MIDEAST

MIDEAST
Connecticut 86, St. Francis, Pa., 37
STORRS, Conn. -- Unbeaten Connecticut won its 34th straight game in an overpowering start for the Huskies in their bid for a third NCAA title.
Asjha Jones scored 16 points for Connecticut in the first 10 minutes of the game.
The Huskies will play Iowa in the second round Monday.
UConn (34-0) shot 59 percent in the first half and the Red Flash (19-12) could not keep pace with a bigger, stronger and faster opponent. Jones, who finished with 18 points, scored eight of Connecticut's first 10 points.
Jones was pulled midway through the first half with UConn ahead 24-8. The Red Flash shot 23 percent in the in the first half.
UConn outscored St. Francis 48-8 in the paint and held a 46-25 rebounding advantage. The Huskies' reserves outscored the Red Flash subs 29-0.
Swin Cash added 17 points and 11 rebounds for UConn. Tonjee Ward led St. Francis with 15 points and Carlin Chesick added 11.
St. Francis, the Northeast Conference champion, is 0-6 in NCAA tournament games. UConn is in its 14th straight NCAA tournament.
Iowa 69, Virginia 62
STORRS, Conn. -- Lindsey Meder scored 23 points and Jerica Watson added 18 to lead Iowa over Virginia 69-62 Saturday in the first round of the Mideast Regional.
The Hawkeyes (18-10), seeded ninth, play either top-seeded Connecticut or 16th-seeded St. Francis in the second round.
Meader's leaner with 2:36 remaining gave Iowa the lead for good at 62-60.
Watson finished with a game-high 16 boards, including a key defensive rebound with 30 seconds remaining.
Telisha Quarles scored 17 points for Virginia (17-13), getting 14 in the second half. Her steal and layup at 5:08 tied it at 57 and her 3-pointer with 2:49 pulled Virginia even for the last time at 60-all.
Meder, the Big 10's 3-point leader, was 2 of 4 from behind the arc but got most of her early points from the inside. She scored eight of her 15 first-half points in the last five minutes of the period.
Her driving layup with 4:25 left gave the Hawkeyes a 26-25 lead. After the teams traded baskets during the next three minutes, Virginia tied it at 32 with 1:02 left. Meder scored the last four points on layups to give Iowa a 36-32 lead at the break.
Anna Crosswhite scored 12 for Virginia and teammate Brandi Teamer led the Cavaliers with seven rebounds.
Purdue 80, Austin Peay 49
WEST LAFAYTTE, Ind. -- Kelly Komara had 17 points, six rebounds and six steals for Purdue. Komara, the Big Ten's defensive player of the year and Purdue's single-season steals leader, put her team ahead to stay early on. She scored seven straight points in the first half. Komara converted a 3-point play, then grabbed a rebound and went the length of the court for a layup and followed with a steal that she turned into a layup. Shereka Wright added 13 points and Erika Valek had 12 for Purdue. Gerlonda Hardin led Austin Peay with 19 points and six rebounds and Brooke Armistead added 13 points.
Old Dominion 68, Georgia 54
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Lucienne Berthieu scored 24 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead Old Dominion. Monique Coker added 13 points for the Lady Monarchs (26-5), who rallied from a nine-point deficit midway through the first half. Berthieu scored 20 points in the first half and made 10 of 12 free throws. She slumped in the second, scoring only one field goal and going 2-for-7 from the line. Christi Thomas led the Bulldogs 14 points and Kara Braxton had 12 before fouling out with 4:59 left. Georgia was 7-for-16 from the foul line.
EAST
Cincinnati 76, St. Peter's 63, OT
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Valerie King scored 13 points in overtime for sixth-seeded Cincinnati. King didn't score in the first half, but took over in the extra period. She converted two three-point plays, and her 3-pointer with 1:21 remaining put the Bearcats up 70-63. She finished with 24 points for Cincinnati (27-4), which has won 14 straight. St. Peter's (25-6), the 11th seed, is 0-7 in the NCAA tournament. Felicia Harris led the Peahens with 17 points and seven rebounds.
