Jewel Spear scored 20 points and Talaysia Cooper added 16 as No. 15 Tennessee continued its late-season surge with an 88-80 victory Thursday over No. 18 Alabama in Knoxville, Tenn.
Zee Spearman had 13 points and nine rebounds for the Lady Vols (20-6, 7-6 SEC), who won for the fifth time in their last six games while reaching 20 victories for the 42nd time in program history.
Sarah Ashlee Barker scored 22 points and Zaay Green added 16 for the Crimson Tide (21-6, 8-5), who had a four-game winning streak snapped. Essence Cody had 13 points and seven rebounds for Alabama.
Tennessee closed the first half on a 10-0 run and turned an 11-0 run in the third quarter into a 58-42 lead. Alabama pulled within 75-67 with 5:12 remaining and got as close as 79-75 with 3:15 left before Tennessee pulled away.
No. 1 Notre Dame 82, Miami 42
Sonia Citron scored 19 points and Hannah Hidalgo added 18 as the top-ranked Fighting Irish (24-2, 15-0 ACC) extended their winning streak to 19 games with the victory over the host Hurricanes (13-13, 3-12).
Olivia Miles scored 13 points and Liatu King added 13 points with 13 rebounds for Notre Dame, which won by at least 15 points for the 10th consecutive game.
Cameron Williams scored 12 points with 10 rebounds for Miami, which shot 26.8 percent from the floor and had its lowest point output on the season while losing its fifth consecutive game.
No. 3 UCLA 70, No. 25 Illinois 55
Star center Lauren Betts finished with 22 points, seven rebounds and six blocks as the Bruins ended the Fighting Illini’s eight-game winning streak in the Big Ten matchup in Los Angeles.
Betts, who missed UCLA’s last game with a foot injury, hit 9 of 18 shots, and her final block of the night gave her 67, setting the school’s single-season record. Monique Billings racked up 66 in 2016-17. Kiki Rice added 16 points for the Bruins (25-1, 13-1 Big Ten). Reserve Janiah Barker came on in the first quarter but left quickly due to an unspecified injury.
Adalia McKenzie led Illinois (21-6, 11-5) with 18 points, Berry Wallace added 13 and Genesis Bryant chipped in 10, but they went a combined 14 of 40 from the floor. The Fighting Illini shot 34.5 percent for the game.
No. 6 South Carolina 95, Arkansas 55
Joyce Edwards scored 18 points to lead five players in double figures and the Gamecocks (24-4, 12-1 ACC) rebounded from a rare defeat to roll past the visiting Razorbacks (9-19, 2-11) at Columbia, S.C.
MiLaysia Fulwiley scored 15 points, Bree Hall had 14 and Chloe Kitts scored 10 points with 13 rebounds for South Carolina which had a 57-28 rebounding advantage. The Gamecocks fell to UConn 87-58 on Sunday.
Kiki Smith scored 18 points and Izzy Higginbottom added 10 for Arkansas, which lost its sixth consecutive game.
No. 7 LSU 79, Georgia 63
Flau’Jae Johnson led five Tigers who scored in double figures with 21 points in a wire-to-wire win over the Lady Bulldogs in Baton Rouge, La.
Jersey Wolfenbarger, starting in place of second-leading scorer Aneesah Morrow (foot), collected 16 points, 12 rebounds, three blocks and two steals. Kailyn Gilbert scored 15 points and Sa’Myah Smith posted 11 points and 12 rebounds for LSU (26-2, 11-2 SEC). The Tigers rebounded from a loss at then-No. 3 Texas on Sunday.
Trinity Turner more than doubled her scoring average by netting 28 points to lead Georgia (10-17, 2-11), which has lost nine of its past 10 games. Mia Woolfolk chipped in 12 points, and Fatima Diakhate contributed 10 rebounds.
Indiana 71, No. 8 Ohio State 61
Shay Ciezki, Yarden Garzon and Sydney Parrish each scored 16 points as the Hoosiers (17-9, 9-6 Big Ten) pulled off the upset at home against the Buckeyes (22-4, 11-4) in Bloomington, Ind.
Karolina Striplin scored 11 points, while Garzon added 11 rebounds as Indiana won despite committing 21 turnovers that went for 20 Ohio State points.
Jaloni Cambridge scored 18 points and Cotie McMahon added 14 for Ohio State, which lost for the third time in their last five games.
