SEC tournament roundup: Kentucky pounds Arkansas in opener

Clara Strack racked up 20 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks and Amelia Hassett drained six 3-pointers for her 18 points as No. 17 Kentucky kicked off the SEC women’s basketball tournament with a 94-64 romp over Arkansas on Wednesday in Greenville, S.C.

The Wildcats (22-9) were seeded ninth in a competitive SEC but breezed through their opening-round game over 16th-seeded Arkansas (12-20). They led 29-10 after one quarter, and though the Razorbacks cut the halftime deficit to 42-33, a lopsided third quarter allowed Kentucky to go up by as many as 36 in the fourth.

Tonie Morgan had 14 points and 10 assists while Jordan Obi put up 14 points and 10 rebounds for Kentucky. Teonni Key scored 12 and Asia Boone added 10. Kentucky controlled the boards 52-27, leading to 17 second-chance points.

Taleyah Jones had a game-high 21 points to pace Arkansas. Bonnie Deas added 10 points and eight boards before fouling out.

Florida 86, Mississippi State 68

Liv McGill and Me’Arah O’Neal poured in 22 points apiece and the 12th-seeded Gators never trailed against the 13th-seeded Bulldogs.

McGill came close to triple-double territory, adding 10 assists and seven rebounds, while O’Neal canned 4 of 6 3-point tries for Florida (18-14). An early 12-2 run put the Gators ahead by double digits, and they never took their foot off the gas from there.

Favor Nwaedozi paired 12 points with 10 rebounds and Destiney McPhaul also scored 12 for Mississippi State (18-13). The Bulldogs allowed Florida to shoot 50% overall, and the Gators also benefited from 22-for-28 free-throw shooting.

Auburn 50, Texas A&M 49

Khady Leye’s layup with five seconds remaining lifted the 15th-seeded Tigers over the 10th-seeded Aggies.

The game featured six ties and eight lead changes, including Janae Kent’s two free throws with 11 seconds remaining to give Texas A&M a 49-48 edge before Leye’s heroics. Kent’s 3-point attempt at the buzzer was blocked by Auburn’s Syriah Daniels.

Kaitlyn Duhon led the Tigers (15-16) with 14 points, while Leye contributed 11 points and a game-high 15 rebounds, and Harissoum Coulibaly added 11 points. Ny’Ceara Pryor paced the Aggies (14-12) with a game-high 25 points as her team’s only double-figure scorer.

Alabama 65, Missouri 48

Ace Austin scored 14 points off the bench and the 11th-seeded Crimson Tide pulled away from the 14th-seeded Tigers.

Diana Collins added 13 points and Ta’Mia Scott 12 while Karly Weathers had game-high totals of 16 rebounds and six assists for the Crimson Tide (22-9). Jordana Reisma led Missouri with 15 points on 7-of-8 shooting, while Grace Slaughter had 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Alabama led 31-20 at halftime, then turned it into a comfortable finish by outscoring Missouri 24-11 in the fourth quarter. The Crimson Tide owned the glass 48-36 and led for nearly the entire game, building a margin as large as 22.

–Field Level Media