Sarah Strong scored a game-high 18 points Saturday and top-seeded Connecticut cruised to a 90-52 rout of 16th-seeded UTSA in the first round of the Fort Worth Region 1 in Storrs, Conn.
Three other players finished in double figures for the defending NCAA champion Huskies (35-0), who advanced to a second-round matchup Monday against No. 9 Syracuse. Blanca Quinonez came off the bench for 15, Ashlynn Shade added 14 points and Kayleigh Heckel chipped in 11 points plus five assists.
Ereauna Hardaway, Damara Allen and Cheyenne Rowe each scored 11 points for the Roadrunners (18-16). UTSA struggled to hit shots and take care of the ball against UConn’s tough defense, hitting only 20 of 49 from the field and coughing up 27 turnovers that were cashed in for 35 points.
The Huskies opened up a 19-6 lead after one quarter that turned into a 48-14 advantage by halftime. They led by many as 47 points in the fourth quarter.
No. 3 Ohio State 75, No. 14 Howard 54
Jaloni Cambridge scored 21 points and sister Kennedy Cambridge added 11 points with seven rebounds as the Buckeyes rolled to victory over the Bison in a Fort Worth Region 1 game at Columbus, Ohio.
Chance Gray and Ava Watson also scored 11 points each and Elsa Lemmila added 11 rebounds as the Buckeyes (27-7) advanced to face sixth-seeded Notre Dame.
Zennia Thomas scored 15 points and Ariella Henigan added 14 points with 10 rebounds as the Bison (26-8) saw their 14-game winning streak come to an end.
Ohio State shot 45.0% from the floor while holding Howard to 33.9% overall and 0 of 9 from 3-point range.
The Bison led 14-12 with less than two minutes remaining in the first quarter before the Buckeyes went on a 12-0 run between the first and second quarters. Ohio State added a 13-0 run just before halftime to lead 43-19 at the break and Howard never threatened in the second half.
No. 6 Notre Dame 79, No. 11 Fairfield 60
Hannah Hidalgo flirted with a quadruple-double as the Fighting Irish pulled away from the Stags for the win in the first-round game in Columbus, Ohio.
Hidalgo scored a game-high 23 points while adding nine rebounds, eight steals and six assists as the Fighting Irish (23-10) advanced to a second-round game against Ohio State Monday.
Iyana Moore added 18 points and Cassandre Prosper chipped in 17 points and rebounds for Notre Dame. The Irish sank 46.9% of their field-goal attempts and earned a 43-30 rebounding advantage. They also dominated paint points, doubling up the Stags 44-22.
Meghan Andersen scored 21 points for Fairfield (28-5). Jillian Huerter added 12 and Janelle Brown came off the bench for 10 points but it wasn’t enough. The Stags hit only 38.3 % of their field-goal attempts and committed 19 turnovers that led to 22 points.
Notre Dame never trailed and led for all but 15 seconds of the game. It led by as many as 23 points in the third quarter.
No. 9 Syracuse 72, No. 8 Iowa State 63
A humongous second quarter helped the Orange take down the Cyclones in Storrs, Ct., despite a remarkable individual effort from Audi Crooks.
Led by Uche Izoje’s 23 points and seven rebounds, Syracuse (24-8) pulled away after facing an early deficit with a 30-point second quarter which included a 13-0 run. Olivia Schmitt hit three of her five 3s during this stretch, finishing with 15 points, while Laila Phelia chipped in 18 and Sophie Burrows paired 14 points with nine rebounds.
Crooks racked up 37 points on 17-of-25 shooting, but Iowa State (22-10) still lost its NCAA Tournament opener for the third time in the last four years after starting this season 14-0 and reaching 10th in the AP poll. The Cyclones held a sizable 42-10 edge in paint points but were 3-of-22 (13.6%) from outside the arc.
–Field Level Media
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