South Carolina 69, Liberty 61
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Teresa Geter made four late free throws as third-seeded South Carolina held off a late rally. The Gamecocks led 62-47 with 6:30 to go before Liberty made one last run. South Carolina's Petra Ujhelyi scored 19 points, just one off her career high. She also had 11 rebounds. Jocelyn Penn had 13 points and got 14 rebounds. Stephanie Walker led the Lady Flames with 19 points.
MIDWEST
Minnesota 71, UNLV 54
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Lindsay Whalen scored 18 of her 29 points in the second half to lead Minnesota. Lindsay Lieser scored 12 points, and Corrin Van Wald added 10 for Minnesota. Sherry McCracklin led Nevada-Las Vegas with 11 points. Constance Jinks scored 10.
MIDWEST
BYU 90, Florida 52
AMES, Iowa -- Erin Thorn made seven 3-pointers and scored 28 points, and Jennifer Leitner added 17 points and 17 rebounds for Brigham Young (23-8). Sixth-seeded Florida (18-11) missed 25 of its first 29 shots and suffered its worst loss in nine NCAA tournament appearances. Freshman Danielle Cheesman added 13 points for BYU and outplayed Florida's 6-foot-4 center, Vanessa Hayden. Hayden, double-teamed whenever she got the ball, scored a season-low four points and grabbed eight rebounds before fouling out with 3:39 remaining. She had been averaging 17.6 points and 12 rebounds. Only Brandi McCain, with 28 points, got untracked offensively for Florida.
Arizona St. 73, Wisconsin 70
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Arizona State's Cion Carvalho hit four free throws in the final 27.1 seconds. Ninth-seeded Arizona State (25-8) also tied a school record for victories in a season, matching the 1983 team. Carvalho finished with 24 points, Melody Johnson had 18 State and Amanada Levens had 13 of her 14 in the second half. Jessie Stomski finished with 19 for Wisconsin and Tamara Moore had 15.
Vanderbilt 63, Oakland 38
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- All-American Chantelle Anderson scored 28 points and Vanderbilt used its height advantage. The Golden Grizzlies (17-14) did lead Vanderbilt once -- when Sarah Judd scored the first basket of the game. The Commodores (28-6) scored the next 12 in taking control of the game for good. Katie Wolfe finished with 16 points for Oakland, and Judd had 14.
WEST
Villanova 67, Pepperdine 46
NORMAN, Okla. -- Mimi Riley scored 18 points to lead Villanova. Katie Davis scored 16 points and Stephanie Baker 10 for Villanova (20-10), which overcame its 39-percent shooting by outrebounding the Waves 41-30. Damaris Hinojosa scored 16 points and Nadja Morgan had 10 points and 11 rebounds for the Waves (23-8), who had a season-low point total.
Oklahoma 84, Hartford 52
NORMAN, Okla. -- Second-ranked Oklahoma made Hartford's first NCAA tournament appearance a brief one, getting 14 points from Caton Hill. The Sooners (28-3) put their balance on display, getting double-figure scoring from four players and harassing Hartford into 22 turnovers. Hartford (16-15) had no answer for Oklahoma's superior quickness and athleticism. Stacey Dales and LaNeishea Caufield scored 13 points, and Dionnah Jackson had 10 for Oklahoma. Hartford was led by Dorcas Miller with 13 and Kenitra Johnson with 12.
Tulane 73, Colorado State 69
STANFORD, Calif. -- Gwen Slaughter had 15 points and 14 rebounds as Tulane held off Colorado State. The Green Wave (24-10), making their eighth straight appearance in the tournament, led by as many as 27 points early in the second half. Colorado State (24-7) closed within 68-65 on Joy Jenkins' 3-pointer with 1:40 to go. The Rams couldn't get closer. Angie Gorton had 16 points, and Ashley Augspurger had 10 points and seven rebounds for the Rams. Britt Themann scored 14 points for Tulane, and Teana McKiver and Sarah Goree each added 11.
-- Associated Press