South Carolina’s top-ranked women’s team improves to 19-0
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Freshman A’ja Wilson scored 18 points, Tiffany Mitchell added 16 points and Alaina Coates had 12 points and 11 rebounds as No. 1 South Carolina remained unbeaten with a 79-61 victory over 12th-ranked Texas A&M on Monday night in Columbia, South Carolina.
The Gamecocks (19-0, 7-0 SEC) put away the Aggies with a 27-8 run in the second half after seeing their double-digit lead shrink to 40-38.
Achiri Ade led Texas A&M (16-5, 4-3) with 15 points.
• Iowa tops Huskers in OT: Ally Disterhoft scored all 20 of her points in the second half and overtime to lead No. 20 Iowa to its first victory against No. 15 Nebraska in nine tries as a Big Ten opponent, 78-72, in Iowa City, Iowa.
Bethany Doolittle had six of her 12 points during the extra period while Iowa (16-3, 7-1) outscored Nebraska (15-4, 5-3) 17-11.
• Foster does it again: Jim Foster has become the first coach to lead four schools into the Associated Press women’s poll, with Chattanooga entering the rankings at No. 25.
Foster guided Saint Joseph’s, Vanderbilt and Ohio State to the rankings before coming to Chattanooga in 2013. It’s the Mocs first appearance in the poll since 1984 when they were ranked for four weeks.
Oklahoma also entered the rankings for the first time this season at No. 24. Minnesota and Western Kentucky fell out.
No. 15 Iowa State holds off No. 19 Texas
MENS BASKETBALL: Georges Niang scored 19 points, Bryce Dejean-Jones had 18 and 15th-ranked Iowa State held off No. 19 Texas 89-86 in Ames, Iowa.
Jameel McKay had 14 points for the Cyclones (15-4, 5-2 Big 12), who bounced back from a loss at last-place Texas Tech by running up a huge lead that nearly slipped away.
Texas cut ISU’s 21-point lead to 87-84 on Jonathan Holmes’ 3-pointer with 22 seconds left.
Javan Felix scored 20 points for Texas (14-6, 3-4).
• Tar Heels top Orange: Brice Johnson had 15 of his 17 points after halftime and No. 13 North Carolina shot 55 percent to beat visiting Syracuse 93-83.
Nate Britt added a career-best 17 points off the bench for the Tar Heels (17-4, 7-1 ACC). UNC shot 62 percent in the second half against the zone defense of the Orange (14-7, 5-3).
• Michigan St. at Rutgers ppd: Tonight’s Michigan State at Rutgers game was postponed due to weather. No makeup has been set.
Thunder beat Wolves without Durant
NBA: Russell Westbrook scored 18 points, Serge Ibaka added 13 points and a season-high 19 rebounds, and Oklahoma City beat visiting Minnesota 92-84 without the injured Kevin Durant.
Durant sat out after spraining the big toe on his left foot Sunday against Cleveland. Reserves Anthony Morrow and Reggie Jackson each added 14 points to help Oklahoma City’s bench outscore Minnesota’s reserves 45-21.
Yanks don’t want to pay bonuses to A-Rod
MISCELLANY: The uneasy, strictly business relationship between Alex Rodriguez and the Yankees could be headed toward another legal skirmish.
It’s all tied to the marketing agreement both sides agreed to after the 2007 season, which called for A-Rod to receive up to $30 million for achieving milestone home runs – at $6 million each – beginning with tying Willie Mays’ career 660 home runs.
If Rodriguez, who has 654 career homers, reaches Mays, the Yankees could withhold payment on the basis that A-Rod’s achievements are no longer considered “milestones” due to his ties to steroid use.
• Reds sign catcher: All-Star catcher Devin Mesoraco agreed to a $28 million, four-year contract, leaving the Cincinnati Reds with two other All-Stars, third baseman Todd Frazier and closer Aroldis Chapman, unsigned.
• Rams opt out: The St. Louis Rams have notified the St. Louis Convention and Visitors Commission they intend to shift to a year-to-year lease agreement for their use of the Edward Jones Dome.
The notification is a potential pretext to a possible move back to Los Angeles. Under terms of a 30-year lease agreement reached in 1995, the Rams had the ability to convert the lease to annual terms if the dome was not deemed among the top 25 percent of NFL stadiums.