No. 9 North Carolina 68, Syracuse 58
Maria Gakdeng scored 21 points with 14 rebounds as the visiting Tar Heels extended their winning streak to six games with the road victory over the Orange.
Trayanna Crisp scored 12 points and Indya Nivar added 11 for North Carolina (24-4, 12-3 ACC), which was playing without Alyssa Ustby (knee), who averages 10.7 points and 9.4 rebounds per game.
Georgia Woolley scored 17 points and Sophie Burrows added 12 for Syracuse (10-16, 4-11), which lost its third consecutive game to match a season high.
Louisville 70, No. 11 Duke 62
Jayda Curry scored 24 points and Ja’Leah Williams added 13 as the Cardinals (19-7, 12-3 ACC) dominated the final three minutes to pull the upset over the Blue Devils (20-7, 11-4).
Tajianna Roberts scored 11 points for Louisville, which closed the game on a 10-2 run over the final 2:38 following a 60-60 tie. The Cardinals moved past the Blue Devils and into sole possession of fourth place in the ACC.
Oluchi Okananwa scored 17 points and Reigan Richardson added 10 for Duke, which gave up 27 points on 20 turnovers.
No. 13 North Carolina State 83, No. 20 Georgia Tech 68
Four Wolfpack players scored at least 14 points as the visitors bounced back from having their nine-game winning streak snapped by disposing of the Yellow Jackets in the Atlantic Coast Conference matchup in Atlanta.
Aziaha James and Zoe Brooks finished with 17 apiece and Saniya Rivers netted 16 for NC State (21-5, 13-2 ACC). Those players combined to shoot 21 of 40 from the floor, pacing the team’s 53.2 percent effort overall. Madison Hayes added 14 points, including nine during the Wolfpack’s 17-0 burst bridging the third and fourth quarters to break open a close game.
Tonie Morgan scored 17 points and Dani Carnegie notched 16 for Georgia Tech (21-6, 9-6). The Yellowjackets, who shot just 39.7 percent from the floor, have lost two of their last three games.
No. 14 Kentucky 73, Missouri 65
Clara Strack collected 22 points and 12 rebounds and Georgia Amoore added 19 points as the Wildcats thwarted the Tigers’ late comeback bid in the Southeastern Conference contest in Columbia, Mo.
Amoore’s 3-pointer gave Kentucky a 57-47 lead in the early seconds of the fourth period, but Missouri chipped away and closed within two on a 3-pointer by Averi Kroenke with 2:50 left. After the teams traded baskets, the Wildcats (21-4, 10-3 SEC) netted the final six points of the game.
Laniah Randle went 10 of 13 from the floor and led the Tigers (13-15, 2-11) with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Grace Slaughter added 18 points. Missouri, which shot 40 percent from the floor compared to Kentucky’s 52.9 percent, is 0-8 against ranked teams this season.
No. 16 Oklahoma 101, Vanderbilt 81
The high-scoring Sooners put up 34 points in the third quarter, including 22 of the final 25 in the period, in putting away the Commodores in the Southeastern Conference game in Norman, Okla.
Raegan Beers scored a career-high 30 points to go with 14 rebounds for Oklahoma (19-6, 7-5 SEC), which entered the game sixth in Division I with 85.5 points per game. Payton Verhulst and Zya Vann contributed 16 points apiece. Skylar Vann notched 13 points and nine rebounds.
Freshman sensation Mikayla Blakes unloaded for 34 points, including seven 3-pointers, for Vanderbilt (19-8, 6-7) in her first game since posting 55 points Sunday in an overtime win over Auburn. The Commodores have lost four of their last five games.
No. 21 Maryland 85, Northwestern 79
The Terrapins led by 21 early in the third quarter but had to hold off the Wildcats, one of the Big Ten’s worst teams, down the stretch in Evanston, Ill.
Kaylene Smikle led Maryland (21-6, 11-5 Big Ten) with 23 points and six assists. Saylor Poffenbarger (16), Sarah Te-Biasu (15) and Shyann Sellers (12) also scored in double figures for the Terrapins.
Melannie Daley paced Northwestern (9-16, 2-12) with 22 points, including nine in the fourth quarter. The Wildcats trimmed their deficit to four points on multiple occasions but could get no closer. Taylor Williams had 18 points and 10 rebounds, but she also accounted for eight of the team’s 22 turnovers. Caroline Lau contributed 11 rebounds and 10 assists.
–Field Level Media
