WOMEN | Top 25 games

No. 4 Connecticut 82, St. John's 49
STORRS, Conn. -- Ann Strother scored a career-high 27 points to help Connecticut overcome the loss of star Diana Taurasi.
Taurasi had just two points when she injured her back after blocking a shot with eight minutes remaining in the first half. She left the game with soreness in her back.
With the All-American out, Strother and her teammates came through. Strother hit seven 3-pointers and reserve center Liz Sherwood finished with career-high 10 boards for the Huskies (16-2, 7-1 Big East).
Kim MacMillan and Danielle Chambers each scored 11 points for the Red Storm (8-11, 2-6), who have lost 20 straight to UConn.
Strother opened the game with two straight 3-pointers, but the Red Storm kept it close for the first 10 minutes and, at one point, led by as many as four.
No. 8 Stanford 91, Washington State 67
STANFORD, Calif. -- Nicole Powell had 15 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds as Stanford beat Washington State for the 38th straight time.
Susan Borchardt added 14 points, making four of the Cardinal's 15 3-pointers. Krista Rappahahn came off the bench to make three from long range and T'Nae Thiel scored 13 for Stanford.
Stanford (17-3, 10-1 Pac-10) has never lost to the Cougars in the all-time series, and won its 25th straight conference game at Maples Pavilion.
No. 11 Colorado 68, Missouri 66
COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Tera Bjorklund made two free throws in the final seconds and finished with 19 points to lead Colorado.
With the score tied at 66, Bjorklund was fouled by Christelle N'Garsanet with 4.7 seconds remaining and made both free throws.
Kate Fagan scored 15 points, Randie Wirt 14 and Veronica Johns-Richardson 10 for Buffaloes (17-2, 6-1 Big 12), who improved to 16-1 when at least three players score in double figures.
Stretch James scored 16 points for the Tigers (11-7, 2-4). Tracy Lozier added 15 points, Evan Unrau finished with 13 and MyEsha Perkins 12.
No. 12 Kansas St. 74, No. 20 Oklahoma 65
MANHATTAN, Kan. -- Nicole Ohlde had 27 points and 10 rebounds and Laurie Koehn scored 24 to help Kansas State extend its home winning streak to 28.
The Sooners (13-6, 3-5 Big 12) came back from a six-point deficit in the second half to get within two, before Ohlde and Koehn took over.
Dionnah Jackson led Oklahoma with 17 points and 14 rebounds. Erin Higgins added 13, Beky Preston had 12 and Antoinette Wadsworth scored 11.
Rutgers 76, No. 17 Miami 69
CORAL GABLES, Fla. -- Cappie Pondexter scored 25 points and Rutgers handed Miami its second home loss in four days.
Miami (16-3, 5-3 Big East), which lost 59-50 to Notre Dame Wednesday night, fell behind early and rarely led against Rutgers, who also got 21 points from Chelsea Newton.
Down at the half, Miami cut Rutgers' lead to 70-65 on a 3-pointer by Chanivia Broussard with 2:14 remaining, and appeared to force Shalicia Hurns into a shot clock violation on Rutgers' ensuing possession.
However, no whistle was blown, and Rutgers (12-7, 4-3) took a 71-65 lead on a free throw by Pondexter with 41 seconds left. A three-point play by Shaquana Wilkins cut the lead to 72-69 with 18 seconds remaining, but Pondexter hit all four free throws down the stretch to seal the win for the Scarlet Knights.
Rutgers raced out to a 12-6 lead, but Miami put together a 9-0 run keyed by five points from Yalonda McCormick, who scored 16 of her team-high 23 points in the first half. Rutgers finished the half strong, scoring the final four points to take a 35-30 halftime lead
No. 21 TCU 96, UAB 66
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Sandora Irvin scored 27 points and had 11 rebounds to lead TCU. TCU (16-3, 5-1 Conference USA) has won three straight. Irvin was 10-of-13 from the field and made 7-of-8 free throws. Kim Ortega scored 13 points, while Amy Pack added 12. Adrianne Ross had 11 points and Ashley Davis finished with 10. TCU shot 57 percent in the first half and took a 42-32 halftime lead. Crystal McFadden led the Blazers (7-13, 1-6) with 19 points and Natasha Thomas added 18.
No. 23 Virginia Tech 75, Syracuse 60
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Ieva Kublina scored 23 points, had 10 rebounds and blocked five shots to lift Virginia Tech.
Dawn Chriss and Kerri Gardin each added 14 points for the Hokies (16-4, 5-4 Big East).
Rochelle Coleman led the Orangewomen (6-12, 3-5) with 18 points, while Julie McBride added 17 points.
-- Associated Press