Daily Briefing — Nov. 29, 2021: Arkansas, Duke notch quality wins

(All times in Eastern)

Watch List, Monday, Nov. 29

Must-watch

None

Good games

None

Also watchable

None

Sickos games

None

Pac-12 or Big 10 on national television (or national streaming)

None

Sunday, Nov. 28 recap

#10 Louisville: 71-56 win over Colorado State. Shot 52.8% from the field and 5-of-10 from three, but committed 15 turnovers. Wing Kianna Smith scored 11 points on 5-7 shooting (1-2 3pt.); off-ball guard Ahlana Smith notched a season-high 11 points on 5-of-7 from the field off the bench; big wing Emily Engstler had 10 points on 4-9 FG, eight rebounds, two blocks, and three turnovers.

#13 Iowa State: 76-71 win over UMass. The Minutewomen closed within one point with just over two minutes left, then missed multiple game-tying or go-ahead jumpers. UMass actually outshot the Cyclones both overall and from three — +1.2% from the field, +2.2% from deep — but thanks to Simpson’s Paradox, Iowa State’s significantly higher three-point-attempt rate signified the victory; the Cyclones played just six players at least a minute and a half. Big wing Ashley Joens had a 23-point, 12-rebound double-double on 7-22 shooting (3-12 3pt., 6-7 FT) with three assists, two blocks, and five turnovers; combo guard Lexi Donarski matched that game-high of 23 points on 9-of-19 from the field and 4-of-11 from three (5-6 FT) without a turnovers; center Morgan Kane notched 11 points on 4-6 FG and nine rebounds (six offensive) without a turnover; off-ball guard Aubrey Joens scored 15 points on 5-9 3pt. with six rebounds and no turnovers. The Minutewomen were led by combo forward Sam Breen’s double-double of 21 points on 7-17 shooting (3-7 3pt.) and 12 rebounds.

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#19 UCLA: 73-65 win over St. John’s. The Red Storm tied the game as late as the mid-fourth quarter. Point guard Charisma Osborne had a double-double with 19 points on 5-of-15 from the field and 4-of-11 from three (5-6 FT), plus six assists and two steals against four fouls; big IImar’I Thomas matched that game-high of 19 points on 8-13 shooting (0-2 3pt.) with three rebounds and three turnovers; Dominique Onu — the consensus^{^} No. 25 freshman in the country, recruited at point guard but playing off-ball since enrolling early last spring — scored a career-high 10 points on 4-7 FG (1-3 3pt.) off the bench.

RV* Arkansas: 83-63 win over Belmont, more than double RV Georgia Tech’s margin against the Bruins. Make of that what you will. Center Erynn Barnum had 15 points on 5-9 shooting, seven rebounds, and a career-high-tying four steals in 20 minutes; point guard Samara Spencer notched 13 points on 5-of-10 from the field (3-5 3pt.) and three assists; wing Jersey Wolfengarger scored 10 bench points on 3-7 FG (1-2 3pt.) with four rebounds, three assists, and no turnovers.

RV Duke: 91-75 win over Troy. It ought’ve been larger, too, with the Blue Devils shooting 45.9% from the field and 40.6% from three, but they shot just 10-for-25 from the line; Duke committed 19 turnovers. Freshman point guard Shayeann Day-Wilson scored a career-high 26 points in 32 bench minutes on 9-14 shooting (8-10 3pt., 0-4 FT) with five rebounds, four assists, and six turnovers; off-ball guard Celeste Taylor had 24 points on 8-17 shooting (3-6 3pt., 5-10 FT), 11 rebounds, six assists, and six steals against four turnovers — the first 26/11/6/6 performance in almost three years; big wing Elizabeth Balogun notched 11 points on 4-10 FG (1-5 3pt., 2-6 FT), nine rebounds, and three blocks; center Jade Williams had nine points on 4-8 shooting, 13 rebounds (seven offensive), and three assists against four turnovers.

RV Michigan State: 85-75 win over Marshall. The game was tied as late as the mid-fourth quarter. Point guard Nia Clouden scored 24 points on 7-13 shooting (10-11 FT) with six rebounds, eight assists, three turnovers, and four fouls; center Alisia Smith had 20 points on 7-11 FG (6-6 FT), six rebounds (three offensive), and two blocks against three fouls in 25 minutes; freshman point guard DeeDee Hagemann scored a “career”-high 15 points on 4-6 from field (2-2 3pt., 5-6 FT) off the bench with three rebounds and three assists against four turnovers. Combo guard Savannah Wheeler led the Thundering Herd with 30 points on 9-18 shooting (4-8 3pt., 8-9 FT) against six turnovers.

Kansas City: 85-76 win over UT-Arlington. Point guard Naomie Alnatas scored 38 points on 12-19 shooting (6-7 3pt., 8-9 FT) with four rebounds, seven assists, three steals, and three turnovers while fouling out.

Mizzou: 88-67 win over Lehigh. Combo guard Lauren Hansen scored a career-high 34 points on 12-of-17 from the field and 9-of-14 from three with five rebounds.

Navy: 69-64 loss to George Mason. Point guard Jennifer Coleman had a game-high 30 points on 9-21 shooting (3-6 3pt., 9-15 FT), 12 rebounds, and seven assists against four turnovers in 40 minutes.

South Dakota State: Cancelled its game against Charlotte shortly before tipoff, due to what analyst and broadcaster Debbie Antonelli reported as a medical emergency within the Jackrabbits program.

Blown Leads

Fairfield: 71-64 loss to Yale. Had a 93.5% win expectancy with a 62-55 lead and four-and-a-half minutes to go. The Stags then went 1-for-4 from the field with a turnover and two fouls before having to start intentionally fouling.

San Francisco: 73-67 overtime loss to Nevada. Peaked at a 97.6% win expectancy with a 59-53 lead under two minutes, and still had a 96.8% expectancy with a three-point lead and nine seconds left. Allowed a buzzer-beating three, then the Wolf Pack opened the overtime period on an 8-2 they wouldn’t relinquish. Point guard Ioanna Krimili led the Dons with 34 points on 11-of-26 from the field and 5-of-15 from three (7-7 FT) and four rebounds in 42 minutes.

UNC Greensboro: 65-63 loss to Gardner-Webb. The Spartans had a 98.9% win expectancy with a 10-point lead and 4:15 remaining. The Runnin’ Bulldogs then scored 12 unanswered to close the game. 

*Receiving Votes

^Consensus rankings are drawn from an aggregation of ESPN, Blue Star, Prep Girls, ASGR, and Prospects Nation