Betts' career-high 33 points lifts top-ranked UCLA over No. 8 Maryland

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) — Lauren Betts scored a career-high 33 points, Kiki Rice added 19, and No. 1 UCLA defeated No. 8 Maryland 82-67 on Sunday.

The Bruins (20-0, 8-0 Big Ten) have won their last 19 games by double figures.

Saylor Poffenbarger had 18 points for the Terrapins (16-4, 6-3), who have dropped three in a row. Maryland played without second-leading scorer Shyanne Sellers, who sat for the second consecutive game with a knee injury.

The Terps struggled to contain Betts, who methodically accepted entry passes in the low post and deposited them for easy baskets. The 6-foot-7 junior had 14 points in the first quarter and 24 by halftime. She surpassed her previous career high of 31 when she made two free throws with 4:31 left.

Betts shot 14 of 15, a school-record 93.3% with a minimum of 15 attempts. That surpassed the 88.9% Denise Curry shot against LSU in 1979. Betts added seven rebounds and four blocked shots.

Maryland has lost 10 consecutive games against top-ranked opponents since defeating North Carolina in the 2006 NCAA semifinals on the way to its only national title.

NO. 5 LSU 64, TEXAS A&M 51

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Flau’Jae Johnson scored 22 points, including eight in the fourth quarter, to help No. 5 LSU beat Texas A&M.

Aneesah Morrow added 19 points for the visibly fatigued Tigers (21-1, 6-1 SEC).

LSU was playing its second game in 48 hours after losing at No. 2 South Carolina on Friday in a contest postponed from Thursday. LSU opened the second quarter on a 15-2 run and never trailed the rest of the way though the Aggies (10-9, 3-4) made it a one-possession game in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter.

The Aggies were led by Taliyah Parker, who scored 14 points off the bench. Aicha Coulibaly and Sole Williams added 12 and 10 points.

NO. 7 TEXAS 61, MISSISSIPPI 58

OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — Madison Booker hit a jump shot with 13 seconds remaining as No. 7 Texas wiped out an eight-point deficit in the final five minutes to defeat Mississippi.

Taylor Jones led Texas (20-2, 6-1 SEC) with a season-high 24 points as the Longhorns had a decisive game-closing 13-2 spurt. Booker added 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.

Ole Miss (13-6, 4-3) had an opportunity for a game-tying three point shot in the final two seconds, but Booker made a steal on the inbounds pass.

Madison Scott led the Rebels with 17 points while Sira Thienou added 14 points. Ole Miss led 32-28 at halftime and 56-48 with five minutes remaining before Texas rallied.

NO. 9 TCU 80, NO. 25 BAYLOR 75

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Sedona Prince had 24 points and 14 rebounds as ninth-ranked TCU led throughout to end a 35-year losing streak to instate rival No. 25 Baylor and take over first place in the Big 12 with a victory.

The Horned Frogs (20-2, 8-1 Big 12), who joined Baylor in the Big 12 during the 2012-13 season, had lost 37 consecutive games in the series since an 83-76 win at home on Feb. 28, 1990, when both teams were in the Southwest Conference.

Sarah Andrews has 21 points with five 3-pointers for Baylor (16-5, 6-2), which had won three national championships and 13 Big 12 regular-season titles while going to 22 NCAA Tournaments since last losing to the Frogs.

Madison Conner had 21 points with four 3s for the Frogs, who led by as many as 22 points midway through the third quarter. Hailey Van Lith had 19 points while Agnes Emma-Nnopu added 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Aliyah Matharu had 14 points for Baylor, and Jada Walker scored 11.

NO. 11 KENTUCKY 89, ARKANSAS 69

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Georgia Amoore scored 19 points, Clara Strack and Teonni Key had double-doubles, as No. 11 Kentucky defeats Arkansas.

Strack had 17 points and 10 rebounds and Key contributed 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Wildcats (17-2, 6-1 SEC). Dazia Lawrence and Amelia Hassett each scored 14 points as all five starters scored in double figures. Amoore had eight assists and Hassett had seven rebounds, four assists and four blocks.

After leading 44-28 at halftime, Strack scored Kentucky’s first nine points of the third quarter to help maintain the 16-point lead. The Wildcats then blew it open when Hassett and Lawrence each went 3 for 3 from deep en route to a 77-53 advantage heading to the fourth period.

