Friday, Feb. 7 - Sunday, Feb. 8
Highlights
UConn 94, Memphis 55
Megan Walker scored 26 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead No. 4 UConn to a 94-55 rout of Memphis on Friday night.
Christyn Williams added 20 points and Olivia Nelson-Ododa had 19 points, making all nine of her shots for the Huskies (20-2, 10-0 American), who have won 20 games for the 27th straight year.
Madison Griggs scored 15 points for Memphis (12-11, 3-7), which lost for the first time in three games.
This game was sandwiched between the UConn's embarrassing 74-56 loss Monday night to Oregon and next Monday's game at top-ranked South Carolina.
But the Huskies did not play distracted.
Williams opened the scoring with a 3-pointer from the right baseline, UConn scored the first seven points and never trailed.
Freshman Anna Makurat had five of her season-high 11 assists in the first quarter and the Huskies had the game well under control after 10 minutes, leading 27-11.
UConn took its first 20-point lead at 39-17 on another of Williams four 3-pointers and led 54-23 at the break.
Walker took control of the offense after intermission, scoring 14 points and pulling down nine rebounds in the third quarter as the Huskies extended the lead to 79-38.
ECU 53, Houston 50
What once looked like a comfortable win ended up coming down to the final possession, but the ECU women's basketball team held on to beat Houston 53-50 on Saturday afternoon in Minges Coliseum.
ECU (5-17, 2-7 AAC) won its second straight game at home and had four players score in double-figures in both of those wins. Lashonda Monk, Dominique Claytor and Ryann Evans all had 12 points to lead the Pirates while Taniyah Thompson finished with 11 points. Monk added seven assists and seven steals while Claytor had nine rebounds for the third time in four games. Evans added seven boards of her own.
Houston (12-12, 5-5 AAC) was led by Dorian Branch, who finished with 22 points and recorded her 1,000th career point in the contest. Tatyana Hill had her second straight double-double against the Pirates, finishing with 12 points and 13 rebounds while Bria Patterson finished with 10 points.
Through the first three quarters, the ECU defense had been stifling. The Pirates allowed Houston to shoot just 12-of-41 (.293) from the field during the first three quarters and forced 23 Cougar turnovers. That helped ECU build a 42-27 lead with just 8:33 to go.
Although Houston cut into the lead, thanks to seven points from Patterson and four points from Branch, a layup by Thompson at the 2:33 mark put ECU up 48-38.
From there though, the Pirates had to hold on for dear life. Branch hit a three and then Hill made a pair of free throws on the next possession to cut the lead to five. Monk was fouled on a jumper with 1:18 to go and made two free throws of her own, but Branch came down and nailed a triple to get Houston within four.
After an ECU turnover, Branch found Hill for a layup and it was a one possession game. The Cougars got a stop and had a chance to tie the game, but had an unforced turnover to give ECU the ball again.
Monk was fouled with just 18 seconds to go and made her first free throw and missed the second, but ECU was able to control the rebound. Evans was then fouled and she made one of two to push the lead to four. After a Houston miss, Evans grabbed her seventh rebound and was once again sent to the free throw line. When Evans hit one-of-two, ECU led by five with just 11 seconds remaining.
However, Houston made sure that lead was not comfortable for the Pirates. Blackshell-Fair made a running jumper with three seconds left and then the Cougars forced ECU into a turnover, giving Houston the ball with a chance to tie. Branch got free in the corner and thought she had the game-tying shot, but Tiara Chambers flew out to swat it away, preserving the win for the Pirates.
Cincinnati 73, SMU 58
IImar'I Thomas scored a team-high 19 points, including 13 in the second half, as the University of Cincinnati women's basketball team used a big third quarter to blow open a close contest on its way to scoring a big 73-58 win at SMU Saturday inside Moody Arena in Dallas.
The win, UC's second in a row and second road win in league play, pushed the Bearcats' record to 15-7 overall and 6-3 in the American while the Mustangs fell to 9-12 overall and 3-6 in the AAC.
After trailing much of the first half, the Bearcats fought their way back into the lead, taking a 32-31 lead into halftime after posting a 5-2 run to close out the final three minutes of the second quarter. Antoinette Miller led the charge with 10 points while Sam Rodgers collected seven with the team forcing the Mustangs into 10 turnovers while blocking five shots as well.
Following the break, the Bearcats hit the gas and turned up the heat as they went on a 16-0 run to open the half and didn't look back. Along with Thomas' big half, Angel Rizor continued her solid play on the day as she scored six, grabbed six boards and stole one pass to finish the game with nine points, a season-high 13 boards, a season-high three blocks and a pair of steals.
SMU received a dominant 25-point, 12-rebound performance from Johnasia Cash, setting a new career-high for the junior. Reagan Bradley broke the Mustangs’ single-season assist record for a freshman on the game, now owning 98 on the season.
USF 99, Temple 51
The University of South Florida women's basketball team turned in its most complete game of the season as the Bulls dominated Temple en route to an impressive 99-51 win over the Owls on Sunday afternoon at the Yuengling Center. The win improves USF to 14-9 on the year and 6-3 in The American, while Temple falls to 13-10 overall and 5-5 in conference play. The Bulls' 99 points is the second-most scored by an American Athletic Conference team his season.
Elena Tsineke poured in a career-high 25 points, with 21 points coming in the first half, and Sydni Harvey tied her career best, equaling Tsineke with 25 points. Both players were on fire from the field, right from the opening tip. Tsineke was 8-for-18 from the floor, 3-for-7 from behind the arc, and a perfect 6-for-6 from the free-throw line. Harvey had a near perfect offensive performance shooting 7-for-10 from the field, including 7-for-8 from long range, and 4-for-4 from the line. Harvey's seven treys marked a single game career-high.
In what was a crucial game for USF in The American standings, the Bulls made this one a no-doubter after the first 20 minutes of play. USF jumped out to a 26-8 lead at the end of the first quarter and then started the second on a 21-0 run, taking a 58-16 lead into the locker room at the break. The Green and Gold outscored the Owls 32-8 in the second quarter. The Bulls' 58 first half points tied for the 14th most scored in a half in program history. A big chunk of that came from the hands of Tsineke who surpassed her career-high in the first half.
USF rotated its lineup freely in the second half as all nine players that saw the court found their way into the scoring column.
The Bulls finished the game shooting season highs of 57.4 percent (35-for-61) from the field, 52 percent (13-for-25) from behind the arc, and 94.1 percent (16-for-17) from the charity stripe.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
