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College Basketball Capsules: Baylor gets top-10 rematch at home against Kansas
WACO (AP) — Baylor coach Scott Drew was talking about the challenge of facing Kansas again and what to do differently this time when Brittney Griner, the 6-foot-8 blocking phenom for the top-ranked Lady Bears, briefly walked into the room.
Somebody jokingly asked Drew if she might be his secret to countering Kansas forward Thomas Robinson.
The sixth-ranked Bears (21-2, 8-2 Big 12) have to figure out something..
Three weeks ago, Baylor couldn't stop the inside-outside combo of Robinson and Tyshawn Taylor, who combined for 55 points as seventh-ranked Kansas won by 18 points to end Baylor's perfect start.
Because of the Big 12's full round-robin schedule this season, Baylor gets a top 10 rematch at home Wednesday night. The winner takes a share of the Big 12 lead with fourth-ranked Missouri, which has already beaten them both.
"It's always good to get another shot," Bears senior post player Quincy Acy said.
Kansas (18-5, 8-2) is coming off a 74-71 loss at Missouri, and has lost two of its last three games. But the Jayhawks still haven't lost consecutive games in more than six years — a span of 227 games — and will try to extend that streak against the Bears.
"I'm not used to losing and don't like how it feels," said Taylor, the senior guard with 111 starts who matched career highs with 28 points and 10 field goals made in the first Baylor game. "I don't even know how to handle it sometimes. I don't know what I'm supposed to do, how I'm supposed to act. ... I don't like it. I'm sure my teammates feel the same way."
The 6-foot-10 Robinson, the only Big 12 player averaging a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds a game, had 27 points and matched his career best with 11 made field goals against Baylor.
"We learned how good of a team Kansas really is," Bears forward Quincy Miller said. "Thomas Robinson is a different kind of dude, man. He's super good. ... All parts of his games, he's exactly what you want in a power forward."
Robinson overpowered the Baylor front line with an array of rim-rattling dunks and short-range jumpers, while Taylor hit four 3-pointers and had six assists in that game. Taylor has scored at least 15 points in eight consecutive games.
Baylor was down only 43-37 when Brady Heslip made a 3-pointer with 17:36 left in that Jan. 16 game in Allen Fieldhouse. The Jayhawks took over with a 16-5 run over the next 4 1/2 minutes, a stretch Robinson started with a three-point play and ended with his dunk.
The Bears, who had been 17-0 with the longest winning streak in school history, left Kansas with their first loss. They finished that week at home with another loss, against Missouri, where they play Saturday. They have won four in a row since those consecutive losses.
"They're going to be good, there's no question," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "The first time we played them, we played pretty good, but we also had some breaks, some things went our way. ... We're going to have to probably play as well as we've played all year, or better."
With Baylor's goal of winning its first Big 12 championship still in reach, and a chance to avenge its only losses, there is no need for any big speeches this week by Drew.
"Every week's big. Because if we weren't as successful in the last four games, we wouldn't be in this position. So you've got to get up for every game," Drew said. "The only difference is this game will probably be more talked-about than the past couple games were."
Baylor sophomore standout Perry Jones III, the preseason Big 12 player of the year who missed the first five games of the season because of an NCAA suspension, tweaked his ankle in the first Kansas game and still scored 18 points. The 6-11 Jones was still ailing against Missouri, but has averaged 19 points and 11 rebounds in the four games since.
"Definitely the most consistent stretch that he's had," Drew said. "Once he tweaked the ankle (against Kansas), the momentum and everything changed at that point."
Kansas State defeats Texas Tech 65-46
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — It's not very often a coach wins a conference game by 19 points and begins his postgame radio show by apologizing to the fans "for a lack of focus and enthusiasm."
That was the case Tuesday night for Kansas State coach Frank Martin, whose Wildcats defeated Texas Tech 65-46 to keep the Red Raiders winless in Big 12 play. The teams combined for 26 field goals, the lowest total in Bramlage Coliseum's 24-season history.
