BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — The stars showed up for No. 8 Indiana on Sunday.
Mackenzie Holmes scored a career-high 29 points and fellow preseason All-Big Ten selection Grace Berger had 19 as the Hoosiers pulled away from No. 13 Kentucky in the second half for an 88-67 victory.
Ali Patberg, a former Notre Dame player now in her seventh season of eligibility, added 16 points.
“I hope this comes out the right way, but I expect that from them,” Indiana Coach Teri Moren said. “I know they’ve put in the work. I know and the staff knows they’re talented. It’s just making sure whether we’re play-calling over on the sideline or sometimes just allowing them to play, they’ll figure it out.”
Berger hit a half-court buzzer-beater that gave Indiana a 38-32 lead at halftime.
After Kentucky cut the lead to 48-46 with 5:44 remaining in the third quarter, the Hoosiers (2-0) went on a 7-0 run and never led by fewer than six points again.
Holmes, a junior from Gorham, had 16 points in the second half. Nicole Cardano-Hillary scored all 12 of her points after the break.
Rhyne Howard scored 23 points for Kentucky (2-1).
Connecticut’s Paige Bueckers is guarded by Makayla Daniels of Arkansas during UConn’s 95-80 win Sunday in Hartford, Conn. Jessica Hill/Associated Press
(2) UCONN 95, ARKANSAS 80: Paige Bueckers scored a career-high 34 points, making 15 of her 19 field-goal attempts, and the Huskies opened their season with a win over the Razorbacks (2-1) in Hartford, Connecticut
Bueckers, the reigning AP Player of the Year, scored 32 points against St. John’s in her sensational freshman season. Sunday, she made 10 of her 11 shots in the second half on a dazzling display of layups and mid-range jumpers to keep UConn’s lead in double digits.
Christyn Williams added 18 points and Evina Westbrook had 15 for the Huskies, whose only regular-season loss last season was 90-87 to the Razorbacks in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
UConn raced out to a 17-2 lead behind Westbrook and Williams. Arkansas missed eight of its first nine shots before finally getting going offensively on a three-point play by Sasha Goforth that ended a 12-0 run by the Huskies. Arkansas cut its deficit to 26-23 early in the second quarter before Bueckers broke loose.
(25) TEXAS 61, (3) STANFORD 56: Aliyah Matharu made a go-ahead 3-pointer with 5:06 to play and two more in the closing minutes, freshman Rori Harmon scored 21 points and the Longhorns (2-0) upset the Cardinal (1-1) in Stanford, California.
(4) MARYLAND 81, JAMES MADISON 45: Chloe Bibby scored 19 points, Ashley Owusu added 14, and Angela Reese had 12 points and matched her career high with 14 rebounds as the Terrapins (3-0) defeated the Dukes (1-1) in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
(5) NORTH CAROLINA STATE 84, FLORIDA 52: Elissa Cunane scored 18 points, Kia Crutchfield had 17 and the Wolfpack (2-1) routed the Gators (1-2) in Raleigh, North Carolina.
(9) IOWA 82, NORTHERN IOWA 61: Caitlin Clark had 25 points and 11 rebounds and Monika Czinano added 16 points, leading the Hawkeyes (3-0) past the Panthers (1-1) in Cedar Falls, Iowa.
(16) FLORIDA STATE 79, MILWAUKEE 42: Morgan Jones hit her first three shots and scored 19 points as the Seminoles (2-0) dominated Milwaukee (0-3) in Tallahassee, Florida.
(17) OHIO STATE 86, NORFOLK STATE 48: Rebeka Mikulasikova tied her career high with 19 points, leading the Buckeyes (2-0) past the Spartans (2-1) in Columbus, Ohio.
(17) GEORGIA TECH 58, BELMONT 45: Lotta-Maj Lahtinen scored 17 points with seven assists and seven rebounds, and the Yellow Jackets (3-0) turned back the Bruins (2-1) in Atlanta.
(24) VIRGINIA TECH 81, GEORGE MASON 52: Elizabeth Kitley scored 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and the Hokies (3-0) established early control in a win over the Patriots (2-1) at Fairfax, Virginia.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
(18) TENNESSEE 94, EAST TENNESSEE STATE 62: Olivier Nkamhoua scored a career-high 23 points and Kennedy Chandler added 16 as the Volunteers (2-0) routed the Buccaneers (0-2) in Knoxville, Tennessee.
FLORIDA 71, (20) FLORIDA STATE 55: Colin Castleton had 15 points, a career-high 16 rebounds and six blocks as the Gators (2-0) ended a seven-game losing streak against the visiting Seminoles (1-1).
(23) ST. BONAVENTURE 79, CANISIUS 60: Kyle Lofton and Jaren Holmes scored 17 points apiece and the Bonnies (2-0) rallied to beat the Golden Griffins (0-3) in Olean, New York.
FOOTBALL
AP POLL: Alabama jumped Cincinnati to No. 2 behind Georgia in The Associated Press poll, and Oklahoma dropped eight spots to No. 12 after losing for the first time this season.
Georgia is the unanimous No. 1 for the sixth consecutive week, and the Southeastern Conference has the top two teams in the poll for the sixth time this season.
WASHINGTON: Jimmy Lake was fired as coach, less than two years after he was chosen to succeed Chris Petersen.
Lake’s firing concluded a stunningly fast fall with a team that began the season ranked in the AP Top 25.
Lake was suspended without pay for Saturday’s 35-30 loss to Arizona State after a sideline incident the previous week against Oregon, when Lake swatted at and then shoved one of his players. The incident only added to the heat on Lake and the suspension seemed a precursor to an eventual separation.
Including Saturday’s game, the Huskies went 7-6 under Lake.
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