Baylor sets NCAA record in blowout basketball win over PVAMU

WACO, TX — Brittney Griner and top-seeded Baylor took Prairie View to a record-breaking NCAA tournament low. Griner and Brooklyn Pope each had 17 points as the Lady Bears opened the NCAA tournament at home with the expected lopsided victory, 66-30 Sunday night when Prairie View's miserable shooting translated into the lowest-scoring half ever in the tournament.

Things couldn't have gone any worse for SWAC champion Prairie View (21-12), which missed its first 12 shots before Waco native Robin Jones finally made a layup more than 9 minutes into the game. Baylor (32-2), which plays West Virginia (24-9) on Tuesday night, already had a 16-0 lead by then.

The Lady Bears, who went to the Final Four last season when the 6-foot-8-inch Griner was a freshman, led 34-8 at halftime.

Top-seeded Baylor women pound Prairie View 66-30

WACO - The Prairie View A&M Panthers knew they faced a tall task - literally and figuratively - in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament. Not only were the SWAC champions the No. 16 seed taking on a No. 1 seed (Baylor), led by 6-8 Nimitz product Brittney Griner, but they’d have to do so on the Bears’ home floor. What the Panthers didn’t expect was to struggle hitting shots - and that ultimately squashed any hopes of an upset.

The Bears eliminated the Panthers with a dominating 66-30 win before 8,368 on Sunday at the Ferrell Center. Baylor (32-2) will meet West Virginia in the second round of the Dallas Region at 8:45 p.m. on Tuesday at the Ferrell Center.

Prairie View's 8 first-half points fewest in NCAAs

WACO, Texas - Prairie View has scored the fewest points ever in a half of an NCAA women's tournament game. The SWAC champion Lady Panthers trailed top-seeded Baylor 34-8 at halftime in the first-round game Sunday night. Prairie View was 3-of-27 shooting in the first half and missed its first 12 shots before Waco native Robin Jones scored on a layup for the Lady Panthers to make it 18-2.

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Kentucky survives scare from 13th-seeded Hampton University

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Kentucky couldn't wear out Jericka Jenkins and the Hampton Lady Pirates. So, it settled for outlasting them.

Brittany Henderson scored four of her six points in overtime and the Wildcats survived a scare Saturday, beating Hampton 66-62 in the NCAA tournament. "They really gave us a tough, tough contest today, so my hat's off to Hampton," Wildcats coach Matthew Mitchell said.

"I am extremely proud of the Kentucky team for finding a way to win this game." The Wildcats did it by turning up the defense and turning to their depth, with 11 of 12 players scoring and grabbing at least one rebound.



No. 13 Hampton women lose in overtime to Kentucky 66-62

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. —— It was oh so close for Hampton in Saturday's opening round of the NCAA women's tournament. The 13th-seeded Lady Pirates fell to No. 4 Kentucky 66-62 in overtime in a game that easily could have turned out differently.

"Tremendous, tremendous basketball game," said Hampton coach David Six.

"If you're a basketball fan you saw everything. You saw two great teams going at each other. And, unfortunately we came out on the short end of that. I'm proud of my kids. We didn't come here to be a bump on someone's schedule. We came here to play at a high level and I thought that we did that today."

Hampton (25-7) had a chance to go ahead late in regulation as Quanneisha Perry spotted up along the baseline to try and break a 56-all tie.

Hampton falls to Kentucky in OT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Brittany Henderson scored four of her six points in overtime, and Kentucky survived a scare from Hampton, beating the Lady Pirates 66-62 on Saturday in the Spokane Region of the NCAA tournament.

Keyla Snowden led the fourth-seeded Wildcats (25-8) with 19 points but missed a jumper at the buzzer that would have won the game in regulation, and Victoria Dunlap added 13 points and 12 rebounds.

Allowing just 51.3 points a game, the 13th-seeded Lady Pirates (25-7) were determined to put on a better showing than last season's 72-37 loss to Duke in the first round. And did they ever.




UK 66 Hampton 62 NCAA Tournament

Matthew Mitchell on UK's 66-62 win over Hampton in the NCAA Tournament.

"I'm so proud of our players for finding a way to beat a very tough Hampton team. I can't say enough about Hampton. What a great opponent. They were well coached and they had a great game plan that they executed well. They really gave us a tough, tough contest today. My hat is off to Hampton, but I am extremely proud of the Kentucky team for finding a way to win this game and I'm really happy to be advancing in the tournament."

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Texas-San Antonio to open NCAA Tournament play against Alabama State on Wednesday night

INDIANAPOLIS — The UTSA men's basketball team learned its NCAA Tournament destination and opponent on Sunday evening and the Southland Conference Tournament Champion Roadrunners will square off against Alabama State, which won this weekend's Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament. The two squads will play at 5:40 p.m. (CT) on Wednesday at UD Arena as part of the newly-created "First Four" games on the campus of the University of Dayton.

UTSA, winners of five consecutive outings in the last 11 days, will bring a 19-13 overall record into its fourth "Big Dance" appearance in program history and first since 2004 (1988, '99 are the others). The No. 7 seed Roadrunners earned the Southland's automatic bid following their 75-72 championship game victory against top-seeded McNeese State on Saturday afternoon. Senior guard Devin Gibson was named the Tournament's Most Valuable Player and he was joined on the All-Tournament Team by freshman Jeromie Hill.

NCAA MEN'S BRACKET

Hornets To Face Texas-San Antonio In NCAA Tournament

The Alabama State men's basketball team will face Texas-San Antonio in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Wednesday night at 5:30 p.m. central time in Dayton, Ohio. The two teams will be a part of the newly created “First Four” games on the campus of the University of Dayton.

The Hornets emerged from the fourth seed in the Farmers Insurance SWAC Tournament to win the title and the league's automatic berth for the fourth time in school history and second time in three seasons.

“We're excited to have an opportunity to be in the NCAA Tournament again,” Hornets' head coach Lewis Jackson said. “It's great for our players, Alabama State University, the community of Montgomery and people around the city and the state. Guys will have the opportunity to compete in the NCAA Tournament again and that's big. That's as high as it gets, and we're excited about being in it.”

Alabama State (17-17) enters the NCAA's as one of the nation's hottest teams, being victorious 11 of their last 12 games. That lone loss, a 74-73 decision at Grambling on March 5, was avenged in the tournament championship game Saturday night with a 65-48 win over the Tigers.

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