"After warmups, my assistants came in and warned me this might not be a very fun night," Martin said. "We had no emotion."
That's how it played out, even for Kansas State (17-6, 6-5). Pushed by Shane Southwell's 13 points and 10 each from Rodney McGruder and Will Spradling, the Wildcats led by 14 at the break and 25 midway through the second half.
But Texas Tech (7-16, 0-11), despite two droughts of more than eight minutes without a basket, was within 10 points in the game's final three minutes.
"It's frustrating," Southwell said. "We know we can play better."
Luke Adams, a 5-foot-9 freshman who did not play in Texas Tech's first seven games, led all scorers with 15. Kansas State made only six shots in the first half, four of them 3-pointers.
"We got real stagnant," Southwell said.
Texas Tech went 8 minutes, 24 seconds between field goals, a stretch that lasted until Adams' backdoor layup with 3:48 remaining in the half. The basket made the score 20-13 in Kansas State's favor. Texas Tech coach Billy Gillispie said his team's offense was often halted before it even got started.
"We weren't able to get around their guards," he said.
The Wildcats ended the half on an 8-2 run to lead 31-17 at halftime despite shooting 6 of 26 (23.1 percent) from the floor. And it got worse for Texas Tech in the second half.
The Wildcats pushed the lead to 42-20 on McGruder's 3-pointer with 14:15 to play. The Red Raiders did not make a second-half basket until Jaye Crockett sank a baseline jumper with 10:11 remaining. Gillispie said Tech's 22 turnovers were to blame.
"Just had too many," he said. "No matter the situation, we just kept turning the ball over."
Texas Tech did not make a 3-point shot until Adams hit one with 7:40 left in the game. The Red Raiders soon hit three more 3-pointers, two of them by Adams, to cap an 18-3 run that made it 50-40 Kansas State with 2:53 remaining.
Martin was forced to put McGruder, nursing a toe injury, back in the game.
"I didn't want to do it," Martin said. "But the frustrating part, as a coach, was the guy who didn't practice the last two days had the most enthusiasm."
Kansas State regrouped and pulled away, helped by it going 30 of 40 at the free-throw line.
Texas Tech tied its season low for points, matching an 81-46 loss against Kansas on Jan. 11. In three losses this season to teams from Kansas, Texas Tech has scored 46, 47 and 46 points.
Baylor sells out games vs. Kansas men, A&M women
WACO (AP) — Baylor basketball games are becoming a tough ticket to get.
School officials announced Tuesday that the sixth-ranked Bears' game on Wednesday night against No. 7 Kansas is sold out, as is Saturday's game in the Ferrell Center when the No. 1 Lady Bears host No. 15 Texas A&M.
It is the third consecutive advance sellout for the Bears (21-2, 8-2 Big 12), who have won four in a row. The winner of Wednesday night's game will match No. 4 Missouri for the Big 12 conference lead.
The Lady Bears (23-0) have won a school-record 36 home games in a row. With Texas A&M's pending move to the Southeastern Conference, it is the Aggies' last scheduled trip to Waco.
Baylor's women also sold out their Dec. 18 game against Connecticut.
Texas juco center suspended for 'violent behavior'
PARIS, Texas (AP) — The National Junior College Athletic Association has suspended a northeast Texas junior college center for the season after his second ejection for "violent behavior."
Paris Junior College sophomore Raymon Austin was ejected after he was called for a flagrant technical foul for fighting in a 65-59 loss to San Jacinto College on Saturday. The Paris News reports Austin was previously ejected from a Jan. 7 game against Indian Hills Community College in Ottumwa, Iowa, for leaving the bench and stepping onto the court during a mild skirmish.
No telephone number could be found listed for Austin. The 6-foot-8, 235-pound center from Chattanooga, Tenn., was the team's second-leading scorer with 11.6 points per game and had a team-leading 7.0 rebounds per game.
Big 12 Men
Nash lifts Oklahoma State past Iowa State
STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Le'Bryan Nash was determined to avoid another crushing defeat at the buzzer against Iowa State. Given a chance at redemption, he came up with the big plays Oklahoma State needed on both ends of the court.
