NC State and UConn lost for first time this season

BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) – Aisha Sheppard scored 18 of her 28 points in overtime to help Virginia Tech upset No. 2 North Carolina State 83-71 on Thursday. Sheppard hit two of her four 3-pointers in the extra session and the Hokies (8-7, 3-7 Atlantic Coast Conference) pulled away to beat a Top 5 opponent for the first time since 1985. In overtime, Sheppard started the scoring with a 3-pointer, and the Hokies never trailed again. She made 12 of 14 free throws in the extra period. Elizabeth Kitley added 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Azana Baines had 16 points for Virginia Tech. The Hokies snapped a three-game losing streak, Camille Hobby led N.C. State (11-1, 6-1) with a career-high 19 points. She made a 3-pointer at the end of regulation to tie it at 57. No. 19 ARKANSAS 90, No. 3 UCONN 87 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) – Chelsea Dungee scored a season-high 37 points to lead Arkansas to a victory over UConn. It was the second win of the season for the Razorbacks (12-6) over a top five team as they beat then-No. 4 Baylor on Dec. 6. Dungee scored 22 of her points in the second half, including 13 in the third quarter as Arkansas built a 13-point lead. UConn (10-1) responded and took a 79-77 advantage on Evina Westbrook’s 3-pointer with 5:28 to play. Arkansas then scored the next 10 points to make it 87-79, the last three on a three-point play by Dungee. UConn pulled within 90-87 on Christyn Williams’ layup with 34 seconds left, but neither team scored again. Freshman Paige Bueckers scored a season-high 27 points for the Huskies, including 15 in the fourth quarter. No. 1 LOUISVILLE 79, NORTH CAROLINA 68 LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) – Olivia Cochran scored 14 of her 17 points in the first half to lead Louisville, which withstood a late rally to beat North Carolina. The Cardinals (16-0, 9-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) started strong. They made eight of their first 10 shots to take a 21-9 lead in less than six minutes and built a 67-35 lead late in the third quarter. But Tar Heels (8-6, 3-6) made things interesting with a 17-0 second-half run. They got it down to an eight-point deficit with 1:18 left, but they could not get any closer. No. 4 SOUTH CAROLINA 79, No. 21 MISSISSIPPI STATE 52 STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) – Zia Cooke scored 19 points and Victaria Saxton added 13 to help South Carolina rout Mississippi State. After scoring just 10 points in the first quarter and trailing by one, South Carolina used a dominant second quarter to take control of the game. Cooke scored the first eight points to spark a 12-0 run that led to a 36-23 halftime advantage and the Bulldogs never recovered. Mississippi State (8-6, 3-4 SEC) shot just 22 of 65 from the field in the game No. 7 MARYLAND 92, MICHIGAN STATE 52 COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) – Diamond Miller and Ashley Owusu each scored 20 points, and Maryland breezed past Michigan State to provide coach Brenda Frese her 498th victory with the Terrapins. Maryland (12-2, 8-1 Big Ten) took control with a 17-0 run in the first quarter, led by 20 at halftime and coasted to the finish. Four players scored in double figures for the Terps, who bounced back in impressive fashion after having their 10-game winning streak snapped earlier in the week at Ohio State. Nia Clouden scored 15 for Michigan State (9-3, 4-3). No. 8 TEXAS A&M 84, AUBURN 69 AUBURN, Ala. (AP) – N’Dea Jones had 23 points and 11 rebounds for her 12th double-double of the season as Texas A&M beat Auburn. Texas A&M (14-1, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) used a 9-0 run midway through the second quarter to get a lead it wouldn’t relinquish, despite several pushes from an upset-minded Auburn team in the third quarter.