STORRS, Conn. — Stefanie Dolson scored all 12 of her points in the first half to lead a balanced Connecticut offense, and the top-seeded Huskies routed Hartford 75-39 on Sunday in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Maya Moore, Bria Hartley and Tiffany Hayes added 12 points each for the Huskies (33-1), who started their journey toward a third consecutive national championship.
The victory was UConn's 21st straight and 82nd in a row at home. The Huskies are hosting the first two rounds of the NCAAs.
Alex Hall scored 10 points to lead Hartford (17-16), which was making its sixth trip to the NCAA tournament.
TEXAS A&M 87, MCNEESE STATE 47: At Bossier City, La., DanielleAdams scored 18 points, and KelseyAssarian and TyraWhite each added 12 points for second-seeded Texas A&M (28-5). The Aggies raced to a 22-3 lead and led by 39 when Adams scored inside while being fouled five minutes into the second half. The victory marked the fifth straight year the Aggies have gotten through the first round. CaitlynBaggett scored 22 for McNeese State (26-7), which had a size disadvantage and struggled to stop the Aggies in the paint or in transition.
XAVIER 72, SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 56: At Cincinnati, Ta'ShiaPhillips had 27 points and 15 rebounds, and second-seeded Xavier got off to a slow start on its home court before using its front-line advantage to pull away. Xavier (29-2) will play Louisville on Tuesday, a rematch of familiar teams that played a tight game earlier this season on the same court. The Musketeers beat the Cardinals 71-59 on Nov. 23, when AmberHarris had 28 points and 18 rebounds. Harris had 16 points and 12 rebounds against South Dakota State (19-14), the three-time Summit League champs who couldn't measure up to Xavier's two dominant front-line players.
PURDUE 53, KANSAS STATE 45: At Storrs, Conn. BrittanyRayburn scored 21 points for ninth-seeded Purdue. DreyMingo, who overcame a life-threatening bout with meningitis earlier this season, added 16 points for the Boilermakers (21-11), who advance to play Connecticut. BrittanyChambers had 18 points for Kansas State (21-11), which missed its first 12 shots. TaelorKarr added 16 points for the Wildcats.
FLORIDA STATE 76, SAMFORD 46: At Auburn, Ala., CierraBravard had 23 points and 13 rebounds. The Seminoles (24-7) used superior size and muscle to easily make it through the tournament opener for the seventh straight year after advancing to the regional final last season. Samford (25-8), the Southern Conference tournament champion, was mostly denied its staple, the 3-pointer, in its first NCAA appearance.
MIAMI 80, GARDNER-WEBB 62: At Charlottesville, Va., RiqunaWilliams scored 17 of her 28 points in the first half. The third-seeded Hurricanes (28-4) won a tournament game for the first time since 1993, keeping alive a dramatic turnaround season. DominiqueHudson led Gardner-Webb with 18 points and twin sister Monique had 17. The Runnin' Bulldogs (23-11) were playing their first game in the NCAA tournament after becoming the first team in Big South Conference history to beat Liberty in the championship.
MARYLAND 70, ST. FRANCIS (PA.) 48: At CollegePark, Md., Maryland scored the game's first 13 points, led by 23 at halftime and cruised to victory. AlyssaThomas scored 10 of her 16 points in the first half for the No. 4 seed Terrapins (24-7), who have no seniors and six freshmen on the roster. The Terrapins finished with a 49-32 rebounding advantage, forced 24 turnovers and limited St. Francis to 31 percent shooting from the floor. BrittanyLilley and NickiaGibbs each scored 10 points for 13th-seeded St. Francis, the Northeast Conference champions.
GEORGETOWN 65, PRINCETON 49: At CollegePark, Md., Georgetown guard SugarRodgers outscored Princeton in the first half, and the Hoyas rolled. Rodgers scored 16 before halftime to help stake the Hoyas to a 34-14 lead. The 5-foot-11 sophomore finished with 26 points and led the team in rebounds (eight) and assists (four). Fifth-seeded Georgetown (23-10) will next face Maryland. AddieMicir led Princeton (24-5) with 13 points.
LOUISVILLE 81, VANDERBILT 62: At Cincinnati, Freshman point guard ShoniSchimmel directed Louisville's young-but-poised offense with 19 points, and the Cardinals marked their return to the NCAA tournament by beating Vanderbilt. The Cardinals (21-12) failed to make the tournament last season after losing to Connecticut in the 2009 title game. For the second year in a row, the Commodores (20-12) ended their season on Xavier's home court. JasmineLister scored 13 for the Commodores.
