Elina Aarnisalo set a career high for the second straight game with 22 points, and No. 21 North Carolina completed the regular season by handing No. 12 Duke its second loss in three games in a 74-69 victory Sunday in Chapel Hill, N.C.
The Tar Heels (25-6, 14-4 ACC) trailed by two at halftime, but Aarnisalo went 3-for-3 from the arc in the third quarter to power the hosts into the lead. Aarnisalo also had seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Nyla Harris added 19 points and seven rebounds and went 9-for-10 from the foul line. After North Carolina slipped behind 60-59 with 4:53 to play, Aarnisalo and Harris fueled an 8-1 Tar Heels run that featured six foul shots. UNC outscored Duke 20-10 on free throws and outrebounded the visitors 45-33 to split the season series.
Ashlon Jackson had 17 points with five 3-pointers and Riley Nelson scored 13 for the Blue Devils (21-8, 16-2), who had already clinched at least a share of the ACC title. Both Delaney Thomas and Toby Fournier had 12 points before fouling out in the fourth quarter.
No. 4 Texas 72, No. 24 Alabama 65
Madison Booker compiled 21 points and nine rebounds as the Longhorns held off the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Jordan Lee and Kyla Oldacre scored 11 apiece for Texas (28-3, 13-3 SEC), which led by as many as 17 points before Alabama opened the fourth quarter on a 7-0 run to get within 49-44. The Crimson Tide shot 9-for-12 from both the field and the free-throw line in the fourth quarter, but Texas held firm, with Booker putting up nine points in the frame.
Jessica Timmons scored 24 points and Essence Cody had 16 for Alabama (21-8, 7-8), which lost 19 turnovers that Texas turned into 21 points.
No. 13 Ohio State 87, No. 15 Michigan State 68
Jaloni Cambridge dropped 33 points, Chance Gray added 21 and the Buckeyes steamrolled the Spartans in East Lansing, Mich.
Cambridge and Gray each made seven 3-pointers, combining to shoot 14 for 23 from distance with Cambridge setting a career high and Gray matching her season best. Elsa Lemmila added 11 points and 10 rebounds while Kennedy Cambridge tallied 10 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and five steals. After a lopsided first quarter, Ohio State (24-6, 13-5 Big Ten) broke the game open with a 15-0 run in the second and led by as many as 30 in the half.
Michigan State (22-7, 11-7) worked back into the game, cutting the deficit to 62-48 after three quarters, but Gray and Cambridge combined for three 3-pointers in the first 3:38 of the final period to quash the rally. Grace VanSlooten led the Spartans with 17 points, seven boards and five assists, and Rashunda Jones had 16 points.
–Field Level Media
