Florida Hands Lsu Its First Defeat

Top 25 women

DeLisha Milton had 20 points and 11 rebounds to lead No. 24 Florida to a 74-57 victory over No. 17 Louisiana State at Gainesville, Fla., snapping the previously unbeaten Tigers’ 15-game winning streak.

LSU (14-1, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) outscored the Gators 13-4 at the start of the second half to close to 34-33. Florida (13-4, 3-0) countered with a 21-7 run to lead 55-40 with 7:07 remaining.

Murriel Page had 14 points and nine rebounds and Mahogany Hudson had 15 points and seven assists for Florida, which has won five straight games and 10 of 11.

Pietra Gay, LSU’s leading scorer at 17.5 points a game, was limited to just a field goal in the first half and finished with 13 points. The Tigers were led by Keia Howell’s 16 points.

(16) Texas 82, (11) Kansas 72

Angie Jo Ogletree scored 20 points, including 6-of-6 free-throw shooting in the final 1:13, as the Longhorns pulled away from the Jayhawks at Austin, Texas.

Texas (10-3, 4-1 Big 12) watched an eight-point lead disappear late in the second half, but Ogletree’s calm under pressure down the stretch proved to be the difference. The Longhorns overcame a 32-point effort by Tamecka Dixon and snapped a five-game winning streak by Kansas (12-3, 3-1).

Before the game, Kansas coach Marian Washington said sophomore Suzi Raymant would be withheld from competition due to a possible NCAA violation concerning amateur regulations.

Raymant, a 5-11 guard from Australia who had been averaging 8.2 points per game, participated in the Australian Women’s Basketball League, which is being scrutinized by the NCAA.

(10) N. Carolina 87, (19) Duke 73

Chantel Wright scored 19 of her 22 points in the second half as the Tar Heels beat the Blue Devils at Durham, N.C.

Tracy Reid had 26 points and 11 rebounds as the Tar Heels (14-1, 5-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) won their seventh straight game.

Duke (11-6, 3-4) lost its third straight league game despite Kira Orr’s 22 points.

Marion Jones scored 11 of her 18 points in the first half to help North Carolina erase a 6-0 deficit and take a 38-36 halftime lead.