OKLAHOMA 86, JAMES MADISON 72: At Charlottesville, Va., WhitneyHand scored 24 points and Oklahoma squandered much of a 19-point second-half lead before holding on to win. DanielleRobinson added 19 points for the Sooners (22-11), who are trying to make their third consecutive run to the FinalFour. Oklahoma will play Miami in the second round. DawnEvans, the nation's No. 3 scorer with a 23.2 average, led the Dukes with 20 points, but hit just 7 of 27 shots.
WISCONSIN-GREEN BAY 59, ARKANSAS-LITTLE ROCK 55: At Wichita, Kan., KaylaTetschlag scored 24 points and Wisconsin-GreenBay extended its winning streak to 21 games. No. 5 seed Green Bay (33-1) hadn't won a game by a single-digit margin since Jan. 27 against Butler, but SunBelt Conference champion Arkansas-LittleRock (23-8) made the Phoenix sweat this one out. Thanks to 24 points from ChastityReed, the Trojans led midway through the second half and remained within striking distance in the final minutes, never letting GreenBay's lead grow to more than 10. UALR pulled within 58-55 on a 3-pointer by TaylorFord with 3 seconds left, but JulieWojta hit a clinching free throw with 1.9 seconds to go.
WEST VIRGINIA 79, HOUSTON 73: At Waco, Texas, LizRepella scored 26 points and MadinaAli added 13 points and 15 rebounds. The Mountaineers (24-9) took control with a 16-1 run during the first half, all while Cougars star CourtneyTaylor was on the bench with two fouls. Taylor played the entire second half, but Houston (26-6) never got closer than three points with 3:26 left.
GEORGIA 56, MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE 41: At Auburn, Ala., JasmineJames scored eight of her 18 points over the final 5:40. PorshaPhillips had 10 points and 14 rebounds for the The players had patches bearing the No. 20 of slain teammate TinaStewart, who was stabbed to death March 2. AnneMarieLanning led the remaining team of 11 freshmen and sophomores with 15 points, while star freshman EbonyRowe scored 10.
BAYLOR 66, PRAIRIE VIEW 30: At Waco, Texas, BrittneyGriner and BrooklynPope each had 17 points as top-seeded Baylor opened the NCAA tournament with a victory over PrairieView, whose miserable shooting translated into the lowest-scoring half ever in the tournament. RobinJones more than 9 minutes into the game. Baylor, which went to the FinalFour last season when the 6-foot-8 Griner was a freshman, led 34-8 at halftime. That was the fewest points in a half ever by a women's team in an NCAA tournament game.
MICHIGAN STATE 69, NORTHERN IOWA 66: At Wichita, Kan., BigTen player of the year KalishaKeane scored 17 points, TaylorAlton added 14 and fourth-seeded Michigan State maintained its run of success in first-round NCAA tournament games. Michigan State (27-5) is 9-1 in first-round NCAA games, with its only loss coming in 2003. Michigan State didn't score in the final 1:53, and ErinBrocka missed a 3-point attempt in the final seconds that would have tied the game. JacquiKalin scored 21 points for NorthernIowa.
RUTGERS 76, LOUISIANA TECH 51: At Bossier City, La., AprilSykes scored 22 points and Rutgers hardly looked bothered by an overwhelmingly hostile crowd while cruising to a victory. KhadijahRushdan added 16 points and 10 rebounds for the seventh-seeded ScarletKnights (20-12), who move on to the second round at the Shreveport site on Tuesday night against second-seeded Texas A&M (28-5), a blowout winner over McNeese State. AdrienneJohnson scored 20 points for 10th seed Louisiana Tech (24-8), which was playing only an hour from its campus in Ruston. BriettaThomas added 12 points. Rutgers scored 40 points inside and shot 51 percent (28 for 55), while holding Tech to only 27 percent (17 of 63) shooting.
Cougars to face Trojans
PROVO — The BYU women's basketball team continues play in the 2011 WNIT hosting USC, Wednesday, March 23, at 7 p.m.
The Cougars (25-8) advanced to the Third Round of the WNIT with a decisive 102-63 win over Utah State on Saturday
USC (21-12) defeated Nevada 78-59 in Reno on Sunday to advance.
This will be the eighth meeting between the two programs with the Trojans holding a 4-3 series advantage. BYU and USC last met on Dec. 6, 2008, in Laie, Hawaii, where the Cougars escaped with a 65-64 win.
WNIT scores
Charlotte 69, South Carolina 57
Illinois State 62, Wisconsin 59
Arkansas 65, Missouri State 64
Alabama 72, Northwestern 70
Virginia 71, Loyola-Maryland 49
Southern Cal 78, Nevada 59