The 2022 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament continued with Sweet 16 play on Friday.
In the first slate of games, top-seeded South Carolina defeated No. 5 North Carolina, while 2-seed Texas topped No. 6 Ohio State, with both teams advancing to the Elite Eight.
In the later games, No. 1 Stanford escaped past 4-seed Maryland in Spokane, while No. 3 Iowa State fell victim to 10-seed Creighton.
Here are the top moments from Friday’s Sweet 16 games.
No. 1 Stanford 72, No. 4 Maryland 66
Hot start
Haley Jones set the tone early for Stanford, scoring eight points and making two 3-pointers in the first quarter.
Block and go
Francesca Belibi did it all herself on this play, recording the block and then scoring in transition.
Pulling away
Stanford slowly began to assert its dominance as the game continued, with the Cardinal breaking the game open in the third quarter and extending their lead to 20 points.
Stanford would cruise down the stretch to secure a trip to the Elite Eight.
No. 10 Creighton 76, No. 3 Iowa State 68
Keeping it close
The underdog just needs to keep it within arms reach, and then the pressure will shift to the higher-seeded team. Creighton got the memo.
Raining 3-pointers
Creighton and Iowa State might as well have been a 3-point shooting contest, with both teams knocking down shots from deep.
Clinical
It was all Creighton to start the fourth quarter, with the Bluejays opening up a big lead.
Creighton would nurse that lead, securing a 76-68 win to advance to the Elite Eight.
No. 1 South Carolina 69, No. 5 North Carolina 61
Tar Heel run
Carlie Littlefield spearheaded a Tar Heel run to bring them within two points of top-seeded South Carolina.
The Aliyah Boston show
The South Carolina All-American gave UNC a firsthand look at why she is so highly regarded with a dominant first-half performance.
Circus shot
Zia Cooke’s circus shot helped extend the lead for the Gamecocks heading to halftime. These were two of Cooke’s 15 first-half points.
Boston and Cooke were key factors in South Carolina taking a 39-31 lead into halftime.
From deep
Bree Hall was left unattended to, and that led to a 3-pointer that helped extend the South Carolina lead.
Clawing back
The Tar Heels weren’t backing down from the challenge of a double-digit deficit, clawing back into the game thanks to impressive plays like this basket from Kennedy Todd-Williams.
The Tar Heels would battle back valiantly, but to no avail. South Carolina defeated UNC 69-61 to punch its ticket to the Elite Eight.
No. 2 Texas 66, No. 6 Ohio State 63
Get out and run
The best offense is a smothering defense that creates transition opportunities.
Taking over!
It wasn’t easy, but the desired result was achieved for Joanne Allen-Taylor on this tough basket and the foul.
At the half, Texas held a slight 32-30 lead over Ohio State.
Keep fighting
Every basket counts in March, so it’s imperative that the hustle never stops on the defensive end of the floor.
Down to the wire
Under one minute remaining and a one-point deficit for the Buckeyes. This is March.
But in the end, Texas was able to hold on and advance to its second consecutive Elite Eight.
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