No. 1/1 UConn won the American regular season championship outright with a victory over Memphis during women's basketball action around The American on Saturday.
No. 1/1 UConn 87, Memphis 24
Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis scored her 2,000th career point and Kiah Stokes blocked her 300th career shot in UConn's 87-24 win over Memphis Saturday afternoon at Gampel Pavilion. The Huskies secured their 21st regular-season conference championship with the win and their second in as many years in The American. UConn built an early 10-2 lead on three straight baskets in transition and limited the Tigers to 13.3-percent shooting in the opening half. Ariel Hearn led Memphis with seven points while Asia Fuqua-Bey, Mooriah Rowser and Courtney Powell each added four points.
Cincinnati 56, SMU 46
Behind freshman Makenzie Cann's career-high 15 points, Cincinnati defeated SMU, 56-46, Saturday afternoon at Moody Coliseum. The Bearcats outscored the Mustangs 20-9 over the final six minutes to secure the win. Marley Hill accounted for 12 of those points, scoring four of her six buckets down the stretch. Cann's five 3-pointers were a career-best as were Jasmine Whitfield's 11 rebounds. Destynee Hives-McCray led SMU with 13 points off the bench. Stephanie Collins had 10 points and Morgan Bolton added nine points and four steals.
RV/RV USF 99, UCF 71
Three players scored 20 or more points for USF a 99-71 win over in-state rival UCF Saturday afternoon at CFE Arena. The Bulls got a career-high 24 points from freshman Laura Ferreira along with 28 from Courtney Williams and 20 from Alisia Jenkins. Jenkins added 14 rebounds for her 21st double-double of the season. The Knights trailed by just two points at the break and shot 55-percent in the first half, connecting on 7-of-12 shots from 3-point range. Zykira Lewis scored a team-high 20 points for UCF while Aliyah Gregory added 16. Andrea Hines chipped in a season-high 14 points.
Temple 79, East Carolina 69
In a battle of 10-6 teams vying for a higher seed in the conference championship, it was Temple that came out on top, snapping East Carolina's six-game win streak. The Owls defeated the Pirates at McGonigle Hall, 79-69, and improved to 15-15 overall and 11-6 in The American with the win. East Carolina fell to 19-9 overall and 10-7 in league play with the loss. Erica Covile (Temple) and I’Tiana Taylor (East Carolina) tied for a game-high with 22 points. Covile added a team-high nine rebounds and Taylor shot 10-for-13 (.769) from the field.
Tulsa 55, Tulane 52
Kelsee Grovey’s two 3-pointers in the final 1:23 gave Tulsa a five-point lead and the Hurricane held on for a 55-52 victory over Tulane Saturday afternoon at the Donald W. Reynolds Center. Grovey had 15 points for Tulsa in a game that saw 13 lead changes and five ties. Chinwe Duru scored 15 points for the Green Wave while Tiffany Dale chipped in 10 points and a season-high 15 rebounds. Tulsa shot 54-percent from 3-point range and finished 7-of-13, while Tulane connected on just 13-percent (2-of-15).