Ball, Karaban lead UConn to win vs. Columbia

STORRS, Conn. -- Solo Ball scored 23 points while Alex Karaban added 20 points and 6 rebounds as third-ranked UConn topped Columbia 89-62 on Monday night. Tarris Reed Jr. put up 19 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks, while Jayden Ross scored 10 points off the bench for the Huskies (3-0). Reed shot 6 of 9 from the field and 7 of 10 from the free-throw line. Miles Franklin and Blair Thompson tallied 10 points each for Columbia (1-1). UConn missed five of its first six shots, but missed consecutive field-goal attempts only twice for the rest of the first half. Columbia only trailed by a point with 12:39 left in the first half, but the Lions missed their next 10 shots and the Huskies capitalized by hitting 3 three-pointers -- two by Ross -- in a 16-2 run. UConn made 10 of its last 12 shots to take a 50-27 lead at halftime. Karaban had 14 points and Ball added 13 in the first half. Columbia outscored UConn for much of the second half before Ball, Karaban and Reed got going. The Huskies were not seriously challenged, but Coach Dan Hurley made frequent substitutions. There were 31 fouls called and 44 free throws attempted in the second half. Avery Brown, the only Connecticut native on Columbia's roster, and Richard Nweke were both injured in the first half. Neither player returned to the game. NO. 16 IOWA ST. 96, MISSISSIPPI STATE 80 SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- Tamin Lipsey scored 14 of his 25 points in the second half to lead No. 16 Iowa State to a win over Mississippi State in a neutral-site game that was the 100th Division I basketball contest played at the Sanford Pentagon. Joshua Jefferson scored 18 points while Blake Buchanan had 13 points and six rebounds for the Cyclones (3-0). The game was a homecoming of sorts for Iowa State Coach T.J. Otzelberger, who coached South Dakota State from 2016-19. Lipsey, a finalist for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2024, also helped the Cyclones on the defensive end with a game-leading three steals. Iowa State forced 26 Mississippi State turnovers that resulted in 29 points. The Bulldogs committed just seven turnovers in their season-opening win over North Alabama on Nov. 5. Josh Hubbard led the Bulldogs (1-1) with 25 points on 8-of-17 shooting, including 4-of-10 from three-point range. Achor Achor finished with nine points and eight rebounds. The first half featured eight lead changes. MSU's Dellquan Warren hit a three-pointer to cut the Iowa State lead to 29-27 with just over five minutes to play before the Cyclones went on a 15-3 run. A three-point play by Buchanan brought Iowa State's fans to their feet in the final minute of the half. The Cyclones closed out the first 20 minutes on a 22-8 run and led 53-35 at the break. The lead ballooned to 85-60 on a jumper by Jefferson with six minutes to play in the second half. TOP 25 WOMEN NO. 4 TEXAS 100, LA.-LAFAYETTE 38 AUSTIN, Texas -- Kyla Oldacre tallied 19 points and seven rebounds to lead No. 4 Texas past Louisiana-Lafayette for its 27th straight win at home. Oldacre, a 6-6 senior, used her height advantage to convert 7 of 8 shots from the field. Oldacre could have surpassed her career-best 21 points, but she missed 7 of 12 free throws. Senior point guard Rori Harmon scored 12 points and added five assists, pulling within 29 of the school record (776) held by Kamie Ethridge, who set the mark in 1986 when Texas won the NCAA championship. Breya Cunningham, alternating with Oldacre at center, grabbed 14 rebounds for the Longhorns (3-0). Justice Carlton scored 13 points and blocked four shots. Texas shot 59% from the field. Freshman guard Imani Daniel led Louisiana-Lafayette (0-3) with 17 points. Texas forced 32 Louisiana-Lafayette turnovers and converted them into 37 points. Madison Booker, a junior, had six steals after swiping a career-best seven on Friday against Richmond. Harmon and Bryanna Preston made three steals each. NO. 19 VANDERBILT 96, NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda scored 16 and Mikayla Blakes added 15 for No. 19 Vanderbilt in a win over Furman. Vanderbilt (2-0), which hadn't played since a 74-65 victory over California in Paris last Monday, has won seven straight home openers dating to the 2019-20 season. The Commodores have also started the past four seasons 2-0. Four other players for Vanderbilt scored in the double digits, including freshman Aubrey Galvan, who had 11 points and led the team with 8 assists and 7 rebounds. Justine Pissott had 13 points and six assists. The Commadores started the game with a 10-0 run to quickly go up by double digits in the first quarter and went on a 22-7 run in the third quarter to pull away, leading 71-32. Furman (1-2) shot 17 of 51 from the field and committed 28 turnovers for 41 Vanderbilt points. Alyssa Ervin led the Paladins with 16 points, while Raina McGowens added 10.