Williams, No. 7 LSU outlast No. 13 Oklahoma 107-100
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Mikaylah Williams scored 37 points, including a 3-pointer to start a game-closing 6-0 run, and No. 7 LSU outlasted No. 13 Oklahoma 107-100 on Thursday night.
Flau’Jae Johnson added 25 points and Aneesah Morrow scored 21 for the Tigers (22-1, 7-1 Southeastern Conference), who led by 24 points late in the third quarter before allowing the Sooners (16-5, 4-4) to rally.
LSU forward Sa’Myah Smith and Oklahoma forward Liz Scott were ejected after some shoving midway through the first quarter of the extremely physical game, which also featured three technical fouls.
Oklahoma scored 17 second-half points off 11 turnovers, fueling a comeback that twice cut LSU’s lead to one point in the final 1:35.
Payton Verhulst led the Sooners with 26 points. Raegan Beers had 20.
NO. 3 NOTRE DAME 77, VIRGINIA TECH 61
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) — Hannah Hidalgo scored 30 points to lift No. 3 Notre Dame to a victory over Virginia Tech.
Hidalgo shot 10 of 16 from the floor and made all seven of her free throws for the Fighting Irish (18-2, 9-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), who won their 13th straight game and beat Virginia Tech for the seventh consecutive time.
Carys Baker led the Hokies (14-7, 5-5) with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Virginia Tech lost its second in a row and third in its last five games.
The Irish, who led by just four points at halftime, opened the second half with a 12-3 run and gradually pulled away. Hidalgo scored seven points during the run and Olivia Miles had the other five.
Miles finished with 15 points and Liza Karlen added 12 for the Irish, who shot 50.9% (27 of 53).
NO. 4 SOUTHERN CAL 82, MINNESOTA 69
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kiki Iriafen scored 23 points, JuJu Watkins added 20 and fourth-ranked Southern California led throughout to defeat Minnesota and extend its winning streak to 15 games.
Watkins, who leads the Big Ten in scoring at 24.6 points per game, missed her first 10 shots from the field and was 7 of 24 overall for USC (19-1, 9-0 Big Ten). The sophomore guard had only 2 points at halftime on a pair of free throws. She didn’t make her first shot until 16 seconds into the third quarter on a pullup jumper.
Iriafren and Watkins also had 11 rebounds apiece. It was Iriafren’s seventh double-double of the season and the fourth for Watkins.
Sophie Hart led Minnesota (18-4, 6-4) with 18 points. Mallory Heyer added 17.
NO. 7 TEXAS 70, MISSOURI 61
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Taylor Jones scored 17 points, Madison Booker added 16 and No. 5 Texas defeated Missouri for its fifth straight win and 18th in a row at home.
Jones scored 11 in the first half for Texas (21-2, 7-1 Southeastern Conference), which began its home winning streak in January 2024. Booker had nine points in the third quarter, when the Longhorns outscored Missouri 19-10 and led for the first time.
Rori Harmon made a jumper with 2:39 left and Shay Holle followed with a 3-pointer 22 seconds later, giving Texas an eight-point lead. Harmon secured the win with two free throws with 38 seconds remaining.
Laniah Randle led Missouri (12-11, 1-7) with 22 points. Grace Slaughter scored 16.
NO. 11 KANSAS STATE 87, IOWA STATE 79
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Serena Sundell scored 23 points and had eight assists, and No. 11 Kansas State beat Iowa State in overtime on for its 14th straight home win.
Jaelyn Glenn scored five points and Sundrell hit a 3-pointer during a 10-2 surge to open the extra period. The Wildcats outscored Iowa State 16-8 in overtime.
Taryn Sides made four 3s and added 17 points for Kansas State (20-2, 8-1 Big 12), which bounced back from a 63-53 loss at Colorado that ended a 14-game win streak.
Zyanna Walker added 11 points for the Wildcats. Glenn and Temira Poindexter finished with 10 points apiece.
Iowa State trailed the entire second half until Reagan Wilson hit a 3-pointer and Addy Brown added a layup with 24 seconds left in regulation to end a 7-2 surge and tie it 71-all. Sundell missed a jumper on K-State’s final possession to force overtime.
Audi Crooks scored 28 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead Iowa State (15-8, 6-4). Brown chipped in with 20 points and eight assists.
NO. 12 KENTUCKY 65, NO. 22 ALABAMA 56
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Georgia Amoore scored eight of her 16 points in the third quarter, Clara Strack had a double-double and No. 12 Kentucky beat No. 22 Alabama.
Amoore shot 6 of 16 from the floor and made two from distance to go with nine assists. Strack finished with 14 points and 14 rebounds for her 10th double-double. Amelia Hassett added 11 points and Dazia Lawrence had 10 for Kentucky (18-2, 7-1 Southeastern Conference), which has won 11 of its last 12 games.
Sarah Ashlee Barker scored 22 points on 8-of-18 shooting to lead Alabama (17-5, 4-4). Zaay Green added 14 points.
Alabama built a 21-15 advantage in the first quarter but Kentucky outscored the Crimson Tide 19-9 in the second for a 34-30 halftime lead. Amoore’s 3-pointer sparked a 9-2 surge to end the third quarter that stretched the Wildcats’ lead to 52-40 entering the fourth.
NO. 15 NORTH CAROLINA 65, NO. 19 CALIFORNIA 52
BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) — Reniya Kelly scored 16 points and No. 15 North Carolina pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat No. 19 California, spoiling a banner night for the Golden Bears’ Ioanna Krimili.
