Durham, n.h.
It was Bell-Haynes’ second straight 20-plus outing after going 5-of-12 for 20 points in a nine-point win versus UMBC.
New Hampshire cut it to single digits (64-57) after a 3-pointer from Daniel Dion with 3:15 to go but couldn’t get any closer as Kurt Steidl made a basket on Vermont’s next possession.
Anthony Lamb added 13 points for Vermont (15-5, 5-0 America East), and Steidl finished with 12. The three Catamounts in double figures combined to only miss seven of their 25 field-goal attempts.
Vermont was 29-for-53 shooting overall (54.7 percent).
No. 1 Villanova 76Seton Hall 46
Villanova, Pa.
The Wildcats (18-1, 6-1 Big East) looked every bit like a team that could win back-to-back national championships in their first game at No. 1 in the AP Top 25 poll following a one-week hiatus.
No. 7 Creighton 72No. 22 Xavier 67
Cincinnati
No. 9 UNC 85, Syracuse 68
Chapel Hill, n.c.
No. 13 Butler 88, Marquette 80
Indianapolis
Tennessee 71No. 6 Notre Dame 69
Knoxville, Tenn.
The victory enabled Tennessee (11-6) to avoid its first three-game losing streak since February 1986.
After trailing by as many as 15 in the third quarter, Tennessee pulled ahead 69-67 on Meme Jackson’s baseline 3-pointer with 1:22 left. A driving basket from Notre Dame’s Lindsay Allen tied it at 69-all with 1:03 remaining.
Tennessee went back in front on Nared’s jumper from about 15 feet away.
Notre Dame’s final hope vanished when Allen’s 3-point attempt fell short of the front rim at the buzzer.
Diamond DeShields led Tennessee with 20 points, six rebounds and four assists. Mercedes Russell had 13 points. Nared and Jordan Reynolds added 12 points each.
Marina Mabrey scored 17 points and Arike Ogunbowale had 14 for Notre Dame (16-3).
No. 4 Mississippi State 73, Mississippi 62
Starkville, Miss.
Vivians scored 18 of her 23 points in the second half. Dillingham’s 16 points were more than her previous five games combined since she returned to the lineup following knee surgery.
Mississippi State (19-0, 5-0 Southeastern Conference) jumped out to a 22-8 lead by the end of the first quarter, though Ole Miss gained a little ground to pull it within 36-25 by halftime.
The Rebels (13-5, 2-3) kept hanging around throughout the third quarter, but five quick points from Vivians on a 3-pointer and then a layup extended the Bulldogs’ lead to 16 and ended any realistic hope of an Ole Miss upset.
Shandricka Sessom led Ole Miss with 16 points.
No. 17 Virginia Tech 72, Wake Forest 70
Blacksburg, Va.
Virginia Tech only scored seven points in the first quarter but used a 24-8 second-quarter spurt to take a 33-30 lead at the break behind Hicks’ 14 points. Hicks highlighted the Hokies’ 24-15 third quarter with a coast-to-coast layup for a 46-36 advantage.
Hicks, who averages 68.9 percent from the free-throw line, went 1 for 2 with 22.6 seconds left for a 70-66 lead. Milan Quinn had a putback of Ariel Stephenson’s miss with 13.9 seconds left to get Wake Forest within 70-68. But Samantha Hill sank two free throws for a four-point lead and after Elisa Penna made a long jumper for the Demon Deacons, Virginia Tech ran out the clock.
Sidney Cook added 15 points and Regan Magarity had 14 points and 10 rebounds for her fifth straight double-double for Virginia Tech (16-1, 3-1 ACC). Hicks’ previous best was 24 points.
Amber Campbell scored 22 points for Wake Forest (10-7, 1-3). Penna and Quinn each added 15 points, and Quinn grabbed 14 rebounds.