Nash hit the winning fadeaway jumper with 4.7 seconds left and blocked Chris Allen's attempt for the tie at the buzzer to lift the Cowboys to a 69-67 victory Tuesday night.
Markel Brown scored 19 points and Nash added 18 as Oklahoma State (12-12, 5-6 Big 12) avenged a 71-68 loss at Iowa State three weeks earlier on Scott Christopherson's banked-in 3-pointer at the buzzer.
"They got us on a last-second shot — which I think we should have won — at their house, and we weren't going to let that happen again," Brown said. "We bowed up on defense, and coach told us not to give up any 3s this time. Le'Bryan made a good play on the ball."
Not bad, considering that Nash is convinced he's the "weakest link" on defense in coach Travis Ford's mind.
"It felt good to go back in the locker room and say, 'What now?' I made a good defensive play," Nash said. "It's good to rub it in his face.
"It's good to get the win. That's what I wanted the most."
After a game filled with back-and-forth runs, this one came down to the final play too.
The Cyclones (17-7, 7-4) wiped away an eight-point deficit over the final 5 minutes behind Allen's strong 3-point shooting.
He hit a pair of 3-pointers and two free throws during a 12-4 comeback for Iowa State, and Royce White tied it at 67 with two free throws with 39.3 seconds left. That was less than a minute after the 50 percent foul shooter had missed two in a row and air-balled the first.
Brown, who lost the ball out of bounds to give the ball back for Christopherson's winner in Ames, then dribbled the clock down and set up Nash's jumper with 1 second left on the shot clock.
Allen, who hit five of his career-high six 3-pointers in the second half, drove past the arc and into the lane, but Nash swatted his shot into the stands to preserve the victory.
"We executed our play," Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg said. "We got a big guy guarding Chris, and he took it in there, made a move, thought he could get in there and either get fouled or go for the layup.
"He was obviously the hot guy for us at the time, and we wanted to get the ball in his hands and let him make a play."
Ford said the thought of how the game ended in Ames didn't cross his mind during the final sequence. He was more concerned with Allen, who finished one shy of his career best with 22 points.
"I was a little surprised he didn't pull up for a 3," Ford said. "I thought he was going to pull up and give them a chance."
White ended up with 15 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists, falling short in his bid to become the first Big 12 player with two triple-doubles against conference competition. Colorado's David Harrison is the only Big 12 player with two, in the 2002-03 season, with one coming in nonconference play.
The Cyclones lost their 17th straight game at Gallagher-Iba Arena. Their last victory in Stillwater came in 1988.
"Each time you go out there, it's a new challenge, a new opportunity," Hoiberg said. "We just didn't get it done down the stretch tonight."
Keiton Page scored 13 points, Brian Williams added 10 and Michael Cobbins had a career-high 14 rebounds for Oklahoma State.
Iowa State scored nine of the game's first 10 points before Ford called time out, and Oklahoma State came right back with a 19-4 run that ended only after Nash drew a technical foul for yelling "and one" at an official to protest a non-call.
The Cyclones' Tyrus McGee also got a technical for pumping his fist in Cezar Guerrero's face in celebration after blocking Guerrero's 3-pointer and then racing to the other end for a layup. Page hit the two free throws for the technical, and McGee's foul shot gave Iowa State a 32-31 edge at halftime.
The runs kept coming in the second half.
Another early timeout by Ford led to a 13-2 Oklahoma State run capped by Marek Soucek's 3-pointer to take a 44-39 lead. Iowa State then scored the next seven points to go back ahead on White's coast-to-coast dunk.
The Cowboys kept producing highlight-reel dunks, and the Cyclones — the Big 12's top 3-point-shooting team — kept answering from behind the arc.
Allen hit a pair of 3s that put Iowa State ahead before Oklahoma State responded with nine straight points, including Brown's right-handed slam, and Page's three-point play made it 63-55 with 4:56 remaining.
