College Basketball: Rutgers wins for interim coach
Myles Mack scored 23 points and Rutgers used blistering first-half shooting to defeat Alabama-Birmingham, 88-79, Sunday in Piscataway, N.J. Rutgers (7-2) was playing its first game without head coach Mike Rice, who was suspended for three games without pay due to a violation of athletic department policy. Assistant David Cox is coaching the team in Rice's absence.
Myles Mack scored 23 points and Rutgers used blistering first-half shooting to defeat Alabama-Birmingham, 88-79, Sunday in Piscataway, N.J.
Rutgers (7-2) was playing its first game without head coach Mike Rice, who was suspended for three games without pay due to a violation of athletic department policy. Assistant David Cox is coaching the team in Rice's absence.
UAB (5-6), which whittled a 25-point deficit to seven with just over three minutes remaining, got a career-high 23 points from Jordan Swing.
Rutgers was perfect for the game's first eight minutes, and by the time Jerome Seagears missed a three-pointer the Knights were up by 21-7.
Women
Florida 74, La Salle 50 - The Explorers trimmed a 19-point halftime deficit to just seven with a 17-4 burst out of the locker room, but the Gators outscored them, 35-17, the rest of the way at Tom Gola Arena. The Explorers dropped to 1-9, while the Gators improved to 8-3.
Penn State 60, South Dakota State 50 - The visiting Jackrabbits gave nationally ranked Penn State all it could handle for the first 30 minutes, but the Lions controlled the final 10 minutes to pull away for a win. Penn State, ranked 10th in the USA Today Coaches Poll and 11th in the Associated Press rankings, improved to 9-2 overall. The Jackrabbits, who had their three-game winning streak come to an end, dropped to 6-5.
Lions all-American candidate Maggie Lucas (Germantown Academy) was held to nine points on 2-of-12 shooting from the field, but contributed five steals and four blocked shots.
Auburn 71, Temple 49 - The Tigers' defensive pressure forced the Owls into giving away too many opportunities, resulting in a loss for Temple (5-4) at Auburn (8-2). The Tigers won their fifth straight and had four players score in double figures, led by Tyrese Tanner with 18.
Despite only a six-turnover differential between the two teams (28 for Temple and 22 for Auburn), the Tigers took full advantage with 36 points off Owl turnovers. Temple did not fare as well, scoring just 12 points off turnovers.
Temple's Victoria Macaulay finished with a team-best 18 points and six rebounds.