Three days after fouling out at Michigan, Sarah Strong put up a career-high 39, then hit a career-high seven 3-pointers at Ohio State. JuJu Watkins looked all the way back, and Creighton took on the Dakotas three times. Plus Utah Tech's 133, Madison Booker's injury, Penn State still looking for a win, and a week of mid-majors making noise.
Sarah Strong Answered
Last Thursday, Sarah Strong went to the bench with three fouls and no points at halftime, then fouled out in UConn's first loss of the season with 13 points. On Sunday, she had 26 points by halftime.
Strong finished with a career-high 39 points and 10 rebounds as #2 UConn beat #10 Iowa 91-79 in Storrs. It took the reigning AP Player of the Year three days to remind everyone what she can do.
The game was simple for the Huskies. UConn won the second quarter 32-23 and led 52-37 at half, then pushed it to 72-51 after three. Iowa won the fourth quarter 28-19 to make the final look respectable, but this one was over long before that.
Chazadi "Chit-Chat" Wright led Iowa with 23 points. The Hawkeyes dropped to 2-1 after their first three games before a blowout win against Northern Iowa pushed them to 3-1 on Thursday.
Last Thursday was the outlier for Strong, not Sunday. A player coming off AP Player of the Year doesn't forget how to play one night at Crisler. She got in foul trouble, sat on the bench for a lot of a loss, and came back with a vengeance.
Giving up 28 points in a fourth quarter, even with the game decided, is the kind of thing Geno Auriemma notices, though. Michigan still has the head-to-head win, which doubters will pin against UConn all season long.
Strong wasn't done after Sunday. On Thursday night, she made a career-high seven 3-pointers and finished with 25 points, nine rebounds, and three steals as UConn won at #17 Ohio State 87-55. The Huskies led only 38-35 at half, then won the second half 49-20.
Since the snapped 39-game regular-season winning streak, UConn has beaten two ranked teams by a combined 44 points. The Huskies found out what happens when they aren't sharp, and they fixed it fast.
JuJu Is All the Way Back
Last week, I wrote that JuJu Watkins wasn't fully back yet. Sunday made me look a little early on that one.
JuJu Watkins had 32 points, 16 rebounds, and six assists as #3 USC beat Utah State 118-40. Then on Tuesday, she added 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting and six assists in just 22 minutes of a 105-44 win over Charleston, while Saniyah Hall and Jazzy Davidson each scored 24. Through three games, she's averaging 24.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 4.7 assists in about 25 minutes a night. That's on a minutes restriction, in her first three games after missing an entire season.
Week 1's story was that USC didn't need her to win big. Week 2's story is what happens when she plays like this. Davidson and Hall already gave the Trojans a supporting cast. Watkins gave them a 16-rebound game from a guard, which is the part of her game that, in my opinion, doesn't get talked about enough.
UNLV, Utah State, and Charleston aren't the teams that will decide USC's March, and the minutes restriction is still on. We'll learn a lot more once USC starts playing ranked teams on short rest. And if she's doing this in 25 minutes, I don't think teams are ready for her to play 35 minutes a night.
Creighton Took on the Dakotas
The two best teams in the Summit League both got Creighton at home this year. Both lost. Then a third Dakota team finally got the Bluejays.
On November 2nd, Ava Zediker hit a fadeaway at the buzzer to beat South Dakota State 73-71 in Brookings. On Monday, she scored 25 points and Creighton won 66-60 at North Dakota State. That's two wins in two of the toughest road gyms in mid-major basketball before mid-November.
North Dakota State was playing without Avery Koenen and Abby Krzewinski, both out for the foreseeable future after lower-leg injuries at Gonzaga. That's tough for them to overcome. But South Dakota State had Brooklyn Meyer, and Creighton still won in Brookings.
Then came Wednesday. South Dakota beat Creighton 54-49 at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls. It wasn't pretty for Creighton, as they scored five points in the first quarter and 19 in the first half. But the Coyotes are 3-0, and they're the Dakota team nobody was talking about.
