No. 11 Duke upsets No. 6 Notre Dame to reach first ACC title game in 8 years

By Canadian Press on March 8, 2025.

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — Oluchi Okananwa had 14 points off the bench and Ashlon Jackson scored 12 to help No. 11 Duke beat No. 6 Notre Dame 61-56 in the ACC Tournament semifinals on Saturday.

Duke (25-7) will meet No. 7 N.C. State, the top seed, in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game on Sunday. It’s the Blue Devils’ first time playing in that game in eight years. N.C. State beat No. 14 North Carolina 66-55 in the first semifinal matchup.

Hannah Hidalgo had 14 of her 23 points in the first half and Olivia Miles had 10 points for second-seeded Notre Dame (26-5).

Notre Dame was held to 25 second-half points.

NO. 1 TEXAS 56, NO. 9 LSU 49

GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Madison Booker scored 25 points, and No. 1 Texas held on to beat ninth-ranked LSU to advance to the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship game.

The Longhorns will face fifth-ranked South Carolina, which beat No. 10 Oklahoma 93-75 earlier in the day.

Texas (31-2) lost to South Carolina 67-50 on Jan. 12 in Columbia, but avenged that defeat last month with a 66-62 victory in Austin. Texas has not lost since, rattling off 15 consecutive wins.

LSU (28-5), already playing without star Flau’Jae Johnson due to a shin injury, lost their other star player Aneesah Morrow to a left ankle injury in the third quarter. Morrow, who scored a school tournament-record 36 points in Friday night’s 101-87 win over Florida, had to be helped off the court after stepping on an opponent’s foot.

She returned to the LSU bench in the fourth quarter with a boot on her left foot.

Mikaylah Williams led LSU with 11 points.

NO. 2 SOUTHERN CAL 82, MICHIGAN 70

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Kiki Iriafen scored 17 of her 25 points in the second half, JuJu Watkins added 20 points and each pulled down 11 rebounds to send No. 2 Southern California past fifth-seeded Michigan and into the Big Ten championship game.

The Trojans (28-2) will face No. 4 UCLA on Sunday. USC won the league’s regular season by sweeping the two-game series against the Bruins. The Trojans also won their only contest against the Buckeyes this season.

USC won its ninth straight despite Watkins, the league’s player of the year, having an off night. Iriafen made 10 of 19 shots.

Syla Swords finished with 26 points and Olivia Olson added 13 points and nine rebounds to lead the Wolverines (22-10).

USC trailed 31-29 at halftime but turned the game when Iriafen scored eight straight points late in the third quarter to give the Trojans a 50-48 lead. They closed it out with a 16-2 run midway through the fourth.

NO. 3 UCONN 71, ST. JOHN’S 40

UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Paige Bueckers had 20 points to lead No. 3 UConn to a win over St. John’s in the quarterfinals of the Big East women’s basketball tournament.

Sarah Strong had 10 points and 14 rebounds while Azzi Fudd finished with 11 points for UConn (29-3) as the Huskies won their 13th consecutive Big East tournament game and recorded their 34th win in a row in a conference tournament.

Ariana Vanderhoop and Kylie Lavelle each had 11 points and three 3-pointers. Lashae Dwyer had 10 points for the Red Storm (16-15)

UConn used a 22-0 run to take command of the game after the Red Storm scored the first two points of the game.

Lavelle had eight points in a span of 1:48 as the Red Storm cut into the UConn lead. However, Bueckers had four of her 10 first-half points in the final 49 seconds of the second quarter as the Huskies led 34-17 at halftime.

NO. 4 UCLA 75, NO. 13 OHIO STATE 46

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Londynn Jones made six 3-pointers and scored a season-high 22 points Saturday, leading No. 4 UCLA to a rout over No. 13 Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.

The victory sets up a third showdown between the league’s regular-season champ, No. 2 Southern California, and the runner-up Bruins on Sunday. The Trojans swept the first two meetings, and Round 3 of the cross-town rivalry is what many hoped to see.

Lauren Betts and Gabriela Jaquez each scored 12 points in limited action. Betts had six rebounds, Jaquez had five as UCLA (29-2) won its second straight by double digits.

Jaloni Cambridge scored 10 points to lead the Buckeyes (25-6).

But this game was never really close after the Bruins took a 16-5 lead less than five minutes into the game. UCLA then closed the first half on a 9-0 spurt, keeping Ohio State scoreless over the final 3:09, to take a 44-21 lead.

NO. 5 SOUTH CAROLINA 93, NO. 10 OKLAHOMA 75

GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Joyce Edwards scored 21 points, and No. 5 South Carolina advanced to the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship game with a win over 10th-ranked Oklahoma.

MiLaysia Fulwiley scored 19 points to provide a huge boost off the bench for South Carolina (29-3), and Sania Feagin added 14.

Sahara Williams had 17 points and Payton Verhulst added 15 points and nine assists for Oklahoma (25-7), which looked fatigued playing its third game in three days.

South Carolina’s smothering defense set the tone early, repeatedly forcing hurried, bad shots and five turnovers while racing to a double-digit first quarter lead. The Gamecocks stretched the lead to 45-28 at the break, closing the first half on a 14-2 run while holding Oklahoma without a field goal over the final four minutes.

