Paige Bueckers exploded for 29 of his career high 40 points during the second half when no. 2-seeded Uconn dominated the last 20 minutes to blow out No. 3 Oklahoma 82-59 in Saturday’s Spokane region 1 Sweet 16 matchup in Spokane, Wash.
Buecker’s 40 points also set the Uconn program record mostly in an NCAA tournament game.
The Huskies (34-3) went on a 16-4 run that came out of interruption and flipped a four-point deficit in an eight-point lead in less than five minutes. Bueckers booked spurt with a couple of jumping shot, including a 3-pointer directly from the break set up by a Jana El alfy-offensive board and Azzi Fudd Assist.
Rebound was one of nine for El Alfy, and Fudd’s Assist was one of five. Bueckers, in the meantime, started a fantastic second half for himself.
She shot 12-AV-16 from the floor after half time, including 5 out of 6 from 3-point distance. Bueckers finished 6 out of 8 from long reach for the game and 16-AV-27 from the field in total.
The All -American also took six returns, swept three stealing and blocked a couple of shots. Buecker’s new career heap comes a game after she matched her former personal best at 34 points in Uconn’s second round over South Dakota State.
Oklahoma (27-8)-which built his first half which successfully played inside and out and scored 18 points in the color at half time and then nine of Payton Verhulst’s 13 first half got on 3-point-hade no answers in the other 20 minutes.
The Sooners shot only 7-AV-28 during the second half and committed 10 sales that Uconn turned into 10 points.
After coughing up nine turns in the first half, Huskies committed only one turnover during the second half.
Ashlynn Shade had 12 points for Uconn, Fudd added 10 points and Sarah Strong registered an 11-point, 11-Rebound double double even though I only shot 4-AV-13 from the floor.
Verhulst led Oklahoma with 16 points, while Raegan Beers recorded a 10-point, 10-Rebound double double.
The win sends Uconn to a third straight elite eight, where Huskies meets the winner of No. 1 Southern California and No. 5 Kansas State. However, a dream match between Bueckers and co -players of this year’s candidate Juju Watkins from USC is not to be after Watkins suffered a seasonal knee injury in the second round against Mississippi State.
-Field level media