Kelly scored eight in the final period to help the Tar Heels (19-4, 7-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) outscore the Golden Bears (18-4, 6-3) by 11.
Krimili hit four 3-pointers to set a school record for a single season with her 66th. It was also the 403rd of her career — making her the 16th woman to top 400 in NCAA history.
North Carolina took a 47-45 lead into the fourth quarter, but Kelly and Maria Gakdeng both scored four in a 13-4 run to begin the period.
Alyssa Ustby finished with 11 points and seven rebounds. Gakdeng totaled nine points and 13 rebounds. Lanie Grant scored 10 off the bench.
Krimili scored 20 to lead Cal, which is still off to its best start in 12 seasons. The Bears were coming off their first regular-season sweep of Stanford since the 1985-86 season. Ugonne Onyiah scored 14 on 6-for-7 shooting.
OREGON 63, NO. 16 MICHIGAN STATE 59
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Peyton Scott scored 12 points, Phillipina Kyei had nine points, 10 rebounds and two late free throws, and Oregon beat No. 16 Michigan State for the Spartans’ first home loss this season.
Oregon led 35-23 at halftime and 55-40 after three quarter before Michigan State started the fourth on a 15-3 run, capped by Julia Ayrault’s basket with 4 minutes remaining. But the Spartans would not make another field goal until there were 1.3 seconds left on a 3-pointer by Ines Sotelo.
Oregon also went cold down the stretch, with its only field goal of the fourth quarter coming on Deja Kelly’s jumper from the free-throw line with 5:36 left.
Kyei went 1 of 6 from the free-throw line before sinking two with 13.9 seconds left for a 63-56 lead.
Kelly finished with 10 points, seven rebounds and five assists for Oregon (16-5, 7-3 Big Ten), which has won four straight and seven of its last eight. Nani Falatea totaled 10 points and five rebounds off the bench.
Ayrault and reserve Grace VanSlooten, who played two seasons at Oregon, each scored 14 points for Michigan State (17-4, 7-3). Theryn Hallock added 12 points.
NO. 17 NC STATE 90, WAKE FOREST 83
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Zoe Brooks scored 18 points and No. 17 N.C. State pulled away in the third quarter and beat Wake Forest.
Brooks scored seven points as N.C. State outscored Wake Forest 23-8 in the third quarter for a 70-49 advantage heading to the fourth.
Zamareya Jones added 17 points off the bench for the Wolfpack. Saniya Rivers scored 13 points and Tilda Trygger added 12.
N.C. State (17-4, 9-1 ACC) has won six straight games, 13 of its last 14 and is 13-0 at home.
Rylie Theuerkauf scored 25 points on 10-of-15 shooting and made three 3-pointers to lead Wake Forest (8-13, 1-9), which shot 52% (32 of 62) from the floor but committed 17 turnovers. Raegyn Conley added 21 points.
The Wolfpack led 83-63 with 3:30 remaining, but the Demon Deacons scored the next five points to spark a 20-5 run to get within 88-83 with 14 seconds left.
NO. 23 VANDERBILT 99, FLORIDA 86
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Mikayla Blakes scored an NCAA freshman record 53 points after making 16 field goals and 16 free throws to help No. 23 Vanderbilt beat Florida.
Blakes, who scored 33 in a win over then-No. 19 Alabama last time out and whose previous season high was 36, broke the previous freshman mark of 51, set last season by Southern California’s JuJu Watkins.
Blakes is the only player in Division I — men’s or women’s — to score at least 50 points in a game this season.
Iyana Moore added 22 points, seven rebounds and six assists for Vanderbilt (18-4, 5-3 SEC). Khamil Pierre scored just three points on 1-of-10 shooting but finished with 11 rebounds and three steals.
Moore scored five points in a 9-0 run that gave the Commodores a 19-14 lead. Blakes hit four 3-pointers and converted two three-point plays as she alone outscored Florida 18-10 in the second quarter and Vanderbilt took a 46-26 lead into the intermission.
The Gators used an 18-7 spurt to trim their deficit to 82-74 with 4:44 to play but Blakes scored 14 points from there — compared to just 12 by Florida — to seal it.
Ra Shaya Kyle made 11 of 15 from the field and finished with 23 points and 12 rebounds for Florida (11-11, 2-6). Liv McGill scored 20 points, Jeriah Warren added 13 points and Laila Reynolds scored 10.
NO. 25 FLORIDA STATE 104, BOSTON COLLEGE 80
BOSTON (AP) — Ta’Niya Latson and Makayla Timpson scored 21 points apiece and No. 25 Florida State beat Boston College for its fourth win in a row.
Latson added eight rebounds and seven assists, while Timpson was 9-of-10 shooting with 11 rebounds and three blocks. O’Mariah Gordon added 13 points and Malea Williams 10 for Florida State (17-4, 7-2 ACC).
Teya Sidberry scored a season-high 28 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for Boston College (12-11, 3-7). T’yana Todd added 14 points and Tatum Green 13.
Todd converted a three-point play and then hit a 3-pointer 24 seconds apart to cap a 12-2 run to open the second quarter that gave Boston College its first lead at 28-27. Timpson answered with a basket in the lane 20 seconds later and FSU never again trailed.
Williams scored eight points in a 17-4 run that made it 47-34 with 1:14 left until halftime and a 9-1 spurt early in the third quarter pushed Florida State’s lead into double figures for good.
The Eagles have lost three consecutive games.
Florida State shot 51% (40 of 79), hit 10 3-pointers and outscored Boston College 25-8 in second-chance points.