Published: 3/24/2017 11:44:19 PM
Modified: 3/24/2017 11:44:29 PM
Lexington, Ky. — Arike Ogunbowale had a career-high 32 points, Lindsay Allen added 16 and Notre Dame easily beat Ohio State 99-76 on Friday night in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
Playing five days after losing star forward Brianna Turner to a season-ending left knee injury, the top-seeded Irish posted their third-highest output this season while also scoring the most points against the Buckeyes. Ogunbowale seemed almost unstoppable in making 11 of 22 from the field to top her previous high by two points.
Besides Allen, the Irish got 14 points and a career-high nine rebounds from freshman forward Erin Boley, a Kentucky native who started in Turner’s place. The Irish tied one season best with 12 3-pointers on a season-high 24 attempts and made 19 of 20 free throws for a thorough win.
Notre Dame (33-3) also used a 30-point third quarter to build an 80-65 lead that wasn’t seriously threatened as it reached Sunday’s Lexington Region final against the winner between No. 2 seed Stanford and No. 3 seed Texas.
Kelsey Mitchell had 18 points for No. 5 seed Ohio State (28-7).
Mississippi State 75Washington 64
Oklahoma City — Teaira McCowan scored 20 of her career-high 26 points in the fourth quarter, and Mississippi State defeated Washington to advance to the Elite Eight for the first time.
McCowan, a 6-foot-7 sophomore center who entered the game averaging just over eight points per game, made 9 of 10 field goals in the final 10 minutes.
She scored 11 points in the first 2:33 of the fourth quarter to turn a two-point deficit into a seven-point lead for the second-seeded Bulldogs (32-4).
Plum scored 29 points and Chantel Osahor added 17 points and 11 rebounds in their final games for third-seeded Washington, (29-6) which reached the Final Four last season.
Mississippi State led 38-29 at halftime. Plum exploded for 10 points in the third quarter, and the defense picked up to help Washington take a 50-48 lead into the fourth quarter before McCowan took over.