For the Summit, it was a split decision. South Dakota State is 1-2 after a 93-63 loss at Texas on Wednesday, and North Dakota State is 1-3 without two of its best players after losing at Butler on Thursday. Both needed the Creighton game for their résumés. South Dakota got the win the other two couldn't. For Creighton, road wins in Brookings and Fargo will still look good on Selection Sunday, even with the loss in Sioux Falls.
Three Things
1. Kentucky Won the Shootout
#14 Kentucky beat #25 NC State 93-78 in Charlotte on Sunday at the Ally Tipoff. Ajša Sivka scored 32 points for the Wildcats. Khamil Pierre scored 34 for NC State, and it wasn't enough. Two players went over 30 points, and the team with more help won.
2. Penn State Is Still Looking
Penn State is 0-3. The Nittany Lions lost to Cleveland State by one in the opener, lost at Cincinnati 76-53 on Saturday, and lost at Dayton 77-71 on Monday. Petra Božan scored 27 points against Dayton, and the Nebraska transfer has been one of the few bright spots.
All three losses came against teams outside the Big Ten, and the conference schedule doesn't get any easier.
3. The Number: 39
Sarah Strong scored 39 points on Sunday. North Carolina scored 39 points on Sunday.
South Carolina beat the Tar Heels 84-39 in Charlotte. UNC had 17 points at halftime and never got going. Chloe Kitts led the Gamecocks with 17 points and 10 rebounds. North Carolina fell 11 spots, from #12 to #23, the biggest drop in this week's AP poll. The Tar Heels did get their first win on Wednesday, 109-40 over North Carolina Central.
The Bigger Picture
Cupcake Week, Part 2: The 123 Club
Three teams scored exactly 123 points this week. Notre Dame beat Stonehill 123-40 on Friday. Austin Peay beat Southeastern Baptist 123-33 the same night. Northern Colorado beat Northern New Mexico 123-30 on Monday.
None of them had the week's highest score. Utah Tech beat Nelson American Indian 133-47 on Wednesday. Pitt hung 129 on Delaware State on Tuesday. LMU (118), USC (118), Mississippi State (114), Sam Houston (114), and Southern Indiana (110) all cleared 110 points, and Baylor did it twice, scoring 112 on Sunday and 121 on Thursday. Michigan beat Wright State 109-52 three days after beating UConn.
On the other side of it, Wyoming scored eight points in the second half of a 72-37 home loss to Missouri State on Saturday. They tallied four in the third quarter and four in the fourth. Utah State nearly matched it on Wednesday, scoring nine points in the first half of a 54-41 loss to Idaho State. And on Thursday, Spalding scored 18 points in a 110-18 loss at Southern Indiana, including just two points in the fourth quarter, while Norfolk State scored 23 against #5 Duke.
One more thing. Last week, five non-Division I teams beat DI teams. In Week 2, that number was zero. Fayetteville State (DII) came closest, losing 60-56 at North Carolina Central on Monday. Talladega (NAIA), one of last week's five, lost 69-63 at Alabama State on Tuesday.
The Injury List
The biggest injury news of the week came Wednesday in Austin. Madison Booker left Texas' 93-63 win over South Dakota State with an injury late in the first half, and Jayda Clark scored 24 points to carry the Longhorns the rest of the way. As of Thursday night, Texas hadn't said what the injury is or how long Booker will be out. For a team built around an All-American, that's the update to watch this weekend, and she might even be back for their next game.
The good news came Thursday, too. Toby Fournier, who was out with a lower-leg injury and no timetable in Week 1, scored 20 points in #5 Duke's 85-23 win over Norfolk State.
Mid-Major Notes
The American had a Thursday to remember. Tulsa beat #19 Oklahoma State 64-62 in overtime, a week after losing its opener to Incarnate Word. Memphis handed Alabama its first loss, 75-70, and USF won at Florida 72-70. That's three wins over Big 12 and SEC teams in one night.
