SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Madison Scott scored 20 points and No. 7 Mississippi used a late run to beat 10th-seeded Marquette 67-55 on Saturday in the first round of the women's NCAA Tournament.
Ole Miss (24-8) takes on the host No. 2 Seed Fighting Irish (27-6) on Monday.
Kennedy Todd-Williams added 15 points and seven rebounds for the Rebels. Tyia Singleton had 12 points and Kharyssa Richardson scored 10.
Liza Karlen led Marquette (23-9) with a double-double, scoring 19 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Rose Nkumu scored 18 points, and Mackenzie Hare had 10 points.
Scott’s drive to the hoop with 7:22 left in the game gave Ole Miss an eight-point lead at 55-47.
Marquette’s Mackenzie Hare swished a 3 off a fastbreak to make it 55-50, and a turnover put the ball in the Golden Eagles’ hands with a chance to close the gap even more.
The Ole Miss sudden-strike defense kicked in as the Rebels bolted to a 59-50 lead with 5:18 left. Singleton stole the ball and drove in for an Ole Miss basket, and seconds later, a Todd-Williams steal led to her scoring on a putback.
Ole Miss and Marquette waged a tight battle in an intense first half. The Rebels held a 36-33 halftime lead thanks to a 22-17 edge in the second quarter.
The first half featured six lead changes and two ties.
UP NEXT:
Ole Miss plays Notre Dame on Monday.
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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket/ and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