It still came down to one final play for Nash to erase some bad memories from the last meeting.
"It always crosses my mind," he said. "I think we should be right now on the winning side of our conference record.
"I hate a game-winning shot on the losing end. I hate that so much because there's something I could have done or my teammate could have done to change that and put us in that situation.
"I'm just glad we got back to them."
-- Jeff Latzke
Top 25 Men
Capsules: Kidd-Gilchrist notches double-double in Kentucky's win over Florida
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Freshman Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had 13 points and 13 rebounds and top-ranked Kentucky easily passed its toughest Southeastern Conference test to date with a 78-58 victory over No. 8 Florida on Tuesday night.
The Wildcats (24-1, 10-0) have won 49 straight at home and matched their best start in league play since 2005.
Doron Lamb scored 18 points and freshman Anthony Davis added 16 for Kentucky, which won its 16th straight overall and ended Florida's run of seven consecutive wins.
Kenny Boynton led the Gators (19-5, 7-2) with 18 points, but the team with the nation's most 3-pointers this season went 6 of 27 from behind the arc and shot 34.9 percent overall from the field.
Freshman point guard Marquis Teague finished with 12 points and 10 assists for the Wildcats.
Florida scored the first two baskets of the second half to cut it to 38-30, but Kentucky answered with an 11-0 run sparked when Teague and Darius Miller hit consecutive 3-pointers.
NO. 3 OHIO ST. 87, PURDUE 84
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — William Buford scored a career-high 29 points to lead Ohio State to its 39th consecutive home win.
Buford scored 21 points in the second half to carry the Buckeyes (21-3, 9-2 Big Ten) while All-America Jared Sullinger and point guard Aaron Craft were on the bench with foul trouble. He scored seven straight points for Ohio State as it took the lead for good, then had a dunk with 39 seconds left that sealed it.
D.J. Byrd, averaging 6.5 points a game, had a career-best 24 points for the Boilermakers (15-9, 5-6), while Kelsey Barlow and Lewis Jackson each had 14 and Robbie Hummel added 13.
Sullinger had 18 points and Deshaun Thomas and Craft 13 added apiece for the first-place Buckeyes, who have won six straight and eight of nine.
No more than three points separated the teams for the entire second half until Buford went off down the stretch.
EVANSVILLE 65, NO. 17 CREIGHTON 57
EVANSVILLE, Ind. (AP) — Colt Ryan gave Evansville the lead for good by making a 17-footer with 3:08 to play and the Purple Aces closed the game on a 13-1 run.
The nation's best shooting team was out of sync all night and wound up losing a second straight game for the first time this season. Creighton (21-4, 11-3 Missouri Valley Conference) was led by Doug McDermott with 21 points.
Kenny Harris scored 15 points to lead Evansville (12-12, 7-7), which ended a six-game losing streak against the Bluejays. The Purple Aces limited Creighton to 40.4 percent shooting from the field, including 4 of 22 on 3-pointers, and didn't trail until early in the second half.
Evansville was behind 48-41with 12:56 to go but rallied with a 9-2 run to tie the score at 50.
No. 2 Syracuse prepares for archrival Georgetown
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — The Syracuse-Georgetown rivalry is one that has withstood the test of time in the Big East.
The conference has changed in so many ways over the years, and continues to, especially with Syracuse headed for the Atlantic Coast Conference. But for so long, there has always been the Orange and the Hoyas. And on Wednesday night, another chapter will be added.
For Scoop Jardine, this will be the last game of his Syracuse career against Georgetown in the Carrier Dome.
But don't talk to him about that. Rivalry aside, he's only concerned about one thing.
"Get a win. I ain't worrying about it being the last game," Jardine said Tuesday, sweat dripping off his forehead during a brief break in practice. "I'm worrying about the end of the game, the results, us winning no matter how we look, no matter how we get it. We need some wins right now."
Second-ranked Syracuse (23-1, 10-1 Big East) has plenty of those at this juncture of the season and brings a perfect 15-0 home record into the game against the 12th-ranked Hoyas (18-4, 8-3), who have won five of six.
