COLUMBIA, S.C. — Zia Cooke scored 20 points Sunday, and No. 1 South Carolina used its relentless defense to put away No. 22 Tennessee 69-48 for its 15th straight win.
The Gamecocks (21-1, 9-0 Southeastern Conference) won for the sixth time in seven games against ranked opponents this season.
But South Carolina lost leading scorer and rebounder Aliyah Boston when she hobbled off the court in the third quarter. She came back to the bench with her right knee heavily wrapped and Coach Dawn Staley patted the freshman on the head as the final quarter began.
Boston finished with 10 points, five rebounds, two blocks and two steals.
Tennessee (17-5, 7-2) shot just 34.6 percent (18 of 52) and committed 21 turnovers.
(6) STANFORD 71, WASHINGTON STATE 49: Ashten Pretchel had 19 points and 14 rebounds as the Cardinal (20-2, 9-1 Pac-12) topped the Cougars (10-12, 3-7 Pac-12) at Pullman, Washington.
(7) NORTH CAROLINA STATE 63, DUKE 60: Elissa Cunane scored 22 of her 27 points in the second half, and the visiting Wolfpack (21-1, 10-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) rallied to beat the Blue Devils (11-10, 5-5) for their seventh straight win.
(8) UCLA 70, (19) ARIZONA STATE 61: Japreece Dean scored 18 points as the Bruins (19-2, 8-2 Pac-12) topped the Sun Devils (16-6, 6-4) at Tempe, Arizona.
FLORIDA 70, (13) KENTUCKY 62: Freshman Lavender Briggs scored nine of her 18 points during a 25-5 run in the fourth quarter as the Gators (12-10, 3-6 Southeastern Conference) beat the host Wildcats (17-4, 6-3).
(11) DEPAUL 93, PROVIDENCE 71: Kelly Campbell had 12 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds, helping the Blue Demons (20-3, 10-1 Big East) top the Friars (10-13, 1-10) at Chicago.
LSU 59, (15) TEXAS A&M 58: Khayla Pointer scored nine of her 18 points in the fourth quarter and Jailin Cherry hit two free throws with 4.3 seconds left to give the host Tigers (16-5, 6-3 Southeastern Conference) a win over the Aggies.
(16) ARIZONA 73, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 57: Aari McDonald scored 20 points and the host Wildcats (18-3, 17-4 Pac-12) pulled away to beat the Trojans (11-10, 3-7) for their fifth straight victory.
MICHIGAN 78, (18) IOWA 63: Naz Hillmon scored a career-high 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Wolverines (14-7, 5-5 Big Ten) upset the visiting Hawkeyes (18-4, 9-2), who had won nine in a row.
(23) NORTHWESTERN 82, PENN STATE 59: Lindsey Pulliam and Veronica Burton scored 19 points apiece, leading the visiting Wildcats (19-3, 9-2 Big Ten) over the Nittany Lions (7-15, 1-10).
VERMONT TECH 71, SOUTHERN MAINE CC 58: Farah Mesidor scored 23 points, grabbed nine rebounds, made six steals and dished out five assists as the Green Knights (11-9, 8-5 YSCC) topped the SeaWolves (18-4, 10-3) at Randolph, Vermont.
Kimah Stribling had 20 points and 12 rebounds, and Kennedy Henderson added 18 points, nine rebounds and three steals for the Green Knights.
Amanda Brett led the SeaWolves with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Grace Fontaine added nine points and four assists, and Tara Flanders chipped in with eight points, five rebounds and three steals.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
VERMONT TECH 81, SOUTHERN MAINE CC 55: Jeremiah Shaw made six 3-pointers and finished with 22 points as the Green Knights (18-6, 10-2 YSCC) handled the SeaWolves (15-7, 9-4) at Randolph, Vermont.
Dajuan Johnson scored 12 points and dished out 14 assists for the Green Knights. Drake Perry added 18 points and Chance Cole had 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Anthony Labor led SMCC with 14 points and 11 rebounds. DeSean Cromwell added eight points, Tyler Mickle had seven and Pedro Fonseca chipped in with four points and five rebounds.
(18) IOWA 72, (19) ILLINOIS 65: Luka Garza bounced back from a slow start to score 25 points and the host Hawkeyes (16-6, 7-4 Big Ten) clamped down in the final four minutes to beat the Illini (16-6, 8-3).
Garza, the Big Ten’s top scorer, didn’t have a point in the first 15 minutes. He wound up making a career-high four 3-pointers and shot 9 of 16 overall. He also had 10 rebounds for his 13th double-double of the season.
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