Fairfield won at Seton Hall, 69-67. The Stags are 3-0 and just beat Seton Hall for the first time in 30 years.
Grand Canyon beat Oregon, 81-74. A Big Ten team went to Phoenix on Monday and lost. Nyadieng Yiech had 18 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists for the Lopes.
UIC beat Northwestern, 76-71. Julia Coleman scored 29 points with eight rebounds on Sunday. Northwestern is 1-2, with losses to Xavier and UIC, and its only win was a 64-60 escape against Milwaukee. The Wildcats can't shake the mid-majors.
Harvard has beaten all of Massachusetts. The Crimson won at Holy Cross 63-42 on Monday, then beat UMass 78-65 on Wednesday. Add last Thursday's 81-51 win over Boston College, and Harvard is 3-0 against Massachusetts schools in eight days. Its only loss came at #17 Minnesota.
Providence can't hold serve at home. UMass won at Alumni Hall 60-50 on Saturday, then Bryant won there 53-47 on Wednesday. An A-10 team and an America East team both won in a Big East building in the same week.
Illinois State is 4-0. The Redbirds followed last week's overtime win at Dayton by beating Green Bay 75-66 on Wednesday. Those are two wins over teams that gave power programs challenges in Week 1.
Monmouth nearly got Rutgers. The Hawks lost 64-62 in Piscataway on Wednesday, with Gigi Gamble scoring 30 points.
Princeton is 4-0. Fadima Tall had 27 points and 10 rebounds in a 65-57 win at Richmond on Friday. Princeton beat Murray State 76-74 on Sunday, led by 28 points from Skye Belker. Then it beat Villanova 81-74 on Tuesday, with Tall going for 28 points and seven rebounds. Add a Big East win to the list.
Rice is 3-0. The Owls beat Murray State 69-64 on Friday and won at Richmond 73-60 in overtime on Sunday, shutting the Spiders out 13-0 in the extra period.
Stat lines you missed. Northern Colorado's Tatum West had 24 points and 20 rebounds on Monday. Oregon State's Jenna Villa scored 33 points in an 85-64 win over Eastern Washington on Sunday, the Beavers' first win of the year.
Pick your one-point thriller. Penn beat Drexel 71-70 in the Big 5 Classic on Friday, and New Mexico State beat Southern Utah 64-63 the same night.
Last Word
A few more before we go. Hannah Hidalgo had 23 points and 10 rebounds in Notre Dame's 108-60 win over Detroit Mercy on Tuesday. Oklahoma freshman LeeLee Bell had 20 points, 12 rebounds, and four steals against Morgan State on Sunday. Mia Woolfolk scored 27 in Vanderbilt's 101-59 win over Western Kentucky on Wednesday. Grace Grocholski scored 25 and grabbed 11 rebounds in #17 Minnesota's 87-79 win at Marquette on Saturday. Mikayla Blakes moved into seventh on Vanderbilt's all-time scoring list on Monday. Rutgers' Mia Pauldo scored 33 points, added seven assists, and nabbed seven steals against Indiana State on Sunday. And Virginia Tech freshman Jessica Dimaro had 23 points and 24 rebounds in a 77-66 win at VCU on Thursday.
But the best road performance of the week came in Spokane. Hope Hassmann scored 28 points as Idaho beat Gonzaga 86-75 on Friday, four days after Gonzaga beat North Dakota State. A Big Sky team walked into the Kennel and won by 11. Three days later, the Vandals came back to earth with a 76-53 loss at Washington State.
If you only watch one game this weekend, make it #3 USC vs. #1 South Carolina on Sunday afternoon in Greenville. It's billed as "The Real SC," and it's JuJu's first real test against the best roster in the country. Then stick around for #4 UConn at #7 Louisville that night, because Sarah Strong seems like she's just getting started.