Georgetown has limited four Big East opponents under 50 points this season, including its last two triumphs. The Hoyas held Connecticut to 44 points and 30 percent shooting last Wednesday night, the Huskies' worst output in both categories since the 1990s. And then, they limited South Florida to 45 points on Saturday. The Bulls committed turnovers on nine straight possessions and didn't score for nearly 11 minutes as Georgetown took control.
"It's not all about scoring, it's about playing defense, too," Georgetown freshman forward Otto Porter said. "If you can't stop the other team from scoring, then what good is it, everybody scoring?"
Georgetown is one of only five teams nationally with at least four wins over top-25 teams. The Hoyas beat Memphis in the Maui Invitational early in the season, won at Alabama and Louisville, and topped Marquette last month.
With 7-foot sophomore center Fab Melo back in the lineup for Syracuse after missing three games because of an academic issue, the Orange are a more intimidating bunch. They were ranked No. 1 for six weeks before suffering their lone loss at Notre Dame, the first game Melo missed. He returned on Saturday and had a career-high 14 points to help Syracuse to a 95-70 win over St. John's at Madison Square Garden, the Red Storm's worst loss of the season.
The message to his team is simple for Georgetown coach John Thompson III.
"We tell them we're going to face probably the best team in the country right now, a team that's multilayered in terms of their depth at every position," said Thompson, who guided the Hoyas to a 64-56 victory over Syracuse here a year ago, his first win in the Carrier Dome in six tries.
Expect another low-scoring affair. The Hoyas are second in the Big East in scoring defense, allowing only 59.2 points.
"You're going to have a lot of games like that, where there's a lot of defense, shots are tough to come by," Georgetown guard Markel Starks said. "It's tough to make shots. That's what the Big East is. It's rugged basketball. It's who's tougher than who. That's what it boils down to, especially as it gets closer to tournament time. It's about having a certain toughness, a mental toughness, a physical toughness."
Jardine agreed.
"Every time we play Georgetown, it's a low-scoring, defensive game," said the guard who is in his fifth and final year at Syracuse. "It's a rivalry game, so both teams are going to be intense. Both teams are going to play really hard."
The game has added significance. With Syracuse's impending move to the ACC, it could be the last time the teams meet as Big East foes in the Carrier Dome, and Orange coach Jim Boeheim needs one more victory to take sole possession of third place on the Division I all-time wins list. Boeheim has 879, tied with North Carolina's Dean Smith.
"I'm excited for him, excited for the opportunity to get him that win," Syracuse senior forward Kris Joseph said.
The number of tickets sold for Saturday's game here against Connecticut already is over 31,000, and the crowd for Georgetown is approaching 30,000. Georgetown-Syracuse has drawn more than 30,000 fans 15 times since the Carrier Dome opened in 1980.
"They know what they're walking into," Thompson said. "They have a sense of the crowd and how great their fans are and how numerous their fans are. Once the game starts, it's a court, it's a gym, it's fans. Obviously, there aren't too many venues that hold as many people as the Carrier Dome. And there aren't too many games that are as spirited as the Georgetown-Syracuse games have been down through the years.
"So is this game special? Absolutely, but I think our guys are going to show up and be ready to play."
Starks is set for the challenge. He was indoctrinated last year as a freshman.
"I was the first person out to that game, and I was shooting (during early warmups), and as soon as I got on the court, fans, they were jawing at me," Starks said. "I heard some things that I wish I didn't hear. The best way I can tell (the freshmen) to prepare for it, is try to tune the crowd out, and it's hard."
-- John Kekis
Top 25 Women
Capsules: Peters, McBride lead way for Notre Dame
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — Devereaux Peters had a season-high 21 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, Kayla McBride added 19 points and No. 2 Notre Dame beat Syracuse 74-55 on Tuesday night.
It was the 21st straight win for Notre Dame (24-1, 11-0 Big East) and improved its road record to 12-1 against Syracuse (15-10, 4-7), which lost at home by 41 points to No. 3 Connecticut two weeks ago.
