Montgomery leads No. 1 UConn to win
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Associated Press - Published: January 4, 2009
STORRS, Conn. — Renee Montgomery scored 21 points and top-ranked Connecticut beat LSU 76-63 Saturday in a matchup of programs that made the Final Four last season.
Maya Moore added 17 points and 13 rebounds for UConn (13-0), and Tina Charles chipped in 16 points and six boards. Five Huskies scored in double figures.
Junior guard Allison Hightower led the Tigers with 14, her sixth consecutive double-figure game. Lasondra Barrett, one of three freshmen to start for the Tigers, added 13.
No. 3 Texas A&M 78,
George Washington 59
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Danielle Gant had 17 points and 10 rebounds to help the Aggies match the longest winning streak in school history.
Takia Starks added 22 points for the Aggies (12-0), and Tanisha Smith scored 16.
Texas A&M jumped to a 14-3 lead five minutes into the game, thanks to Smith's two 3-pointers to start the contest.
No. 4 Texas 82, Lamar 45
AUSTIN, Texas — Brittainey Raven scored 17 points to lead for Longhorns in double figures, and No. 4 Texas cruised past Lamar 82-45 on Saturday.
Erika Arriaran finished with 13 points and five rebounds, Earnesia Williams had 12 points and Kathleen Nash added 11 points and four rebounds for the Longhorns (12-1).
No. 7 Baylor 95, Texas State 55
WACO, Texas — Danielle Wilson had 26 points, seven rebounds and four blocks to help No. 7 Baylor cruise past Texas State 95-55 Saturday night.
Morghan Medlock scored 15 points in just 12 minutes for Baylor in her first home game since her mother was murdered on Dec. 19. Baylor held a moment of silence before the game.
No. 8 Tennessee 55,
No. 15 Rutgers 51
PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Shekinna Stricklen scored 16 points and No. 8 Tennessee rallied from the biggest deficit in school history to beat No. 15 Rutgers 55-51 on Saturday.
The Lady Vols trailed 33-13 at the break, scoring the fewest points ever in a half, then regrouped to give coach Pat Summitt her 994th career win.
No. 9 Auburn 79,
Stephen F. Austin 56
AUBURN, Ala. — Sherell Hobbs scored 19 points to lead No. 9 Auburn to a 79-56 win over Stephen F. Austin and send the Tigers into the SEC schedule undefeated.
DeWanna Bonner scored 17 points and Trevesha Jackson had 12 for Auburn (15-0), which outscored Stephen F. Austin 40-22 in the paint.
No. 10 Louisville 78, DePaul 60
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Angel McCoughtry scored 25 points to lead No. 10 Louisville to a 78-60 win over DePaul in both team's Big East opener on Saturday.
McCoughtry added eight rebounds and Candyce Bingham had 15 points and 12 rebounds in lifting the Cardinals (14-1, 1-0) to their ninth straight win.
Deirdre Naughton scored 21 points and Natasha Williams had 19 points for DePaul (12-3, 0-1).
No. 12 Notre Dame 66,
Seton Hall 60
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. — Ashley Barlow scored 14 points, including a clutch jumper with 90 seconds left, leading No. 12 Notre Dame to a 66-60 victory over Seton Hall in the Big East Conference opener for both schools Saturday.
The win was the fifth straight for the Fighting Irish (12-1) and the third straight on the road. Seton Hall, off to its best start since the 1994-95 season, dropped to 11-2 overall.
Notre Dame scored the first two points of the game and never trailed, surviving a few late scares to come away with the victory.
No. 14 Maryland 83,
Richmond 65
RICHMOND, Va. — Kristi Toliver had 21 points and No. l4 Maryland's defense held Richmond without a field goal for a long stretch in the second half Saturday, sending the Terrapins to an 83-65 win over the Spiders.
Richmond (11-3) led 58-54 following Nikita Thomas's hook shot with 12:40 remaining. Maryland (12-2) scored nine straight points to take a 61-58 and, after two free throws by Danielle Bell, completed a 20-2 run with 11 straight points.
Iowa State 55, No. 20
Vanderbilt 51
AMES, Iowa — Alison Lacey scored 20 points, Heather Ezell added 18 and Iowa State survived a long first-half scoring drought to beat No. 20 Vanderbilt 55-51 Saturday.
Iowa State (11-2) went 7:15 without a point and fell behind 12-6, but put together a 23-5 run spanning halftime to open a 29-17 lead. The Cyclones led the rest of the way but had to hold off a late Vanderbilt rally.
The Commodores (11-4), who went 8:36 without a point in the ragged first half, drew to 52-49 on Jennifer Risper's two free throws with 51.6 seconds left. Lacey answered with two foul shots, then sank another with 6.9 seconds remaining to finish it off after Christina Wirth scored inside for Vanderbilt.
Jessica Mooney's 17 points led Vanderbilt, which committed a season-high 27 turnovers. Wirth, averaging a team-leading 15.4 points, scored the Commodores' first five points, then didn't score again until her bucket with 10.9 seconds left.
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