No. 3 UCLA gains sole possession of first place in Big Ten with 96-48 win over Purdue

By Canadian Press on January 21, 2026.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Gabriela Jaquez scored 25 points on 10-of-11 shooting, and No. 3 UCLA routed Purdue 96-48 on Wednesday night to take sole possession of first place in the Big Ten.

The Bruins (18-1, 8-0) moved out of a tie with idle Iowa with their 12th straight win.

UCLA took control from tipoff, scoring the game’s first seven points and ending the quarter with consecutive midrange jumpers from Lauren Betts in a display of the 6-foot-7 senior’s range. She had eight points in eight minutes. Betts finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds

The Bruins outscored Purdue 27-7 over the end of the first and start of the second quarter. Kiki Rice scored nine points, Gianna Kneepkens had eight and Betts six. The spurt gave UCLA a 29-point lead, its biggest of the half before going into the break ahead 46-20.

The Bruins were overwhelming on the defensive end, too. They forced 14 turnovers that led to 20 points in the first two quarters, held the Boilermakers to 1 of 11 3-pointers, and 8-of-27 shooting from the field.

Nya Smith scored 14 points for Purdue (10-9, 2-6), which fell to 1-7 on the road. Avery Gordon, a rare 6-7 equal to Betts, had 13 points.

NO. 14 BAYLOR 73, UCF 48

WACO, Texas (AP) — Taliah Scott scored 17 of her 22 points in the first half and Darianna Littlepage-Buggs recorded her 10th double-double of the season and Baylor beat UCF.

Littlepage-Buggs scored 13 points and grabbed 18 rebounds; the second most of her career. She’s grabbed 20 boards twice – on Jan. 4 in a 72-70 win against Iowa State and Dec. 8, 2024, in a 71-64 victory over UNLV.

Scott finished 4-for-10 shooting from 3-point range. Baylor sank 12 3-pointers to just two for UCF.

Khyala Ngodu had 11 points and 12 rebounds, and reserve Krystol Ayson scored 10 points for the Knights.

BYU 73, NO. 19 TEXAS TECH 61

PROVO, Utah (AP) — Olivia Hamlin scored 20 points, Delaney Gibb tallied 17, and BYU trailed for less than a minute of game time in a win over Texas Tech.

The Cougars (15-4, 4-3 Big 12) won their first game against a ranked team since a 68-64 win on Feb. 15, 2025 against then-No. 20 Oklahoma State. They are 3-7 in their last 10 games against ranked opponents, and 23-55 historically.

After Texas Tech hit a game-opening 3-pointer, BYU went on a 7-0 run that gave them the lead for good. A 9-0 run to start the fourth quarter extended their lead to double-digits, and they cruised to a comfortable victory.

Laura Rokohl added 15 points on 6-for-9 shooting for BYU and grabbed eight rebounds. Gibb dished a team-high six assists. Hamlin was 9-of-15 from the floor and 2-for-5 from beyond the arc.

For the Lady Raiders (19-2, 6-2), Snudda Collins scored 17 points and Jalynn Bristow came one point shy of a double-double with nine points and 11 rebounds. The Lady Raiders have lost two straight after their 19-0 start.

NO. 22 WEST VIRGINIA 53, ARIZONA STATE 43

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Kierra Wheeler scored 16 points and West Virginia rallied in the fourth quarter to defeat Arizona State.

Arizona State led 37-34 through three quarters and the score was tied at 41 with 4 minutes left in the fourth quarter. A 3-pointer by Sydney Shaw gave the Mountaineers a 44-41 lead with 2:45 remaining. Jordan Harrison added a free throw and Wheeler scored in the paint for a 47-41 lead.

McKinna Brackens hit a jumper for the Sun Devils but it was their only made basket in nine attempts in the final 4 minutes. West Virginia closed it out at the line, making 7 of 9 free throws in the last minute.

Shaw scored 11 points and Gia Cooke had 10 for West Virginia (16-4, 6-2 Big 12).

Brackens and Gabby Elliott led Arizona State (17-3, 4-3) with 15 points each.

WISCONSIN 63, NO. 24 NEBRASKA 60

MADISON, Wisc. (AP) — Gift Uchenna had 22 points and 14 rebounds, Kyrah Daniels added 19 points, and Wisconsin defeated Nebraska.

Daniels hit a 3-pointer to tie the score at 60 with 1:54 remaining in the fourth quarter and the go-ahead free throw 50 seconds later. After a Nebraska turnover, Uchenna’s layup made it 63-60 with 53 seconds left and neither team scored again.

The Cornhuskers led by five points with 3:45 remaining in the game but made only 1 of 7 shots the rest of the way and 2 of their last 12.

Ronnie Porter added 10 points for the Badgers (13-7, 5-4 Big Ten), who improved to 11-1 at home. Destiny Howell, who scored 39 points in a 94-92 double-overtime win over Oregon on Sunday, was in foul trouble for much of the game and did not score.

Eliza Maupin scored 13 points and Britt Prince had 11 for Nebraska (14-5, 3-5).

NO. 25 WASHINGTON 81, PENN STATE 65

SEATTLE (AP) — Sayvia Sellers scored 24 points, Avery Howell had a double-double, and Washington dominated the second half in a victory over Penn State.

The Huskies led 38-37 at halftime before outscoring Penn State 43-28 in the second half.

Washington opened the third quarter on a 2-for-10 shooting slump but made 6 of 7 free throws in the first 4 1/2 minutes to lead 48-44. Sellers scored nine of the Huskies’ 22 points in the quarter and they led 60-51 heading to the fourth.

Howell opened the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer and the Huskies led by double digits for the final eight minutes. The lead reached 19 at 79-60 and again at 81-62 in the final minute.

Howell had 13 points and 12 rebounds for her third double-double of the season. Brynn McGaughy had 14 points and nine rebounds off the bench for Washington (15-4, 5-3 Big Ten).

Gracie Merkle scored 19 points and Kiyomi McMiller had 11 for Penn State (7-13, 0-9).

The Associated Press

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