Indiana forward Mackenzie Holmes of Gorham puts up a shot against Charlotte guard Jacee Busick during a first-round game Saturday in the NCAA women’s basketball tournament in Bloomington, Ind. Holmes finished with 19 points in Indiana’s 85-51 victory. Michael Conroy/Associated Press
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Mackenzie Holmes of Gorham scored 19 points to lead Indiana to an 85-51 victory over Charlotte on Saturday in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament.
Serving as hosts for the first time in the women’s tournament, the third-seeded Hoosiers (23-8) used a 22-2 run across a nearly six-minute first-half stretch to blow the game open. Aleksa Gulbe scored the final five points in the spurt to make it 33-13 with 6:44 remaining in the half.
The lead never dipped below 20 in the second half as Holmes scored 15 of her points after halftime.
Charlotte guard Octavia Jett-Wilson is double-teamed by Indiana’s Mackenzie Holmes, left, and Nicole Cardano-Hillary. Michael Conroy/Associated Press
The 6-foot-3 junior forward and second-team All-Big Ten selection made 9 of 15 shots to help Indiana shoot 54.7% – the 10th time this season the Hoosiers have been above 50%. Holmes also grabbed eight rebounds.
Coach Teri Moren said she believes Holmes, who returned in late February after missing eight games because of a knee injury, is starting to get more comfortable back on the court.
Holmes, the team’s leading scorer before her layoff, said her coaches and teammates have been pushing her in the leadup to the tournament.
“At the end of the day, I just want to do whatever it takes to win,” she said. “I just I’m trying to get better every single day.”
The Hoosiers enjoyed a balanced attack, as four scored in double figures. Grace Berger added 18 points. She became the program’s 13th player to eclipse 1,500 career points.
Gulbe finished with 15 points, and Nicole Cardano-Hillary had 11 points and five assists.
Octavia Jett-Wilson’s 19 points led the 49ers (22-9).
Indiana advanced to the second round in the Bridgeport Region and will host 11th-seeded Princeton on Monday.
PRINCETON 69, KENTUCKY 62: Abby Meyers set a career-high with 29 points to lead No. 11-seed Princeton (25-4) to its second-ever women’s NCAA Tournament win, as the Tigers beat sixth-seeded Kentucky (19-12) in Bloomington, Indiana.
The Tigers have won 18 straight games and never trailed after the first quarter. They shot 60% in the first half, which helped offset 12 turnovers in the first 20 minutes, then held on despite missing seven of their last eight shots and going without a bucket for the final 4:37.
UCONN 83, MERCER 38: Paige Bueckers started and scored 12 points as second-seeded UConn (26-5) began its run toward a 12th NCAA Tournament title with a first-round rout of No. 15 seed Mercer (23-7) in Storrs, Connecticut.
Last season’s national player of the year played 25 minutes, the most in six games since coming back from a left knee injury that kept her out for more than two months. She had five assists and four rebounds.
Christyn Williams scored 13 points to lead the Huskies, who opened the tournament with a win for the 28th straight time. Dorka Juhasz had 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Shannon Titus scored 12 points for Mercer, which was making its fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The Southern Conference champion Bears have never won an NCAA Tournament game.
The Huskies led 43-23 at halftime, then shut out Mercer 20-0 in the third quarter.
UCF 69, FLORIDA 52: Brittney Smith came off the bench to score a career-high 26 points and lead No. 7 seed UCF (26-3) past in-state rival Florida (21-11) in Storrs, Connecticut.
It was UCF’s first-ever win over the Gators after 26 consecutive losses. Diamond Battles added 18 points and Masseny Kaba had 14 for the Knights, who next face UConn on Monday.
Nina Rickards scored 17 points for injury-riddled Florida.
KANSAS STATE 50, WASHINGTON STATE 40: Ayoka Lee had 20 points and 15 rebounds as ninth-seeded Kansas State (20-11) overcame a frustrating defensive scheme from No. 8 Washington State (19-11) to win a first-round game in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Lee, a second-team AP All-America selection, made just one shot from the floor in the first half but rallied in the second to lead the Wildcats to their first NCAA Tournament victory since 2017. Brylee Glenn added 14 points for Kansas State.