Izzy Higginbottom, the nation’s fifth-leading scorer at 22.8 ppg coming in, scored 14 of the Razorbacks’ final 19 points in the third quarter. She opened the fourth quarter with four more, but Arkansas (8-14, 1-6) never got closer than 19 points.

NO. 12 OHIO STATE 72, NEBRASKA 66

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Taylor Thierry scored 23 points, Cotie McMahon added 15 points and 10 rebounds, and No. 12 Ohio State defeated Nebraska.

Thierry’s driving layup gave the Buckeyes a 65-57 lead with about 7 1/2 minutes left in the fourth quarter but neither team scored again until Logan Nissley’s 3-pointer drew Nebraska within 65-60 with 3:45 remaining.

A three-point play by Alexis Markowski and a free throw from Callin Hake had Nebraska within 65-64. Ohio State’s scoring slump reached 5 1/2 minutes before Thierry made a 3-pointer for a 68-64 lead with two minutes to go. Markowski’s jumper on the next possession made it 68-66 but Nebraska did not score again.

The Cornhuskers missed three 3-pointers and went 0 for 2 at the line down the stretch while Madison Greene, who finished with 11 points, wrapped up the win with four free throws in the final 23 seconds for Ohio State (19-1, 8-1 Big Ten).

FLORIDA STATE 86, NO. 13 NORTH CAROLINA 84

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Ta’niya Latson scored at the buzzer and finished with 25 points as Florida State continued to dominate North Carolina on its home floor with a victory over the 13th-ranked Tar Heels.

Latson, who leads the nation with a 26.6 scoring average, sank 10 of 22 shots and 5 of 6 free throws. She added eight assists for the Seminoles (16-4, 6-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), who have not lost in Chapel Hill since 2015.

Sydney Bowles scored 18 on six 3-pointers in nine attempts for Florida State. Makayla Timpson totaled 15 points and eight rebounds. Timpson, the nation’s second-leading shot blocker, had three to reach her per-game average. Malea Williams scored nine with 11 rebounds.

Maria Gakdeng had 21 points to lead the Tar Heels (18-4, 6-3), who saw a five-game win streak end. Alyssa Ustby had 14 points and 10 rebounds for her ninth double-double this season. Reniya Kelly added 16 points and six rebounds. Lanie Grant had 13 points and Lexi Donarski scored 12.

NO. 14 DUKE 55, NO. 18 GEORGIA TECH 50

ATLANTA (AP) — Delaney Thomas, Taina Mair and Oluchi Okananwa each scored a dozen points and No. 14 Duke held No. 18 Georgia Tech to just five points in the fourth quarter as the Blue Devils earned a win.

The game was tied at 45-45 after three quarters and the Yellow Jackets (17-4, 5-4 ACC) scored first to open the fourth, but the Blue Devils (17-4. 8-1) answered with a 10-2 run. Okananwa’s layup at the four-minute mark gave Duke a 55-49 advantage and the Blue Devils did not score again. Tonie Morgan’s layup at 5:13 was Georgia Tech’s final field goal and Kara Dunn’s second of two free throws was its final score.

Duke’s offense finished 23 of 61 from the floor (37.7%), including 3 of 12 (25%) from beyond the arc. Thomas pulled down eight rebounds to go with her 12 points and Mair had five assists. Okananwa pulled down six rebounds off the bench and dished two assists.

Georgia Tech was 2 of 19 from the field in the fourth quarter and missed all seven of its 3-point attempts in the final 10 minutes. The Yellow Jackets finished the game shooting 21 of 63 from the field (33.3%) and just 1 of 20 from beyond the arc. Zoesha Smith turned in a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds to lead the offense. Dunn scored 10 points and grabbed five boards.

NO. 15 OKLAHOMA 86, GEORGIA 55

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Raegan Beers totaled 13 points and 11 rebounds and No. 15 Oklahoma was never threatened in a romp over Georgia.

Beers notched her eighth double-double of the season for the Sooners (16-4, 4-3 Southeastern Conference), who beat the Bulldogs (9-12, 1-6) for the second time in seven all-time matchups.

Payton Verhulst hit three 3-pointers and also scored 13 for Oklahoma. Sahara Williams added 12 points and Liz Scott scored 10 off the bench.

