STORRS, Conn. — UConn won its rivalry game against Notre Dame but may have lost last year’s national player of the year to a knee injury.

Paige Bueckers scored 22 points before going down with just seconds left in No. 2 UConn’s 73-54 victory over No. 24 Notre Dame on Sunday.

Bueckers, who is averaging a little more than 20 points per game, was dribbling up the court in the final minute when she stumbled, twisting her ankle and coming down awkwardly on her left leg. She went to the floor a few seconds later and had to be carried off the court.

Coach Geno Auriemma said she injured her left knee but did not appear to twist it. He said the extent of the injury won’t be known until scans are completed on Monday.

“The initial report is, she might have hyperextended it,” Auriemma said. “But I think the first thing that goes through your mind is the worst thing.”

Olivia Nelson-Ododa added 14 points and 13 rebounds for the Huskies (5-1), who dominated underneath, outrebounding Notre Dame 45-32 and outscored the Fighting Irish 28-16 in the paint.

(2) NORTH CAROLINA STATE 78, ELON 46: Jada Boyd scored 17 points and the Wolfpack (8-1) beat the Phoenix (5-2) in Raleigh, North Carolina, for their eighth straight win.

The Wolfpack led 16-9 after one quarter despite five turnovers, then started the second quarter with an 8-0 spurt to break away. The Phoenix never cut the deficit to single digits after that.

N.C. State shot 51% from the field and hit nine 3-pointers, two off of a season high.

Kayla Liles led the Phoenix with 12 points, while Elon was held to just 27.8% shooting overall.

(8) MARYLAND 74, RUTGERS 59: Angel Reese scored 18 points to lead the Terrapins (7-2, 1-0 Big Ten) over the Scarlet Knights (4-6, 0-1) in Piscataway, New Jersey.

Katie Benzan added 15 points, Chloe Bibby had 14 and Ashley Owusu 12 for Maryland.

(9) IOWA 88, MICHIGAN STATE 61: Caitlin Clark had her second triple-double of the season with 24 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds, and McKenna Warnock scored 21 points as the Hawkeyes (5-1, 1-0 Big Ten) beat the Spartans (6-4, 0-1) in Iowa City, Iowa, for Coach Lisa Bluder’s 800th career victory.

Monika Czinano added 19 points as the Hawkeyes bounced back from Thursday’s 79-64 loss to Duke, their first game since Nov. 17 after a COVID-19 outbreak within the program forced the cancellation of three games.

(10) LOUISVILLE 89, BELMONT 66: Hailey Van Lith scored 16 points for the Cardinals (7-1), who beat the Bruins (4-4) in Louisville, Kentucky.

After dominating No. 12 Michigan defensively on Thursday, the Cardinals faced a tough challenge from a Bruins team that returned all five starters and 11 players from a squad that reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season. The mid-major power trailed only 22-20 with eight minutes left in the first half.

(11) TENNESSEE 64, VIRGINIA TECH 58: Sara Puckett scored 15 points off the bench and led a decisive scoring run in the fourth quarter as the Vols (8-0) defeated the Hokies (7-2) in Blacksburg, Virginia.

Tennessee trailed 55-48 with six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter before going on a 12-0 run to build a 60-55 lead with two minutes left. Puckett scored six consecutive points in the run and Jordan Horston finished it off with the last four.

(12) MICHIGAN 93, AKRON 54: Emily Kiser scored a season-high 19 points and Naz Hillmon added 18 points and five assists as the Wolverines (8-1) steamrolled the Zips (3-3) in the first half and cruised to a win in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

The Wolverines returned home for the first time in nearly two weeks and rebounded from their first loss of the season, 70-48 to No. 10 Louisville in the Big Ten/ACC challenge.

(14) IOWA STATE 94, LONGWOOD 56: Sisters Aubrey and Ashley Joens had double-doubles and the Cyclones (8-1) bounced back from their first loss with a win over the Lancers (3-4) in Ames, Iowa.

Sophomore Aubrey Joens had career highs of 24 points and 14 rebounds and senior Ashley Joens had 16 points and 12 rebounds. Picking up her 35th career double-double, Ashley Joens moved within four points of the No. 4 spot on the career scoring list (1,866 points).

