Davenport Proves Best of the Best in Ohio State Victory

Jessica Davenport outdueled Janel McCarville in a battle of the Big Ten’s best centers, finishing with 35 points and 11 rebounds to lead No. 2 Ohio State to a 65-53 victory over Minnesota on Thursday night at Columbus, Ohio.

Davenport was 15 of 19 from the field, five of seven from the free-throw line and had three assists and five blocked shots.

Brandie Hoskins added nine points and seven assists for the Buckeyes, 25-2 overall and 12-1 in the Big Ten. Ohio State has won 14 in a row.

McCarville had 22 points for the Golden Gophers (19-6, 9-4), and April Calhoun added 12.

Minnesota, which trailed, 28-23, at the half, drew as close as 30-27 on a McCarville three-pointer 2 1/2 minutes into the second half. But the Buckeyes then went on a 17-7 run, with Davenport scoring 10 points.

The Golden Gophers never got closer than seven points afterward.

No. 1 Louisiana State 81, Kentucky 58 -- Seimone Augustus scored 18 points at Baton Rouge, La., to lead the Tigers (24-1, 11-0) to their best start in Southeastern Conference play in school history.

LSU tied the school record for SEC wins in a single season. LSU went 11-3 in 1999-2000 and 2002-03.

Samantha Mahoney had 22 points for Kentucky (14-12, 3-8).

No. 3 Duke 72, Clemson 48 -- Jessica Foley scored 21 points and the Blue Devils (24-2, 10-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) extended the Tigers’ losing streak to 11 with a victory at Durham, N.C.

Duke also won its eighth in a row against Clemson (7-17, 1-10).

No. 6 Tennessee 74, South Carolina 44 -- Shanna Zolman scored 13 points and the Lady Vols (20-4, 10-1 SEC) beat the Gamecocks (6-19, 0-11) at Knoxville, Tenn.

The Lady Vols earned their 60th straight league victory at home and 31st in a row over the Gamecocks (6-19, 0-11), who were led by Lauren Simms’ 16 points.

No. 9 Michigan State 67, Iowa 60 -- Liz Shimek scored 20 points and Kelli Roehrig made two key baskets during a late 12-2 run that carried the Spartans (23-3, 12-2 Big Ten) past the Hawkeyes (16-8, 5-8) at Iowa City, Iowa.

The victory sets up Michigan State, which has won seven in a row, for a showdown at league-leading Ohio State on Sunday.

Crystal Smith led Iowa with 19 points.

No. 17 Temple 63, St. Bonaventure 53 -- Candice Dupree had 21 points at Olean, N.Y., to help extend the Owls’ school-record winning streak to 18 games. Tory Vyborny had 18 points for the Bonnies (8-16, 3-10). Temples improves to 21-3, 13-0.

No. 20 Maryland 70, Miami 65 -- Crystal Langhorne had 29 points and 22 rebounds to lead the Terrapins (18-6, 7-5 ACC) past the Hurricanes (12-12, 4-7) at Coral Gables, Fla. Tamara James scored 27 points for the Hurricanes.

No. 21 North Carolina State 71, Florida State 43 -- Khadijah Whittington scored 16 points and had a career-high 13 rebounds to lead the Wolfpack (19-5, 8-3 ACC) past the Seminoles (21-6, 7-5) at Raleigh, N.C.

Roneeka Hodges led Florida State with 13 points.

No. 22 Vanderbilt 78, Arkansas 43 -- Carla Thomas had 23 points and the Commodores (18-6, 7-4 SEC) held the Razorbacks (15-9, 3-8) to their lowest point total of the season at Nashville.

No. 23 Wisconsin-Green Bay 78, Cleveland State 61 -- Tiffany Mor scored 23 points to help the Phoenix (22-2, 13-0 Horizon League) beat the Vikings (3-21, 2-11) and clinch at least a share of the conference title.

No. 24 Penn State 76, Wisconsin 43 -- Jess Strom scored 19 of her 21 points in the first half to help the Nittany Lions (17-8, 12-2 Big Ten) past the Badgers (10-13, 4-9) at State College, Pa.