Jackson State couldn’t overcome a slow first-quarter start and an all-around performance by Paige Bueckers in an 86-64 loss against No. 3 seed UConn in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament on Saturday.
The Tigers, riding a 21-game winning streak, jumped out to a 4-2 lead on a Miya Crump jumper in the opening minutes before Bueckers and the Huskies took over.
UConn, which hadn’t lost an opening-round game since 1993, went on a 17-0 run led by eight points from Bueckers. UConn led 22-8 after 10 minutes and took its first 20-point lead at 39-19 on a 3-pointer from Bueckers, who also pulled down 11 rebounds and had seven assists in the game.
Jackson State head coach Tomekia Reed said a group that displayed poise all season long didn’t have much of it consistently in the first quarter.
“We had a good plan, but we let the first quarter get out of hand,” said Reed. “I thought our players had jitters.”
That was evidenced by the Tigers going 2 of 10 from the field, 0 of 6 from the 3-point line, and committing five turnovers to start the game.
The Tigers were able to stay relatively close in the second quarter but did not threaten UConn despite a Ti’lan Boler 3-pointer from the right corner at the buzzer, which sent the teams into the half, with UConn leading 49-28.
Boler finished the game with a team-high 25 points. Angel Jackson, the SWAC Defensive Player of the Year, chipped in with 13 points and two blocked shots for the 14th-seeded Tigers.
But Saturday was all about Bueckers, who scored 28 points and freshman Ashlynn Shade added 26.
Aaliyah Edwards, who recently declared for the WNBA Draft, had 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Huskies.
