Latasha Lattimore had 28 points and eight rebounds, Cotie McMahon scored 27 and No. 24 Ole Miss never trailed while defeating No. 5 Vanderbilt 89-78 in the quarterfinals of the SEC women’s tournament Friday night in Greenville, S.C.
Tianna Thompson scored 16 for the seventh-seeded Rebels (23-10), who won in decisive fashion for the second consecutive night in the tournament after losing their last four games of the regular season. They beat 15th-seeded Auburn 73-57 on Thursday.
Ole Miss, which will face third-seeded Texas in the semifinals Saturday, raced to a 25-6 lead after one quarter, expanded the margin to 49-17 at halftime and never allowed the lead to shrink to single digits in the second half.
Mikayla Blakes scored 24 points, Aubrey Galvan had 18 and Sacha Washington added 16 points and eight rebounds before fouling out to lead the second-seeded Commodores (27-4), who lost to the Rebels for the second time this season after falling at home 83-75 on Jan. 30.
No. 3 South Carolina 87, No. 17 Kentucky 64
Joyce Edwards scored 21 points, Madina Okot had a double-double and the top-seeded Gamecocks (30-2) rolled past the ninth-seeded Wildcats.
Okot finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds, Tessa Johnson scored 15 points and Ta’Niya Latson added 11 for South Carolina, which will face LSU in the semifinals Saturday after winning its 11th consecutive game.
Amelia Hassett scored 15 points, Teonni Key had 13 points and eight rebounds, Clara Strack scored 11 and Asia Boone 10 to lead Kentucky (23-10).
No. 6 LSU 112, No. 7 Oklahoma 78
MiLaysia Fulwiley had 22 points and eight assists, four teammates scored in double figures and the fourth-seeded Tigers rolled past the fifth-seeded Sooners with their highest point total against an SEC opponent this season.
Flau’jae Johnson poured in 21 points, Mikaylah Williams scored 14, Jada Richard had 13 and Bella Hines added 10 for LSU (27-4), which led 45-33 at halftime and 72-49 after three quarters.
Aaliyah Chavez scored 20 points and Sahara Williams added 19 points and nine rebounds for Oklahoma (24-7), which had won its last seven games. Center Raegan Beers, who averages 16.0 points and 10.4 rebounds, finished with six points and eight rebounds in 23 minutes before fouling out.
No. 4 Texas 83, Alabama 60
Jordan Lee scored 16 points, Madison Booker had 11 points and 10 rebounds and the third-seeded Longhorns took command with a dominant second quarter against the 11th-seeded Crimson Tide.
Bryanna Preston added 13 points and Aaliyah Crump had 10 for Texas (29-3), which took a 21-10 lead after one quarter and outscored Alabama 31-9 in the second to open a 33-point halftime lead. The Longhorns will face seventh-seeded Ole Miss in the semifinals Saturday.
Ace Austin, Jessica Timmons, Alancia Ramsey and Diana Collins scored eight points each to lead Alabama (23-10), which outscored Texas 41-31 in the second half.
–Field Level Media