Freshman reserve Mia Woolfolk had 19 points to lead the Bulldogs — one off her season high. Asia Avinger added nine points and six rebounds.

Beers had six points and Oklahoma shot 55.6% from the floor to take a commanding 26-12 lead after one quarter.

Williams had 10 points and Scott scored nine as the Sooners cruised into halftime with a 54-30 advantage. Oklahoma made 11 of 18 from the field in the second quarter to up its percentage to 61.8 at the break. Georgia made only 11 of 33 shots overall and 2 of 11 from 3-point range.

VANDERBILT 66, NO. 19 ALABAMA 64

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Freshman Mikayla Blakes scored 33 points, Khamil Pierre had 12 points and 14 rebounds, as Vanderbilt knocks off No. 19 Alabama.

A big finish by Blakes overshadowed the career-high scoring game of Alabama’s Sarah Ashlee Barker, who had 36 points, nine rebounds, three assists and four steals. It was Barker’s first game since she suffered a lower leg injury on Jan. 2.

The Commodores led 57-51 with about five minutes left before Barker hit a 3 and her layup three minutes later tied the score at 60 with two minutes left. Blakes scored the next five for a 65-60 lead, then Barker’s 3 got the Tide within 65-63 with 41 seconds left.

Barker grabbed the rebound of a Vanderbilt miss with 13 seconds left. After a timeout she missed a contested layup with six seconds remaining.

Blakes made one of two free throws for a 66-63 lead. Vandy fouled Barker, who made the first free throw and missed the second. Vanderbilt rebounded to wrap up the win.

Alabama’s 23 turnovers included 17 Vandy steals, five by Pierre.

NO. 20 NC STATE 85, VIRGINIA TECH 57

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Aziaha James scored 25 points and Saniya Rivers added 17 on 7-of-11 shooting to help No. 20 North Carolina State beat Virginia Tech for the Wolfpack’s fifth consecutive win.

Madison Hayes and Zoe Brooks scored 12 points apiece for N.C. State (16-4, 8-1 ACC), has won 12 of its last 13 games. The Wolfpack, who leads the all-time series 27-6, snapped a four-game skid against Virginia Tech.

Hayes made a layup to open the scoring 12 seconds into the game and N.C. State led the rest of the way. James hit a 3-pointer that pushed the lead into double figures for good and sparked an 11-0 run. Rivers stole the ball and took it the other way for a layup to cap the spurt and make it 26-8 and N.C. State used its highest-scoring first quarter (29 points) to take a 17-point lead into the second.

The Wolfpack made 19 of 30 (63%) from the field, limited Virginia Tech to 38% (12 of 32) shooting, and outscored the Hokies 16-0 in fast-break points before the break to take a 44-29 lead into halftime.

Carleigh Wenzel scored 18 points for Virginia Tech (14-6, 5-4). Carys Baker made 7 of 11 from the field and added 15 points. Rose Micheaux, who went into the game second on the team in scoring (12.8 per game) and first in rebounding (8.7), battled foul trouble and finished with four points and tied her season low with four rebounds.

NO. 23 MINNESOTA 71, WISCONSIN 50

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Grace Grocholski scored 17 points, Mallory Heyer posted a double-double and No. 23 Minnesota pulled away in the second half to beat Wisconsin, handing the Badgers their eighth straight loss.

Grocholski made 5 of 8 shots with four 3-pointers and 3 of 4 free throws for the Golden Gophers (18-3, 6-3 Big Ten Conference). Heyer totaled 15 points and 11 rebounds for her second double-double of the season. Sophie Hart matched season highs with 16 points and four assists. Tori McKinney scored 14 with three steals.

Serah Williams totaled 16 points and six rebounds to pace the Badgers (10-10, 1-8). She also committed eight of Wisconsin’s 23 turnovers.

The game was tied at 14-all after one quarter and it was all even at 28-apiece at halftime. Grocholski scored half of Minnesota’s total at the break, while Williams had 12 points for Wisconsin. Grocholski made 4 of 6 shots in the first half while her teammates sank only 5 of 27. The Golden Gophers missed 14 of 17 tries from 3-point range. The Badgers shot 50% from the floor but took nine fewer shots. Minnesota scored 10 points off of 11 Wisconsin turnovers.

The Associated Press