By Associated Press - Monday, March 20, 2023

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Destiny Harden made a shot in the lane with 3.5 seconds left to send ninth-seeded Miami past top-seeded Indiana 70-68 on Monday night, lifting the Hurricanes to their first Sweet 16 since 1992.

The Hoosiers (28-4) became the second No. 1 seed to be eliminated in two nights. Stanford was upset Sunday on its home court. It’s the second time since the bracket expanded to 64 teams in 1994 that two No. 1 seeds didn’t make the Sweet 16. It also happened in 1998.

Harden finished with 18 points and Lola Pendade had 19 points for the Hurricanes (21-12), who never trailed.

Indiana tied the score at 68 on Yarden Garzon’s 3-pointer with 6.6 seconds left but couldn’t get the defensive stop it needed and turned the ball over on the final possession to seal their only home loss of the season.

No. 4 VILLANOVA 76, No. 12 FLORIDA GULF COAST 57

VILLANOVA, Pa. (AP) - Maddy Siegrist scored 31 points and sent the winningest team in Villanova history into the Sweet 16 for the second time in program history with a win over Florida Gulf Coast.

The fourth-seeded Wildcats (30-6) won their record 30th game and celebrated the March Madness milestone in front of another packed house at the Pavilion. Siegrist, the first-team AP All-American, made 13 of 24 shots in what was likely her final home game. The four-year star has left some wiggle room that she could return for a fifth season, but all signs point toward her playing in the WNBA this summer.

One thing is sure, Siegrist is headed to the Sweet 16.

The Wildcats are going for the first time since 2003 — the coach of that team, Harry Perretta, watched this one from behind the basket — and they will the play winner of Monday’s game in Indianapolis between top-seeded Indiana and No. 9 seed Miami.

SEATTLE 3 REGION

No. 4 TENNESSEE 94, NO. 12 TOLEDO 47

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Reserves Sara Puckett and Jillian Hollingshead led five Lady Vols in double figures with 13 points apiece as Tennessee routed Toledo.

This is the first time since 2015 and 2016 that Tennessee (25-11) has reached consecutive Sweet 16s and the first in coach Kellie Harper’s fourth season. The Lady Vols now have reached the Sweet 16 for the 36th time as the only program to play in all 41 NCAA Tournaments.

Toledo (29-5) snapped a program record 17-game winning streak and missed out on its first Sweet 16. The Rockets lost for the first time since Jan. 18 at Bowling Green, which was avenged in the Mid-American Conference Tournament championship for their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2017.

Quinesha Lockett led Toledo with 19 points.

No. 3 OHIO STATE 71, No. 6 NORTH CAROLINA 69

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Jacy Sheldon made a tiebreaking jumper in the lane with 1.8 seconds left to lift Ohio State to a win over North Carolina and help the Buckeyes advance to the Sweet 16 for the second straight season.

With the game tied, Sheldon took the pass from Eboni Walker and floated in the game-winning score. North Carolina had one final chance, but turned it over with a second remaining.

Ohio State (27-7) saw its 12-point lead with 7:02 to go erased as the Tar Heels went on a 13-2 run midway through the fourth quarter. The Tar Heels did most of that run without star Deja Kelly, who exited midway through the final quarter with a leg injury. She went to the locker room, but returned to the court a short time later.

Trailing 66-63, Kelly made two free throws before Paulina Paris made a layup in transition to give the Tar Heels (22-11) its first lead of the game with 2:09 left.

No. 2 UCONN 77, No. 7 BAYLOR 58

STORRS, Conn. (AP) - Azzi Fudd scored 16 of her 22 points in a decisive third quarter, leading UConn to a win over Baylor and into a 29th straight Sweet 16.

Aaliyah Edwards added 19 points and Nika Muhl had 10 assists for the Huskies (31-5). Dorka Juhasz chipped in with 11 points and Caroline Ducharme added 10.

Ja’mee Asberry scored 15 points and Jaden Owens had 14 for Baylor, which finishes its season 20-13. Bella Fontleroy scored 12 points for the Bears, who made 12 3-pointers after hitting 14 in their first-round win over Alabama.

But the Huskies dominated inside, outscoring the Bears 36-12 in the paint and outrebounding Baylor 42-31.

SEATTLE 4 REGION

No. 5 LOUISVILLE 73, No. 4 TEXAS 51

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Hailey Van Lith scored 21 points and Louisville rolled over Texas on the Longhorns’ home court to send the the Cardinals to the Sweet 16 for the sixth NCAA Tournament in row.

In a matchup of two teams that began the season in the Top 10 only to all out of the rankings before regrouping late, the Cardinals smothered the Longhorns and standout point guard Rori Harmon all night, stretching a 14-point halftime lead to 21 by end of the third quarter.

Louisville (25-11) led by as much as 27 early in the fourth. The win sends the Cardinals to the Seattle 4 Region to play No. 8-seed Mississippi, which upset No. 1 Stanford on Sunday.

DeYona Gaston scored 12 points to lead Texas (26-10).

No. 6 COLORADO 61, No. 3 DUKE 53

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) - Quay Miller had 17 points and 14 rebounds, and Aaronette Vonleh converted two overtime baskets in the lane after picking up her fourth foul, helping Colorado beat Duke.

Jaylyn Sherrod had 14 points and Vonleh finished with 12 as the Buffaloes (25-8) advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time in 20 years.

Elizabeth Balogun scored 14 points and Reigan Richardson had 10, but the Blue Devils didn’t hit a field goal in overtime. Duke overcame a 13-point deficit in regulation.

Next up for Colorado is Caitlin Clark and Iowa in the Seattle 4 Region semifinals.

Duke lost for the third time in its last four second-round home games in the NCAA tourney.

GREENVILLE 1 REGION

No. 4 UCLA 82, No. 5 OKLAHOMA 73

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Charisma Osborne scored a career-high 36 points in her final game at Pauley Pavilion and UCLA rallied in the fourth quarter after blowing an 18-point lead to defeat Oklahoma.

The Bruins, who had an 18-point lead in the second quarter, found themselves trailing 54-50 late in the third quarter before Osborne started the comeback. She drove the lane and hit a layup while being fouled by Beatrice Culliton. Osborne made the ensuing free throw to bring them within one.

She had 13 points in the final 10 minutes as the Bruins (26-7) advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2019. UCLA regained control by going on a 6-1 run at the beginning of the fourth.

Kiki Rice added 14 points for the Bruins, who will face top-ranked South Carolina on Saturday in a Greenville 1 Regional semifinal. UCLA hung tough with the Gamecocks earlier in the season before losing 73-64.

Madi Williams scored 24 points and Ana Llanusa 15 for the Sooners, who end their season 26-7.

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