TOP 25 ROUNDUP Women's college basketball

No. 6 Connecticut 96, Providence 53
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Tina Charles scored 18 points, Mel Thomas added 17 and Connecticut rebounded from its loss to No. 2 North Carolina. Six players scored in double figures for Connecticut (15-2, 5-0 Big East), which put the game out of reach before halftime and led by as many as 45 points in the second half. Ketia Swanier had 14 points, 12 after intermission. Renee Montgomery and Kalana Greene added 12 each, and Kaili McLaren chipped in 10. Providence won its only other game against a Top-25 team this season, beating then No. 12 Louisville 106-94 in double overtime on Jan. 3. Chelsea Marandola led the Friars (12-6, 4-1) with 19. She scored her team's first nine points, including a 3-pointer that put Providence up 7-6.
No. 7 Oklahoma 76, Oklahoma State 60
STILLWATER, Okla. -- Courtney Paris scored 17 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead Oklahoma (14-1, 4-0), which scored on seven of its first eight second-half possessions, using a 14-2 surge to take a 50-27 lead on Leah Rush's layup. Natasha Doh and Maria Cordero hit back-to-back 3-pointers in Oklahoma State's 8-0 response, but the Sooners bounced right back as Kendra Moore hit a 3 and then had steals on three straight possessions -- two of which ended in putbacks by Paris. Cordero scored 15 points and Rashidat Sadiq had 12 points for Oklahoma State (14-3, 2-2), which shot 29 percent.
Nebraska 70, No. 25 Kansas State 63
LINCOLN, Neb. -- Kiera Hardy scored 22 points and made a key 3-point play late as Nebraska quelled a second half comeback by Kansas State. Nebraska (15-3, 3-1 Big 12) opened a 24-point halftime lead, but Kansas State charged back after halftime, outscoring Nebraska 19-2 to cut the Husker lead to 47-40. Ashley Sweat's driving layup with 6:10 remaining cut Kansas State's (14-3, 2-2) deficit to three. Hardy answered with a baseline runner and was fouled. Her free throw put Nebraska up 58-52 and started an 11-3 Husker run capped by Chelsea Aubry's second-chance layup that gave Nebraska and 11-point lead with 2:37 remaining. After a Claire Coggins 3-pointer, Hardy hit four straight free throws to put the game away. Kelsey Griffin had 15 points and seven rebounds for Nebraska. Danielle Page had 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Huskers in 23 minutes off the bench. Shalee Lehning had 11 points for the Wildcats.
Associated Press
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