No. 3 UConn women beat No. 23 Tennessee in rivalry renewal
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Crystal Dangerfield scored 14 points and No. 3 UConn used a dominant third quarter to beat 23rd-ranked Tennessee 60-45 on Thursday night — the first matchup in 13 years between the teams whose rivalry dominated the sport for over a decade.
Trailing by three at the half, the Huskies (17-1) scored 17 of the first 19 points in the third quarter, taking a 45-33 lead on Dangerfield’s 3-pointer with 1:45 left in the period. UConn led by 11 after three and Tennessee could get no closer in the fourth quarter.
Rennia Davis scored 16 points to lead the Lady Vols (15-4).
Thursday night provided a little bit of nostalgia for those who remembered how these two teams carried women’s basketball for over a decade since their first historic meeting in 1995 that was a 1 vs 2 showdown. They played 22 times over a 12-year span, with each one being a circle-the-calendar game whether it was in Tennessee, Connecticut or the NCAA Tournament.
The series ended after the 2007 season when then-Tennessee coach Pat Summitt called it off. Geno Auriemma said at the time that Summitt had accused the Huskies of a recruiting violation. Summitt never went public into specifics about why she ended the series. She died in 2016 at age 64 of Alzheimer’s disease.
Former Tennessee coach Holly Warlick, a longtime assistant of Summitt’s who helped set up Thursday’s game, told the AP that the reason she agreed to restart the series was because it will benefit the Pat Summitt Foundation. The two teams will play in Knoxville next season. Proceeds from both games will go to it, along with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
UConn donated $10,000 to Summitt’s foundation with Auriemma and Tennessee coach Kellie Harper taking part in a ceremony at the half. The Huskies also are auctioning off the black uniforms they wore for the game with the proceeds going to the foundation.
NO. 8 NORTH CAROLINA STATE 88, PITTSBURGH 44
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Jakia Brown-Turner scored 13 points and North Carolina State used a 30-4 scoring outburst in the third quarter to beat Pittsburgh.
The Wolfpack (18-1, 7-1 in Atlantic Coast Conference) had a 28-2 run around the halftime break and used the lopsided scoring advantage in the third period to turn it into a round.
Dayshanette Harris had 16 points for Pittsburgh (3-15, 0-7).
NO. 14 FLORIDA STATE 70, WAKE FOREST 65
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — River Baldwin scored all 12 of her points in the second half to help Florida State beat Wake Forest 70-65.
Nicki Ekhomu scored all 14 of her points and Kiah Gillespie eight of her 14 in the first half when the Seminoles (16-3, 5-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) jumped out to 35-19 lead.
Ivana Raca scored 14 of her 27 points and grabbed six of her seven rebounds in the third quarter when the Demon Deacons (11-8, 4-4) scored 25 points to get within eight.
NO. 17 INDIANA 76, PENN STATE 60
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. (AP) — Ali Patberg had 18 points and nine assists, Mackenzie Holmes also scored 18 points and Indiana beat Penn State.
Holmes was 9 of 11 from the field to help Indiana (15-5, 5-3 Big Ten) snap a three-game losing streak and extend Penn State’s skid to four games.
Kamaria McDaniel led Penn State (7-12, 1-7) with 24 points.
GEORGIA 64, NO. 21 ARKANSAS 55
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Gabby Connally scored 18 points and Georgia bridged the third and fourth quarters with a 15-0 run to beat Arkansas.
Que Morrison added 11 points for Georgia (12-7, 3-3 Southeastern Conference).
Erynn Barnum led Arkansas (15-4, 3-3) with 14 points.
NO. 22 NORTHWESTERN 76, MICHIGAN STATE 48
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Lindsey Pulliam and Veronica Burton each scored 22 points and Northwestern beat Michigan State for its fifth straight victory.
Northwestern (17-2, 7-1 Big Ten), ranked in the AP Top 25 poll for the first time since 2016, is 8-0 at home.
Moira Joiner made five 3-points and scored 17 points for Michigan State (11-8, 4-4).
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