Piscataway, N.J. — Tara Mitchem scored a career-high 40 points and Southwest Missouri State overcame a rare subpar game by Jackie Stiles to beat Toledo 89-71 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Saturday night.
Stiles, the NCAA's all-time leading scorer in women's college basketball, had a season-low 13 points before leaving with about nine minutes to play after being knocked woozy when she was hit in the temple running into a pick at midcourt. Southwest Missouri State trainer Robin Meeks said Stiles suffered a slight concussion. Stiles is expected to play against Rutgers on Monday.
The senior guard, who averaged 30.7 points a game this season, lay on the floor for about 20 seconds before being helped to the bench. Team doctor Brian Mahaffey did not say whether she sustained a concussion, but said he expected Stiles to be fine.
Stiles never returned, but Southwest Missouri State (26-5) did not need her. The Bears were in the midst of a 26-2 run that put them in the second round of the West Regional on Monday night against Rutgers, which beat Stephen F. Austin 80-43.
Mitchem's 40 points tied for the fourth-most in an NCAA women's tournament game. It was the best performance since Tamika Whitmore had 40 for Memphis against Youngstown State on March 13, 1998. Lorri Bauman of Drake has the record of 50 against Maryland in 1982.
Mitchem hit 13 of 20 shots from the field.
Carly Deer made four three-pointers and scored 16 of her 21 points in the second half, when Southwest Missouri shot 59 percent from the field. The fifth-seeded Bears, champions of the Missouri Valley Conference, hit 11 of their first 15 shots in the second half to end Toledo's school-record 16-game winning streak.
Kahli Carter had 21 points, and Melantha Herron had 20 for the Rockets (25-6), the champions of the Mid-American Conference.
Toledo had an outstanding first half, using a strong inside game with Herron and Carter and a tough box-and-one against Stiles to take a 32-31 halftime lead. Stiles hit only one of four shots from the field a fastbreak layup and had only four points.
However, SMS got in high gear after Herron scored inside with 16:35 to play to give Toledo its last lead at 42-41.
Mitchem, who came in averaging 12.6 points and whose previous career high was 24, hit a jumper to spark a 14-point run in which she and Stiles each scored seven points.
After Shekinah Brazzle broke the run with two free throws for Toledo, Deer hit two three-pointers and scored eight points in a 12-0 run that stretched the Bears' lead to 67-44.
West Regional
Rutgers 80, Stephen F. Austin 43
Piscataway, N.J. Tasha Pointer set an NCAA women's tournament record with 18 assists as Rutgers started its road back to the Final Four with a first-round victory. Tammy Sutton-Brown added a career-best 25 points as fourth-seeded Rutgers (23-7) advanced. Latisha Prater led Stephen F. Austin (26-7), appearing in its 14th straight NCAA tournament, with 10 points. The Ladyjacks' starting lineup combined for only 24 points.
Duke 96,
Wisconsin-Milwaukee 63
Durham, N.C. Alana Beard had 22 points and seven steals, and Rometra Craig scored a career-high 20 points as top-seeded Duke shot 64 percent. The Blue Devils (29-3) improved to 9-0 in the first round of the tournament and won their seventh straight as the host team. They can set the school record for victories in a season by beating Arkansas in the second round Monday. Jessica Wilhite led the Panthers (19-11) with 24 points.
Arkansas 68, Baylor 59
Durham, N.C. Lonniya Bragg had 16 points and 14 rebounds as Arkansas overcame a poor shooting first half. The ninth-seeded Razorbacks (20-12) made just 10 of 35 shots in the first half but rallied with a 15-4 run midway through the second. Danielle Crockrom led Baylor (21-9) with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Arkansas' Amy Wright had 13 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
Oklahoma 70,
Oral Roberts 64
Norman, Okla. Seventh-ranked Oklahoma used a 9-0 run late in the second half to finally pull away from Oral Roberts in the first round of the West Regional. Oklahoma (27-5) made the record crowd of 10,923 sweat before taking over by holding Oral Roberts without a field goal for nearly four minutes. All-American Stacey Dales and Caton Hill scored 16 points each for the second-seeded Sooners. Freshman Cori Williston scored a career-high 19 points for the Golden Eagles (20-11).
East Regional
Connecticut 101,
Long Island 29
Storrs, Conn. Connecticut opened defense of its NCAA title with a record-breaking performance.
Swin Cash had 12 points and 16 rebounds top-ranked UConn (29-2) cruised with the best defensive effort in the history of the women's NCAA tournament. UConn's 72-point victory also tied the second-biggest margin in tournament history.
TCU 77, Penn State 75
Ruston, La. Kati Safaritova scored 21 points, including what proved to be the game-winning basket with 48 seconds left, as TCU won its first NCAA tournament game. Lisa Shepherd, who had 20 points. Maren Walseth had 21 points and 13 rebounds for sixth-seeded Penn State (19-10), which went to the Final Four last season. Tricia Payne scored 15 for the 11th-seeded Frogs (25-7).
Midwest Regional
Notre Dame 98,
Alcorn State 49
South Bend, Ind. Ruth Riley was perfect from the floor and the free-throw line while scoring 16 points in the first round. The Irish (29-2), who emptied their bench in the second half, will face Michigan in the second round on Monday.
Michigan 81,
Virginia 71, OT
South Bend, Ind. Alayne Ingram scored a career-high 27 points, all in the second half and overtime, and Michigan overcame a 17-point deficit for its first NCAA tournament win in 11 years. Schuye LaRue hit a three-pointer for Virginia with 5.9 seconds left in regulation to force the tie, but the eighth-seeded Wolverines dominated in overtime. Michigan (19-11) scored the first seven points, then hit six of nine free throws.
LaRue led the Cavs (18-14) with 24 points and 11 rebounds.
Colorado 98, Siena 78
Nashville, Tenn. Mandy Nightingale scored 18 points to lead Colorado. The sixth-seeded Buffaloes (22-8) hit 63 percent of their shots from the floor (38-for-60) and blew the game open by making 16 of their first 17 attempts in the second half.
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