Illinois Reaches Sweet 16 For First Time

Midwest

Ashley Berggren scored 18 points as No. 16 Illinois beat Duke 85-67 in Champaign, Ill., to advance Sunday for the first time to the round of 16 in the NCAA women’s tournament.

The Illini (24-7) hadn’t had a winning season, let alone an NCAA berth, in a decade.

The closest the Blue Devils (19-11) got in the second half was 34-31 with 18:27 left on a basket by Kira Orr. But the Blue Devils didn’t score again for nearly 5 minutes as the Illini built a double-figures lead they never relinquished.

Colorado 66, S.F. Austin 57

At Boulder, Colo., LaShena Graham scored 24 points, and the Buffaloes (23-8) hit eight straight free throws down the stretch to beat the Lumberjacks (28-5) and advance to the Sweet 16.

Raegan Scott added 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Buffaloes, who overcame 21 turnovers against Stephen F. Austin’s pressure defense to advance to the round of 16 for the fourth time in five years.