NORTH CAROLINA STATE 96, LONGWOOD 68: Raina Perez scored 16 points to lead five North Carolina State players in double digits as the No. 1 Wolfpack (30-3) pulled away from No. 16 Longwood (22-12) in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Perez made seven of her eight shots for N.C. State, which advanced to face Kansas State in the second round of the Bridgeport Region.
NOTRE DAME 89, UMASS 78: Olivia Miles had a triple-double to help No. 5 seed Notre Dame (23-8) beat 12th-seeded Massachusetts (26-7) in Norman, Oklahoma.
Miles had 12 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for the 18th triple-double in an NCAA women’s tournament game.
Maddy Westbeld scored 19 points and Maya Dodson and Dara Mabrey each added 18 for the Fighting Irish.
Sam Breen, the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year, matched her career high with 31 points for UMass.
WICHITA REGION
VILLANOVA 61, BYU 57: Maddy Siegrist scored 25 points and 11th-seeded Villanova (24-8) rallied to beat No. 6 seed BYU (26-4) in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Kaitlyn Oriehl added 10 points and Lucy Olsen had nine for the Wildcats, who finished second behind UConn in the Big East.
Paisley Harding scored 21 points for BYU.
MICHIGAN 73, AMERICAN 39: Naz Hillmon had 24 points and 11 rebounds to help third-seeded Michigan (23-6) beat No. 14 seed American (23-9) in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Emily Kiser added 13 points and Leigha Brown had 11 for the Wolverines, who will face No. 11 seed Villanova on Monday in the second round.
TENNESSEE 80, BUFFALO 67: Alexus Dye scored 18 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as fourth-seeded Tennessee (24-8) held off No. 13 seed Buffalo (25-9) to remain perfect in the NCAA Tournament on its home floor.
Tennessee improved to 24-0 in the first round at home.
BELMONT 73, OREGON 70: Destinee Wells knocked down a pair of free throws with 1:02 left in double overtime, and 12th-seeded Belmont (23-7) knocked off No. 5 seed Oregon (20-12) in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Belmont upset Gonzaga as a No. 12 seed in 2021. With plenty of Tennessee fans hanging around to cheer a fellow Tennessee school, the Bruins won their 13th straight to set up a second-round game against the Volunteers on Monday.
SPOKANE REGION
OHIO STATE 63, MISSOURI STATE 56: Jacy Sheldon had 25 points and five steals, and No. 6 seed Ohio State (24-6) overcame an early double-digit deficit to beat 11th seed Missouri State (25-8) in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
The Buckeyes didn’t take the lead for good until Taylor Mikesell hit a 3-pointer form the left corner to make it 54-52 with 3:10 left.
LSU 83, JACKSON STATE 77: Khayla Pointer capped a 26-point performance with a tiebreaking 3-pointer in the final minute, and No. 3 seed LSU (26-5) rallied from 10 points down in the final 4:42 to beat Jackson State (23-7) in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Jailin Cherry scored 24 points for LSU, hitting several key baskets during a stirring comeback that halted Jackson State’s winning streak at 21 and prevented what was nearly the first victory by a No. 14 seed or a Southwestern Athletic Conference team in the women’s NCAA Tournament.
Miya Crump scored 21 points for Jackson State, which erased a 17-point deficit in the third quarter.
GREESNBORO REGION
NORTH CAROLINA 79, STEPHEN F. AUSTIN 66: Deja Kelly scored 28 points, Kennedy Todd-Williams added 15 and North Carolina pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat Stephen F. Austin in Tucson, Arizona.
The Tar Heels (24-6), the No. 5 seed in the Greensboro Region, struggled with turnovers and defensive rebounding while falling into an early 10-point hole. But they dominated the fourth quarter, hitting 7 of 13 shots and using a 10-0 run to build an 11-point lead after trailing most of the game.
Zya Nugent scored 26 points for No. 12 seed Stephen F. Austin (28-5).
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