SEC/TOP 25 WOMEN

Auburn's big finish staggers Tennessee

Auburn’s Aicha Coulibaly celebrates during the Tigers’ victory over No. 4 Tennessee on Thursday night in Auburn, Ala.
(AP/Butch Dill)
Auburn’s Aicha Coulibaly celebrates during the Tigers’ victory over No. 4 Tennessee on Thursday night in Auburn, Ala. (AP/Butch Dill)


AUBURN, Ala. -- Aicha Coulibaly had 26 points and Auburn scored 11 in a row late in a 71-61 upset of No. 4 Tennessee, ending the Lady Vols' nine-game winning streak Thursday night.

The Tigers (9-10, 1-7), the last SEC team to grab a league victory, built an 11-point halftime lead and closed strong. Tennessee (18-2, 7-1) came in as the lone SEC team with a perfect league record, but went six minutes without a field goal before a meaningless basket with two seconds left.

Coulibaly made 10 of 14 shots and had seven rebounds for Auburn, which had blown two consecutive fourth-quarter leads but took over in the end this time. The Tigers dominated the fourth 21-10.

Sania Wells added 13 points for Auburn, while Jala Jordan finished with 11 and Annie Hughes had 10. The Tigers were playing their third game in five days.

Jordan Horston led Tennessee with 21 points and eight rebounds, but also committed six of the team's 21 turnovers. Jordan Walker scored 17.

Auburn turned a 10-point first-quarter deficit into a 39-28 halftime lead. Jordan hit a three-pointer from the top of the key with four seconds left to give the Tigers their largest advantage.

Auburn scored the final nine points of the first quarter to cut a 10-point deficit to 17-16

Horston scored six consecutive points to punctuate a 12-0 run starting early in the third quarter to help give Tennessee back the lead.

Auburn's Mar'shaun Bostic hit a layup at the third-quarter buzzer to pull to 51-50. Then Auburn took over.

The Lady Vols are without center Keyen Green, who tore an ACL in last weekend's win over Georgia.

In other women's Top 25 games Thursday night, Aliyah Boston had 22 points and 12 rebounds and No. 1 South Carolina improved to 9-0 against ranked opponents this season with a 69-40 victory over No. 24 Mississippi. Boston had 15 points and four boards by the half. ... Emily Engstler scored 19 points to lead No. 5 Louisville to a 75-62 victory over Florida State. The Cardinals used a 10-0 run midway through the second quarter to break a 19-all tie. ... Naz Hillmon scored 20 points and became Michigan's career leader in rebounds as the No. 7 Wolverines beat No. 22 Ohio State 77-58. Hillmon surpassed Trish Andrew's record of 928 rebounds during the second half. She finished with 12 and now has 935 rebounds. ... Eylia Love scored a career-high 20 points, including 10 in a row in the second quarter when Georgia Tech established a double-digit lead, and the No. 14 Yellow Jackets defeated Boston College 68-49. ... Chloe Bibby scored 22 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead No. 17 Maryland to a 72-55 win over Rutgers. ... Olivia Miles had 17 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists, Sonia Citron added 13 points and 12 rebounds, and No. 20 Notre Dame beat Syracuse 83-62. ... Alyssa Ustby scored 20 points, Kennedy Todd-Williams had 15 and North Carolina romped over No. 21 Duke 78-62.

MEN'S TOP 25

In men's Top 25 games Thursday night, Isaiah Thompson scored a career-high 18 points and Jaden Ivey had 15 in his return from a hip injury as No. 6 Purdue defeated Iowa 83-73. Thompson came in averaging just 5.7 points per game but shot 6 of 8 from the floor -- including 4 for 6 on three-pointers. ... Jaime Jaquez Jr. scored 15 points and No. 7 UCLA routed California 81-57 to give the Bruins sole possession of first place in the Pac-12 with their fifth consecutive win. ... Brad Davison scored 17 of his 21 points in the first half, freshman Chucky Hepburn added 13 in his return to his home state, and No. 11 Wisconsin defeated Nebraska 73-65. ... E.J. Liddell had 23 points and a career-high 15 rebounds to help No. 16 Ohio State muscle past Minnesota for a 75-64 victory.

SUN BELT MEN

COASTAL CAROLINA 65, UALR 49

An ugly shooting night at the HTC Center in Conway, S.C., doomed the Trojans as they dropped the third of their past four Sun Belt Conference games.

UALR (7-10, 2-3) scored just five points over the final 10 minutes of the first half, with the Chanticleers taking a 23-16 halftime advantage. Coastal Carolina (12-8, 4-4) then stretched the lead to 17 points in the second half, coasting to the finish behind a game-high 20 points from Rudi Williams.

The Trojans got 13 points and nine rebounds from Nikola Maric in his return after back to full fitness following a bout with covid-19, but UALR shot 19 of 61 from the field and 5 of 27 on three-point shots.

ASUN MEN

NORTH FLORIDA 93, CENTRAL ARKANSAS 74

The Bears were blown away in their first visit to Jacksonville, Fla., with the Ospreys pouring in 55 points after halftime.

North Florida (5-16, 1-6 ASUN) took control with just more than seven minutes to play, scoring 10 consecutive points — part of a 21-7 run — to put away UCA (6-13, 3-3) and give the Ospreys their first conference win of the season.

The Bears were led by 17 points from Camren Hunter and got 25 combined points off the bench from Eddy Kayouloud (15) and Jaxson Baker (10).

SUN BELT WOMEN

TEXAS-ARLINGTON 90, ARKANSAS STATE 87

Arkansas State University’s Jireh Washington’s 30 points were topped by a 32-point performance from Texas-Arlington’s Starr Jacobs as the visiting Mavericks handed the Red Wolves their third defeat in a row.

ASU (10-10, 3-4 Sun Belt Conference) leveled things at 83-83 with 2:41 remaining after trailing 81-74 at the midpoint of the fourth quarter. Down 90-87 with 10 seconds to go, the Red Wolves had a chance to send the game into overtime, but Mailyn Wilkerson’s turnover allowed Texas-Arlington (12-5, 6-2) to escape First Bank Arena in Jonesboro with the win.

Morgan Wallace finished with ASU’s first triple-double since Dec. 16, 2006, finishing with 10 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

The Red Wolves shot 32 of 62 (51.6%) from the field. The Mavericks were 37-of-67 (55.2%) shooting and finished with 62 points in the lane.

ASUN WOMEN

CENTRAL ARKANSAS 56, NORTH FLORIDA 53

Led by 15 points from Hannah Langhi off the bench, the Sugar Bears held off the Ospreys at Jacksonville, Fla.

UCA (8-10, 3-4 ASUN) finished on an 11-6 run after trailing with just more than five minutes to play. Randrea Wright added 13 points to go along with a team-best six assists.

North Florida (9-10, 2-5) struggled from beyond the arc, shooting 4 of 23 on three-pointers. Emma Broermann scored a game-high 21 points, going 8 of 14.


  photo  South Carolina forward Aliyah Boston (4) shoots against Mississippi guard Donnetta Johnson (3) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Sean Rayford)
 
 
  photo  South Carolina guard Zia Cooke (1) drives to the hoop against Mississippi guard Lashonda Monk (1) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Sean Rayford)
 
 
  photo  Mississippi forward Shakira Austin (0) dribbles against South Carolina forward Victaria Saxton (5) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Sean Rayford)
 
 
  photo  South Carolina guard Bree Hall (23) dribbles the ball against Mississippi guard Angel Baker, right, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Sean Rayford)
 
 


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