SAN ANTONIO (AP) — No. 1 seeds South Carolina and Stanford have moved into the regional finals of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament.
Zia Cooke scored 17 points to lead South Carolina to a 76-65 win over fifth-seeded Georgia Tech. It’s the third time in the past four women’s NCAA Tournaments that the Gamecocks have at least reached the regional finals, including their 2017 title run.
After going scoreless in the first half, Aliyah Boston had the first seven points in the third quarter as South Carolina went on a 14-6 run to take a 12-point lead.
Hannah Jump scored 17 points to lead top seed Stanford to an 89-62 romp over No. 5 Missouri State, sending the Cardinal to the Elite Eight for the 21st time.
The Cardinal expanded a 23-point, halftime lead to 38 in the fourth quarter.
Stanford kept up its postseason barrage of 3-pointers by making 15 against the Lady Bears.
Also in the NCAA women’s basketball regional semifinals:
— Charli Collier scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as sixth seed Texas shut down No. 2 Maryland’s high-powered offense for a 64-61 win. That sends the Longhorns to the Elite Eight as the lowest seed still alive in the women’s NCAA Tournament. The Terrapins had the highest-scoring offense in the country during the regular season and averaged 99 points in the first two rounds.
— Dana Evans scored 29 points and No. 2 seed Louisville advanced to the Elite Eight with a 60-42 win over sixth-seeded Oregon. The Ducks trailed by 15 at halftime but cut the deficit to 43-37 early in the fourth quarter before Evans provided seven straight points to start a 13-0 run.
