Hamson, BYU slow down No. 20 Gonzaga 62-52
PROVO, Utah -- Jennifer Hamson scored 18 of her 20 points in the second half and Lexi Eaton had 15 points and 10 rebounds as BYU ended Gonzaga's 13-game winning streak with a 62-52 win Saturday.
Morgan Bailey added 14 points for the Cougars (21-5, 11-4 West Coast Conference), who trailed 33-27 at the half but shot 43 percent in the second half while Gonzaga shot just 15.4 percent (6-39).
Jazmine Redmon had 15 points for the Bulldogs (23-4, 13-2), who could have clinched a 10th consecutive league title.
Gonzaga had 23 offensive rebounds but couldn't take advantage.
Hamson had just five points and fouled out in 13 minutes when BYU lost 68-62 at Gonzaga but her 18 points in the second half of the rematch was one point shy of matching the Bulldogs. With Hamson 10 of 12, BYU was 16 of 19 from the line in the second half.
Handford, No. 24 St. John's (N.Y.) drop Villanova 69-56
NEW YORK -- Aliyyah Handford scored 25 points and Amber Thompson pulled down a career-high 17 rebounds to lead No. 24 St. John's to a 69-56 win aqgainst Villanova on Saturday.
Danaejah Grant came off the bench to add 14 points and nine rebounds for the Red Storm (19-5, 12-1 Big East) with Eugeneia McPherson scoring 12.
Katherine Coyer had a career-high 18 points for the Wildcats (19-6, 9-5), who had their six-game winning streak snapped. Devon Kane added 12 points and Caroline Coyer 10.
After a rugged first half with both teams shooting less than 30 percent, things heated up. Villanova shot 50 percent and St. John's 52 percent. The difference was the Red Storm owning the boards 54-31. That included a 20-7 margin on the offensive end, allowing St. John's a 22-8 advantage in second-chance points and 32-26 on points in the paint.
No. 25 Michigan State rolls past Ohio State 70-49
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Annalise Pickrel had 17 points, 11 rebounds and six assists as No. 25 Michigan State rolled to a 70-49 victory Saturday against Ohio State.
Michigan State closed the first half on a 17-2 run, taking a 42-21 lead into the break and led by double digits the rest of the way. Becca Mills scored 17 points for Michigan State. Aerial Powers added 15 points and tied a career-high with five assists.
The Spartans (17-8, 9-3 Big Ten) have won five of their past six games, bouncing back after losing to Nebraska 76-56 last Saturday. Michigan State is one game back of No. 11 Penn State for the top spot in the conference and hold a half-game lead above No. 21 Nebraska.
Ameryst Alston scored 25 points and Cait Craft added 11 to lead Ohio State (14-14, 4-8), which has lost four in a row.
