LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) - Makayla Epps scored the go-ahead basket with 8.7 seconds remaining in overtime and Evelyn Akhator had eight points in the extra session to give No. 22 Kentucky a 78-75 upset victory over No. 3 Mississippi State on Thursday night.
After Akhator’s layup with 55 seconds left tied it 75, Epps grabbed Makenzie Cann’s missed 3-pointer and moved in for the soft tip-in to put Kentucky ahead to stay in a tense game featuring nine ties and 15 lead changes - with most coming after halftime. Maci Morris’s free throw with 1.8 seconds left sealed the victory and the Wildcats’ eighth straight 20-win season.
Akhator scored 22 points in the fourth quarter and OT to finish with 27 points. She also had 16 rebounds in her home finale. Epps had 22 points to help Kentucky (20-8, 11-4 Southeastern Conference) deny the Bulldogs’ bid to clinch a share of their first SEC title.
Victoria Vivians had 27 points, and Morgan William added 20 for Mississippi State (27-2, 13-2).
No. 5 NOTRE DAME 82, BOSTON COLLEGE 45
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) - Lindsay Allen had 18 points and eight assists and Notre Dame overpowered Boston College.
Erin Boley added 14 points for the Fighting Irish (26-3, 14-1 Atlantic Coast Conference). They will hosts No. 8 Florida State on Sunday in the regular-season finale, with the Irish needing a win to avoid a tie with the Seminoles for the ACC title.
Mariella Fasoula scored 14 points for Boston College (9-19, 2-13).
No. 7 SOUTH CAROLINA 80, TEXAS A&M 64
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) - A’ja Wilson had 21 points and 15 rebounds and South Carolina beat Texas A&M to remain in Southeastern Conference title contention.
The Gamecocks (23-4, 13-2) trailed the Aggies 30-29 with five minutes remaining in the second quarter before closing out the first half on a 12-5 run to make it 41-35.
Scoring leader Danni Williams was held to 12 points on 4-of-14 shooting for the Aggies (19-9, 9-6).
No. 8 FLORIDA STATE 79, PITTSBURGH 48
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - Brittany Brown and Chatrice White each scored 13 points and Florida State rolled past Pittsburgh on Thursday night.
Leticia Romero and Imani Wright added 12 apiece for the Seminoles (25-4, 13-2 Atlantic Coast Conference). Brenna Wise scored 23 points for Pittsburgh (13-15, 4-11).
No. 11 WASHINGTON 79, COLORADO 46
SEATTLE (AP) - Kelsey Plum continued her march toward the all-time career scoring mark with 25 points and Chantel Osahor had 24 points and 20 rebounds to lead Washington.
Plum, who entered with a nation-best 30.9 average, pushed her career total to 3,340, second in NCAA Division I history behind Jackie Stiles, who scored 3,393 points at Southwest Missouri State from 1998-2001.
Washington (26-4, 14-3) led 20-18 after one quarter, but extended the margin to 38-27 at the half. The Huskies pushed the lead to 59-39 after three quarters and then scored the first 10 points of the final period.
Haley Smith had 16 points for Colorado (15-13, 5-12), which lost to Washington 79-75 at home on Feb. 5.
No. 14 LOUISVILLE 66, VIRGINIA 55
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Asia Durr scored 24 points and Louisville beat Virginia for its fourth straight victory.
Myisha Hines-Allen added 21 points for the Cardinals (24-6, 11-4 Atlantic Coast Conference). Breyana Mason scored 19 points for Virginia (18-10, 7-8).
No. 17 MIAMI 79, VIRGINIA TECH 69
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) - Adrienna Motley had a season-high 26 points to help Miami beat Virginia Tech.
Keyona Hayes added 18 points for Miami (20-7, 9-6 Atlantic Coast Conference).
Chanette Hicks had 21 points for the Hokies (16-12, 3-12). They have lost 11 straight.
No. 18 N.C. STATE 80, NORTH CAROLINA 60
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - Dominique Wilson scored 19 points, Ashley Williams added 18 on six 3-pointers and North Carolina State routed North Carolina.
The Wolfpack (21-7, 11-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) led 30-14 after one quarter and 54-33 at the half. Jamie Cheery had 25 points for th Tar Heels (14-14, 3-12).
No. 20 SYRACUSE 85, WAKE FOREST 64
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) - Alexis Peterson scored 25 points, Briana Day had 17 points and 15 rebounds, and Syracuse beat Wake Forest.
Brittney Sykes had 16 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three steals for Syracuse (19-9, 10-5 Atlantic Coast Confrence. Elisa Penna led Wake Forest (15-13, 6-9) with 19 points.
No. 24 MISSOURI 100, MISSISSIPPI 65
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) - Sophie Cunningham was 5 of 7 from 3-point range, 11 of 13 overall, and finished with 32 points to help Missouri beat Mississippi.
The Tigers (20-9, 10-5 Southeastern Conference) have won 20 games in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1985-87. Madinah Muhammad scored a career-high 26 points for the Rebels (16-12, 5-10).
No. 25 MICHIGAN 88, NEBRASKA 60.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) - Katelynn Flaherty made five 3-pointers and scored 25 points and Michigan beat Nebraska to clinch third place in the Big Ten.
Kysre Gondrezick added 21 points and nine rebounds for the Wolverines (22-7, 11-4). Jessica Shepard had 12 points, 11 rebounds and five assists for the Cornhuskers (6-21, 2-13).
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