Mackenly Randolph posted a 20-point, 11-rebound double-double, leading third-seeded Louisville to a 72-52 first-round victory over 14th-seeded Vermont on Saturday in a Fort Worth Region 3 game in Austin, Texas.
Laura Ziegler and Tajianna Roberts each added 12 points for the Cardinals (28-7), who outscored the Catamounts 23-10 in the third quarter to break open a close game. Imari Berry contributed 10 points and seven rebounds for Louisville, which will face Alabama on Monday.
Keira Hanson scored 22 points, Nikola Priede added 16 points, Jayden Weltz chipped in 12 and Malia Lenz grabbed 13 rebounds for Vermont (27-8), which had its five-game winning streak snapped. The Catamounts struggled offensively, shooting 40% from the field (20 of 50) and 30.4% from 3-point range (7 for 23).
Louisville led 32-28 at the half, then opened the third quarter on a 9-0 run and led by 17 entering the fourth quarter. Randolph thrived in the third, posting nine points and seven rebounds.
No. 5 Kentucky 71, No. 12 James Madison 56
Amelia Hassett scored eight of her 14 points in a 32-point first quarter as the Wildcats never trailed while eliminating the Dukes in Morgantown, W. Va.
Kentucky (24-10) hit 11 of 18 field goals, including 4 of 7 from 3-point range, to establish a 22-point lead after 10 minutes. The Dukes (26-9) trailed by as much as 29 in the second quarter, essentially ending the game's competitive phase before halftime.
Tonie Morgan added a game-high 18 points and seven assists for the Wildcats, who advanced to a second-round game Monday against either No. 4 West Virginia or No. 13 Miami (Ohio). Jordan Obi hit for 12 points and Clara Strack stuffed the stat sheet with 10 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, two blocks and two steals.
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Ashanti Barnes scored 16 points to pace James Madison and Peyton McDaniel added 15 to go with seven rebounds. But the Dukes struggled to score all day, connecting on just 22 of 65 field goal attempts (33.8%). They also coughed up 16 turnovers that led to 16 points.
Kentucky earned a 46-38 advantage on the glass and outscored James Madison 24-9 from the 3-point line.
No. 6 Alabama 68, No. 11 Rhode Island 55
Jessica Timmons scored a game-high 21 points and the sixth-seeded Crimson Tide led for nearly 38 minutes of their win over the 11th-seeded Rams in Louisville, Ky.
In improving to 24-10, the Crimson Tide got 19 points from Essence Cody and 16 points from Diana Collins, who hit 7 of 9 shots from the field. Alabama earned a second-round matchup Monday in the Fort Worth 3 Region with Louisville.
Palmire Mbu and Ines Debroise each scored 11 points for the Rams (28-5), while Albina Syla added 10 points and nine rebounds. Rhode Island converted just 19 of 58 attempts from the field and was outscored 42-12 in the paint.
The Tide owned a 31-23 halftime lead and pulled away in the third quarter, when they outscored the Rams 22-12 to make the margin 53-35. Alabama increased the advantage to 21 early in the fourth quarter. The Tide canned 25 of 47 attempts from the field.
--Field Level Media