(15) TEXAS 76, (17) TEXAS A&M 60: Aliyah Matharu scored 26 points, draining five 3-pointers and leading the Longhorns (6-1) past the Aggies (8-1) in the all-Lone Star version of the Big 12/SEC Challenge in College Station, Texas.

The loss broke Texas A&M’s eight-game winning streak and gave Longhorns Coach Vic Schaefer a win in what is likely a final meeting with former boss Gary Blair, who announced he’s planning to retire after this season. Schaefer is 9-11 against his mentor.

(16) KENTUCKY 90, MERRIMACK 56: Rhyne Howard had 21 points, seven assists, six rebounds and a season-high six steals, Dre’Una Edwards had her third consecutive double-double and the Wildcats (6-1) never trailed in a win over the Warriors (2-5) in Lexington, Kentucky.

Edwards finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds, Jazmine Massengill had 13 points and eight assists, and Robyn Benton scored 12 points for Kentucky.

(18) OHIO STATE 70, PURDUE 53: Taylor Mikesell and Braxtin Miller scored 16 points each and the Buckeyes (6-1) dominated the fourth quarter to defeat the Boilermakers (6-3) in a Big Ten opener in West Lafayette, Indiana.

The Buckeyes’ 16-4 run to open the fourth quarter turned a five-point lead into a 61-44 advantage. Purdue responded with a 9-0 run before OSU’s Rikki Harris buried a 3-pointer with just under 2 minutes remaining that killed Purdue’s momentum. The Boilermakers did not score again, missing their final seven shots.

GEORGIA TECH 55, (20) GEORGIA 54: Nerea Hermosa scored 14 points, including the winning free throws with 8.8 seconds left, Lorela Cubaj had a milestone double-double and the Yellow Jackets (6-2) upended the Bulldogs (7-1) in Athens, Georgia.

After Hermosa’s free throws put the Yellow Jackets up 55-51, Sarah Ashlee Barker knocked down a 3-pointer at 4.5 seconds. Hermosa then missed two free throws 3.4 seconds.

Following a timeout to advance the ball, Cubaj contested an unsuccessful shot near the right elbow by Que Morrison.

(25) FLORIDA STATE 83, CHARLESTON SOUTHERN 32: Morgan Jones scored 16 points with eight rebounds and all 13 players scored as the 25th-ranked Seminoles (6-2) defeated the Buccaneers (0-7) in Tallahassee, Florida.

Jones has scored in double figures in seven straight games for the Seminoles (6-2), who are 5-0 at home this season. Valencia Myers added 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting and River Baldwin scored 13, making 6 of 8 shots.

SOUTHERN MAINE CC 84, BERKELEY 75: Alja Andrews had 18 points as the SeaWolves (6-1) beat the Knights (0-5) in South Portland.

Hannah Richards added 12 points for SMCC.

Kaina Martinez had 23 points, Amal Mahmoud 21 and Cierra Highland 15 for Berkeley.

MEN’S BASKETBALL

(11) ARIZONA 90, OREGON STATE 65: Bennedict Mathurin scored 29 points and the Wildcats (7-0, 1-0 Pac 12) beat the Beavers (1-8, 0-2) in Corvallis, Oregon.

Christian Koloko added 12 points for the Wildcats.

BERKELEY 76, SOUTHERN MAINE CC 68: Dontel Henry scored 26 points and Aaron Walker Jr. added 20 as the Knights (4-0) beat the SeaWolves (6-3) in South Portland.

Ian Regan had 25 points and 10 rebounds, while Cameren Cousins had eight points and 12 rebounds for SMCC.

BOWDOIN 74, COLBY 61: Michael Simonds started a game-ending 13-1 run with a 3-pointer, and the Polar Bears (6-2) overcame a 13-point deficit against the Mules (5-3) in Brunswick.

Manav Randhawa led a balanced offense for Bowdoin with 15 points. Simonds finished with 13, Xander Werkman scored 12, and Taiga Kagitomi and Afamdi Achufusi each added 11.

Noah Tyson led Colby with 20 points. Matt Hanna scored 14.

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