Skylar Diggins, the Irish's leading scorer, finished with 11 points, all in the second half. She scored five straight points to get the Irish going after the Orange had pulled within 49-39 on a 3-pointer by Rachel Coffey and two free throws by Shakeya Leary midway through the half.
Iasia Hemingway had 15 points and Kayla Alexander added 11 for Syracuse.
NO. 3 CONNECTICUT 56, NO. 20 LOUISVILLE 46
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Caroline Doty had 15 points to lead Connecticut.
Doty, scoreless in her last game against Rutgers, made 5 of 11 3-point attempts. Tiffany Hayes added nine points and 11 rebounds before fouling out for UConn (22-2, 10-1 Big East).
Shoni Schimmel led Louisville (17-7, 6-5) with 20 points and eight rebounds. Sara Hammond added 10 points, eight in the second half.
The Huskies held Louisville to just two field goals over the final 12 minutes of the first half to take a 33-17 lead.
Louisville cut the Huskies' lead to 46-40, but Bria Hartley made a 3-pointer from the left corner.
News & Notes - Men
Arkansas' freshmen growing up on the job
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Mike Anderson's first job as Arkansas' coach last March was to keep the school's heralded recruiting class together.
Little did Anderson know at the time just how important that class would prove this season — and likely in the future for the Razorbacks.
Arkansas (16-7, 4-4 Southeastern Conference) has yet to lose in Bud Walton Arena this season and is sixth in the SEC race at the midway point of conference play. It has wins over three ranked teams entering its game at Georgia (10-12, 1-7) on Wednesday and leads the league in turnovers forced (17.3) per game.
The success has been a refreshing change for a program that hasn't reached the NCAA tournament in four years.
By choice or by force, the Razorbacks have found their way with four freshmen forming the core — and often leading the way — in the first season under Anderson, who replaced the fired John Pelphrey.
The freshmen (BJ Young, Hunter Mickelson, Devonta Abron and Ky Madden) combined are averaging nearly 32 points, 15.2 rebounds and 3.4 steals per game. More important, they have provided fresh legs for an Arkansas team that entered the season with only 10 scholarship players.
And, as Anderson points out, they're just getting started.
"There is so much room to grow with this basketball team," Anderson said. "As we speak right now ... when this is over, they're going to continue to change before your eyes. Going through what they are going through now right now can only, hopefully, benefit them."
Anderson did his best to downplay the freshmen's impact before the season, but there was no denying their significance once the games started. Their impact only grew after the team's leading returning scorer from last season, Marshawn Powell, was lost for the season with a knee injury after the second game.
Powell averaged 19.5 points in those two games, leaving a void in scoring and leadership. Combined with the loss of senior Marvell Waithe with a calf injury in recent weeks, and Arkansas' four freshmen have made up exactly half of its eight scholarship players.
Anderson wanted the group to have the opportunity to blend in and develop at a slower pace, but he's excited about what he has seen.
"Well, they've been thrown into the fire, so now they've been learning on the job and it just tells you what kind of people, what kind of players they are," Anderson said. "You look at their future: They've got a chance to have some bright futures."
Young has been the leading scorer in Powell's absence, averaging 13.8 points and shooting nearly 50 percent off the bench. The guard scored a season-high 28 points in a loss at Connecticut on Dec. 3, and his explosive first step has proven the equal of just about any other guard in the SEC.
The 6-foot-10 Mickelson is fourth in the SEC with an average of 2.5 blocks per game. He needs only three to tie the school's freshmen record of 60, set by Oliver Miller during the 1988-89 season.
"I don't really feel like a freshman anymore," Young said. "I never really did, because (of) as much as we've been playing."
Young's early progress hasn't come without setbacks. He was held to only three points in a disappointing loss at LSU on Saturday, his lowest scoring output since a two-point effort in the opener.