South Carolina never led by fewer than 10 points in the second half.

NO. 7 NC STATE 66, NO. 14 NORTH CAROLINA 55

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — Aziaha James scored 19 points and No. 7 N.C. State jumped out to a big lead to beat No. 14 North Carolina in the ACC Tournament semifinals.

Madison Hayes and reserve Lorena Awou each had 10 points as the Wolfpack (26-5) avenged a one-point regular-season road loss. N.C. State faces No. 11 Duke in Sunday’s Atlantic Coast Conference final.

Indya Nivar had 13 points and Maria Gakdeng had 10 points and 10 rebounds to lead North Carolina (27-7), which shot 27.9% from the field.

The Wolfpack rattled off the last 16 points of the first quarter for a 16-5 lead, delighting the decidedly pro-N.C. State crowd. North Carolina’s scoring drought extended for almost 11 minutes, creating a 21-5 hole.

NO. 8 TCU 71, NO. 16 WEST VIRGINIA 65

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Hailey Van Lith had 19 points, six rebounds and eight assists, Sedona Prince added 18 points with 16 rebounds, and No. 8 TCU held off No. 16 West Virginia to reach the women’s Big 12 Tournament championship for the first time in school history.

The top-seeded Horned Frogs will play No. 17 Baylor on Sunday.

Madison Conner hit five 3-pointers and added 16 points, and Agnes Emma-Nnopu returned from an injury to score nine, as TCU moved within a game of its first conference tourney title since playing in Conference USA in 2005.

JJ Quinerly had 20 points, Sydney Shaw and Kylee Blacksten scored 11 apiece, and Jordan Harrison had 10 points before fouling out for the fourth-seeded Mountaineers, who were trying to reach their first title game since 2021.

NO. 17 BAYLOR 84, NO. 21 OKLAHOMA 74, OT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Aaronette Vonleh scored a career-high 37 points and No. 17 Baylor had three different players hit 3-pointers in overtime to lead the Bears into the Big 12 Conference Tournament championship game with a win over No. 21 Oklahoma State.

In a semifinal in which neither team led by more than nine points in regulation, the Bears were 5-of-8 shooting in overtime and Jade Walker hit four free throws in the last 30 seconds.

Baylor now faces No. 8 TCU in the championship game on Sunday. The two teams met on the last of the regular season with the Horned Frogs winning 51-48 for the league crown.

Walker had 12 points and Sarah Andrews had 11 points and both had 3s in overtime, along with Waiata Jennings. The second-seeded Bears (17-6) were 3 of 4 on 3s in OT and 6 of 19 for the game.

Stailee Heard scored 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for the third-seeded Cowgirls (25-6), who won the regular-season meeting 84-61 on Jan. 1. Anna Gret Asi added 14 points and Micah Gray had 12.

NO. 23 CREIGHTON 72, GEORGETOWN 70

UNCASVILLE, Con. (AP) — Lauren Jensen and Morgan Maly combined for 42 points, and Kiani Lockett’s two clutch free throws capped No. 23 Creighton’s come-from-behind victory over Georgetown in a Big East Tournament quarterfinal.

Creighton trailed 52-40 early in the third quarter but took a 70-68 advantage with 1:17 to play after Jensen and Mallory Brake made consecutive layups. It was the Bluejays’ first lead since it was 36-34 with 3:19 left in the second quarter.

Georgetown’s Kelsey Ransom made two free throws to tie it 70-all with 49 seconds remaining. Creighton missed two shots on its next possession and Ransom missed a jumper, but Lockett grabbed the rebound and then made the go-ahead free throws with four seconds left. Victoria Rivera missed a 3-pointer for the Hoyas to end it.

Second-seeded Creighton (25-5), which rebounded from a 72-53 loss at then-No. 5 UConn that ended a seven-game win streak, will face the Xavier-Seton Hall winner in a semifinal on Sunday.

NO. 25 S. DAKOTA ST. 85, NORTH DAKOTA 55

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — Brooklyn Meyer had 22 points and 10 rebounds, Haleigh Timmer also had a double-double and No. 25 South Dakota State advanced to the Summit League championship game for the 14th time in 17 seasons with a win over North Dakota.

Paige Meyer had 17 points for the Jackrabbits (29-3), the two-time defending champions who entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed for the fifth-straight season. Timmer had 14 points and 10 rebounds and Mesa Byom added 11 points.

South Dakota State, seeking it’s 12th title since becoming eligible in 2009, faces Oral Roberts in Sunday’s championship The Jackrabbits are 40-5 all-time in the tourney, went undefeated in league for the third year in a row and have an 18-game winning streak since losing to now No. 1 Texas.

South Dakota State held the fighting Hawks to 29% shooting and had a 52-26 rebounding edge, 18-5 on the offensive glass. That lead to a 42-12 advantage in points in the paint and 22-4 on second-chance points.

Kiera Pemberton had 23 points for fifth-seeded North Dakota (12-19).

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The Associated Press

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