added 18 points and nine rebounds as UConn (36-0) won its 52nd consecutive contest, including the final 16 of last season to win the national title. Blanca Quinonez also scored 18 points for the Huskies, who will face No. 4 North Carolina on Friday in the Sweet 16.
Uche Izoje had 12 points and Laila Phelia added 10 for Syracuse (24-9), which trailed 65-12 at halftime. The Orange finished 1-for-18 from 3-point range and shot 32.8% overall and committed 20 turnovers.
Syracuse went nearly 10 1/2 minutes without a point during one stretch of the first half as UConn rolled off 31 consecutive points for a 53-8 lead. Fudd scored 26 points in the half as the Huskies shot 65.9% from the field.
Fudd was 13 of 18 from the field and also had five assists and four of UConn’s 15 steals. The Huskies shot 55.9% overall and 13 of 26 from 3-point range.
No. 1 South Carolina 101, No. 9 Southern California 61
Joyce Edwards scored a game-high 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Gamecocks demolished the Trojans in the second round of Sacramento Region 4 in Columbia, S.C.
Five other players reached double figures for South Carolina (33-3), which advances to play Oklahoma on Saturday. Madina Okot added 15 points and 15 rebounds, while Agot Makeer chipped in 15 points and four steals.
Ta’Niya Latson hit for 12 points and Maryam Dauda and Tessa Johnson each tallied 10 as South Carolina shot 53.6% from the floor. The Gamecocks also excelled on defense, forcing 27 turnovers that resulted in 29 points.
Londynn Jones scored 20 points for Southern California (18-14) and Jazzy Davidson added 16, but it wasn’t close to being enough. The Trojans sank just 37.3% from the field, including 35.4% from 2-point range.
South Carolina wasted little time demonstrating its superiority, opening up a 26-8 lead after a quarter and expanding the gap to 51-21 at the half. The margin reached 44 in the third quarter and 46 in the fourth.
No. 1 UCLA 87, No. 8 Oklahoma State 68
Lauren Betts dominated inside for 35 points, nine rebounds and five assists Monday night, lifting top-seeded UCLA to an 87-68 decision over eighth-seeded Oklahoma State in the second round of the NCAA Women’s Tournament in Los Angeles.
Betts canned 15 of 19 field-goal tries and enabled the Bruins (33-1) to advance to the Sacramento 2 Region semifinals Saturday against fourth-seeded Minnesota. Teammates Gianna Kneepkens and Kiki Rice added 15 and 10 points, respectively, as UCLA converted 33 of 63 attempts from the field. Gabriela Jaquez also chipped in 10.
Achol Akot scored 23 points on 10 of 16 shooting to pace the Cowgirls (24-10) before fouling out in the last minute. Jadyn Wooten added 18 points and six assists but it wasn’t enough as Oklahoma State hit only 43.3% from the field and was outscored 50-34 in the paint.
A fast start decided this game. The Bruins established a 21-6 first-quarter lead, limiting the Cowgirls to 2 of 16 accuracy from the field, and increased the margin to 46-26 at halftime. UCLA never trailed and led for all but 34 seconds.
No. 2 Vanderbilt 75, No. 7 Illinois 57
Mikayla Blakes recorded 25 points, 10 rebounds, nine assists and four steals as the Commodores sped to the victory over the Fighting Illini at Nashville in Fort Worth Region 1 play to reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2009.
Justine Pissott added 18 points and Aubrey Galvan had 12 for Vanderbilt (29-4), which is one shy of the school record for victories, accomplished twice. The Commodores will face No. 6 Notre Dame on Friday.
Berry Wallace registered 18 points, nine rebounds and three steals for Illinois (22-12). Cearah Parchment added 12 points and eight rebounds while Jasmine Brown-Hagger also scored 12 points for the Illini, who made 3 of 23 3-point attempts and shot 29.6% overall.
Illinois scored the first basket and never led again. Vanderbilt led 21-8 after the first quarter and 36-25 at halftime and pulled away in the third quarter when Blakes made two treys during a 12-2 burst to give the Commodores a 58-39 lead with 2:18 left.
Blakes buried her fourth and final 3-pointer midway through the fourth quarter to push the lead to 22 as Vanderbilt finished off the rout. The Commodores shot 43.8% from the field, including 11 of 26 from behind the arc.
No. 3 Louisville 69, No. 6 Alabama 68
Elif Istanbulluoglu and Tajianna Roberts had 18 points apiece and the host Cardinals survived the Crimson Tide to advance to the Sweet 16 from Fort Worth Region 3.
Trailing by four, Alabama’s Karly Weathers scored with 9.4 seconds left and Louisville’s Imari Berry made both free throws before Weathers hit another 3 to make it 69-68 with four seconds on the clock. But after Reyna Scott missed two foul shots, Alabama didn’t have time to advance the ball for the potential game-winner.
Istanbulluoglu also had 11 rebounds. Louisville survived woeful 7-of-26 shooting from long range with 14 offensive rebounds and 24 points in the paint. Alabama was outrebounded 41-24.
Ace Austin led Alabama with 17 points. She hit her fifth 3 to keep Alabama in striking distance, 52-49, with 1:22 left in the third. Weathers had 11 of her 13 points in the fourth quarter, while Diana Collins scored 14 points and made 4 of 5 from 3-point range. The Crimson Tide shot 46.2% (12 of 26) from 3 but only 45.6% overall (26 of 57).
No. 6 Notre Dame 83, No. 3 Ohio State 73
Hannah Hidalgo poured in 26 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and swiped eight steals as the Fighting Irish knocked off the Buckeyes in Columbus, Ohio, to reach the Sweet 16 from Fort Worth Region 1.
Vanessa de Jesus added 15 points, Cassandre Prosper and Iyana Moore had 13 points apiece and KK Bransford chipped in 10 off the bench for Notre Dame (24-10), which advanced to the Sweet 16 for the fifth straight season.
Jaloni Cambridge carried Ohio State (27-8) with 41 points, shooting 13-for-25 from the field (including 5-for-8 from deep), and Elsa Lemmila posted nine points and 10 rebounds, but Ohio State failed to get out of the second round for the third year in a row.
After trailing 22-20 at the end of the first quarter, Notre Dame flipped the game with a 23-13 second to take a 43-35 halftime lead. Cambridge kept rallying the Buckeyes, but the Irish held a four-point edge entering the fourth and closed with a 25-point final quarter to cement it. Notre Dame forced 21 turnovers while going 23-for-26 on free throws.
No. 5 Kentucky 74, No. 4 West Virginia 73
Teonni Key and Clara Strack posted double-doubles as the Wildcats held off the Mountaineers in Fort Worth Region 3 play at Morgantown, W.Va., to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time in a decade.
Key scored 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, while Stack had 18 points and 15 boards plus four blocks. Tonie Morgan added 15 points, including a basket in the final minute that gave Kentucky a 74-71 lead.
The Wildcats looked in control after a dominant third quarter, when they pushed the lead as wide as 62-48. West Virginia ripped off a fourth-quarter rally behind Sydney Shaw, who scored 11 of her 23 points in the final period. Gia Cooke’s two free throws with 33 seconds left cut it to 74-73, but the Mountaineers never got back in front.
Cooke matched Shaw with 23 points and Kierra Wheeler chipped in 16 for West Virginia. Kentucky finished plus-16 on the glass and now moves on to face top-seeded Texas.
–Field Level Media
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