Audi Crooks scored 27 points and Addy Brown contributed 22 for Iowa State, which rallied from a 15-point deficit in the second half to beat Princeton 68-63 on Wednesday in a Women’s NCAA Tournament First Four game in South Bend, Ind.
The Cyclones (23-11) advance as a No. 11 seed to face No. 6 seed Michigan in a Birmingham Region 3 game in South Bend on Friday.
The Tigers (21-8) led 40-25 after Princeton’s Parker Hill opened the second half with a layup. Princeton didn’t sink another basket for eight minutes, and Iowa State went on a 21-2 run to move in front 46-42. Emily Ryan capped the surge by completing a three-point play with 2:50 left in the third quarter.
A last-second jumper by Ryan gave Iowa State a five-point lead entering the fourth period, and the Cyclones remained ahead by a margin of four to eight points through the entire final quarter.
Fadima Tall led Princeton with 19 points. Ashley Chea put up 15 points, Skye Belker logged 11 points, and Hill totaled 10 points, 12 rebounds, three steals and three blocks.
The Cyclones shot 46.8 percent while limiting the Tigers to 35.8 percent.
Southern 68, UC San Diego 56
Soniyah Reed came off the bench to score 24 points for the Jaguars, who never trailed while beating the Tritons in a First Four matchup at Los Angeles.
Southern (21-14) moves on as the No. 16 seed to oppose top-seeded UCLA in the first round of Spokane Region 1 action on Friday in Los Angeles.
After the teams exchanged early baskets in a slow-starting first quarter, a layup by Sky Castro put the Jaguars in front just past the midpoint of the period. UC San Diego never caught up again, with the deficit peaking at 21 points in the second quarter.
Aniya Gourdine posted 17 points and seven rebounds for Southern, and Tionna Lidge had 12 points and six boards.
Sumayah Sugapong amassed 19 points, six assists and five rebounds for UC San Diego (20-16). Parker Montgomery added 15 points.
–Field Level Media