The loss kept Arkansas winless away from Fayetteville this season, though they've stayed close until the final minutes in their last two losses. They've also continued to receive plenty of praise from opposing coaches, particularly the freshmen.
"I think it's just a matter of maturing," Georgia coach Mark Fox said. "I think it will come. I just hope it doesn't come in the middle of this week."
Pelphrey signed the class before his firing, but Anderson had to work to keep them on board following his arrival from Missouri in March. That effort has paid off this season and will likely do the same in the future.
"We're still young, still kind of figuring it out," Mickelson said. "Coach Anderson, he's kind of laid it down on what we need to be doing, but we're going to mold into that with time. I think we're just going to keep working hard and getting better."
-- Kurt Voigt
Athletes from UGF, Westminster honored by Frontier
WHITEFISH, Mont. (AP) — Athletes from the University of Great Falls and Westminster College are the Frontier Conference basketball players of the week.
UGF guard Marcel Townes won the men's award. The sophomore from Phoenix scored 24 points and grabbed eight rebounds as the Argos upset No. 10 Montana State-Northern 69-68 last weekend. He made 10 of 12 shots from the field.
Westminster guard Nicole Yazzie won the women's award. The junior from West Valley City, Utah, averaged 17.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals as No. 19 Westminster beat Montana Western 78-63 and Montana Tech 62-48.
News & Notes - Women
MSU's Bussey shares Big Sky honor
BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) — Montana State senior Katie Bussey, who tied the Big Sky Conference single-game scoring record with 41 points in a win over league-leading Idaho State, has been named one of the league's women's basketball players of the week.
Bussey's 41 points set a school record and tied with two others for the league scoring mark.
The guard from Alamosa, Colo., added nine points, four rebounds and four steals in a weekend loss to Montana. She shares the weekly award with Brianne Ryan of Eastern Washington.
Bussey has made 234 3-pointers in her career, moving her into third on the all-time Big Sky list. She is five 3's away from breaking the conference career record of 238 set by Chelsey Warburton of Weber State.
Polls - Women
USA Today/ESPN Women's Top 25 Poll
The top 25 teams in the USA Today-ESPN Women's college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Feb. 6, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and last weeks ranking:
| Record | Pts | Pvs | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Baylor (31) | 24-0 | 775 | 1 |
| 2. Notre Dame | 23-1 | 743 | 2 |
| 3. UConn | 21-2 | 710 | 3 |
| 4. Stanford | 20-1 | 685 | 4 |
| 5. Duke | 19-3 | 650 | 6 |
| 6. Miami | 20-3 | 604 | 7 |
| 7. Kentucky | 21-3 | 584 | 5 |
| 8. Maryland | 20-3 | 534 | 10 |
| 9. Green Bay | 20-0 | 530 | 9 |
| 10. Ohio State | 21-2 | 483 | 11 |
| 11. Tennessee | 17-6 | 476 | 8 |
| 12. Delaware | 20-1 | 434 | 13 |
| 13. Georgetown | 18-5 | 379 | 15 |
| 14. Texas A&M | 16-5 | 378 | 16 |
| 15. Nebraska | 19-3 | 309 | 18 |
| 16. Rutgers | 17-6 | 290 | 14 |
| 17. Louisville | 17-6 | 276 | 12 |
| 18. Gonzaga | 21-3 | 234 | 19 |
| 19. Purdue | 19-5 | 222 | 17 |
| 20. Georgia | 18-6 | 202 | 20 |
| 21. Penn State | 18-5 | 176 | 21 |
| 22. DePaul | 17-7 | 92 | 23 |
| 23. Georgia Tech | 17-7 | 83 | 22 |
| 24. South Carolina | 18-5 | 46 | — |
| 25. Vanderbilt | 18-5 | 45 | — |
Others receiving votes: St. Bonaventure 34, North Carolina 19, California 18, Florida Gulf Coast 16, Middle Tennessee 15, UTEP 8, Texas Tech 5, BYU 4, Fresno State 4, St. John's 4, Princeton 3, Oklahoma 2, West Virginia 2, Kansas State 1.
