Oluchi Okananwa scored 23 points to lead No. 22 Maryland to an emphatic 86-70 road win over No. 12 Michigan State on Wednesday in East Lansing, Michigan.
The Terrapins (18-6, 6-6 Big Ten Conference) went on a 21-5 tear in the second quarter that included an 8-0 run, building a double-digit-point lead that buoyed the Terps for much of the second half.
The Spartans (19-4, 8-4) cut a 10-point halftime deficit to six early in the third quarter, but Maryland responded with an 11-2 run that gave the Terps a cushion the rest of the way. Okananwa led five Maryland scorers in double figures, with Yarden Garzon adding 16 points while playing all 40 minutes.
Saylor Poffenbarger added 13 points, and reserves Kyndal Walker and Mir McLean scored 14 and 10 points off the bench. Grace VanSlooten led Michigan State with 19 points and a game-high nine rebounds.
No. 15 Baylor 76, Cincinnati 70
Taliah Scott’s 26 points helped the Bears avoid a stunning upset on the road in Big 12 Conference play versus the Bearcats.
Baylor (20-4, 9-2 Big 12) led a Cincinnati team languishing near the bottom of the league standings by just two points early in the fourth quarter, but Scott found Darianna Littlepage-Buggs for a basket and then connected on a 3-pointer to help launch an 11-5 spurt for the Bears.
Scott’s 5-of-11 3-point shooting made a huge difference for the Bears, as Cincinnati (8-15, 3-8) connected on more field goals as a team (26-of-60 to Baylor’s 23-of-63). However, the Bearcats managed just 6-of-18 shooting from deep.
Mya Perry scored 20 points for Cincinnati.
No. 8 Michigan 88, Nebraska 76
Olivia Olson delivered a 21-point, 10-rebound double-double, and Syla Sword poured in 28 points as the Wolverines ran past the Cornhuskers in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
The Wolverines (20-3, 11-1 Big Ten) rallied from a narrow halftime deficit, but not before Nebraska (16-7, 5-7) scored the first two hoops after intermission. The two went back-and-forth until Michigan broke a 62-62 stalemate with a 9-2 run that stretched into the final period.
The Wolverines put the Huskers away for good with another 9-2 spurt to close out the game, holding Nebraska without a point for a stretch lasting almost three minutes.
Amiah Hargrove and Britt Prince led the Huskers with 16 points apiece in the loss.
No. 1 UConn 80, DePaul 46
Azzi Fudd’s 4-of-6 3-point shooting and 25 points led the way as the Huskies cruised to their 40th consecutive victory with Wednesday’s romp over the Blue Demons in Chicago.
UConn (24-0, 13-0 Big East Conference) extended its winning streak that began last season and ran through the national championship game, facing little resistance against conference counterpart DePaul (5-20, 2-12).
Fudd’s 10-of-17 overall shooting from the floor set the pace, as every Husky to see the floor made at least one field goal. UConn went a blistering 37-of-61 overall, including 7-of-14 from beyond the 3-point arc.
DePaul managed only 15-of-54 shooting from the floor and 4-of-23 from deep, while also committing 18 turnovers. Four Huskies came away with multiple steals, led by Fudd and KK Arnold each with three.
No. 14 TCU 90, Houston 45
Marta Suarez posted a double-double with 24 points and 10 rebounds, Olivia Miles scored 25 points, and the Horned Frogs doubled up on the visiting Cougars in Fort Worth, Texas.
TCU (21-3, 9-2 Big 12) opened the second quarter with a 15-2 run that effectively put the game out of reach early for Houston (7-15, 1-10). Suarez put up nine points during the pivotal burst.
Miles, meanwhile, shot 9-of-11 from the floor to power TCU’s 58-percent shooting as a team. The Horned Frogs limited the Cougars to just 30 percent shooting on the other end, including 2-of-12 (17 percent) from 3-point range.
With the rout, TCU maintained pace alongside Baylor atop the Big 12.
No. 20 West Virginia 61, Colorado 55
Jordan Harrison scored 18 points to help the Mountaineers hold off the Buffaloes 61-55 in Boulder, Colorado.
West Virginia (19-5, 9-3 Big 12 Conference) held Colorado (15-8, 6-5) to just 21 second-half points and 19-of-53 shooting from the floor for the game. The Mountaineers’ defensive effort helped West Virginia endure its own offensive struggles while maintaining a lead almost throughout.
The Buffs made a late-game push, pulling to within one possession down the stretch but could not completely bridge the gap. Jade Masogayo led Colorado with 13, while Desiree Wooten and Logyn Greer added 12 and 11 points off the bench.
Gia Cooke scored 12 points for West Virginia, which stayed within a game in the loss column behind Baylor and TCU atop the Big 12.
No. 2 UCLA 86, Rutgers 46
Kiki Rice’s 17 points led five Bruins scoring in double figures as they blitzed the Scarlet Knights in a Big Ten Conference rout in Los Angeles.
UCLA (22-1, 12-0 Big Ten) gave up a game-opening 3-pointer to Faith Blackstone, then proceeded to score the next 19 points. The Bruins rolled from there, dominating Rutgers (9-14, 1-11) in all phases.
Gabriela Jaquez scored 14 points, Charlisse Leger-Walker and Lauren Betts each went for 11 points and Sienna Betts scored another 11 points coming off the bench. The Bruins shot 32-of-57 from the floor while holding the Scarlet Knights to just 17-of-51, and UCLA leveraged Rutgers’ 33% field-goal shooting into a whopping 41-18 rebounding advantage.
Rice and Angela Dugalic each pulled down seven boards to lead UCLA to its 16th consecutive win.
–Field Level Media
