NEW YORK — It’s tough to tell that Duke star Elizabeth Williams hasn’t been practicing much this season.
Williams, who is still recovering from a stress fracture in her left leg that has bothered her for the last eight months, had 16 points, seven rebounds and five blocks to lead No. 4 Duke to a 60-42 victory over St. John’s on Sunday in the seventh annual Maggie Dixon Classic.
“She’s doing OK,” Duke coach Joanne P. McCallie said. “It’s hard for her and we’re not out of the woods yet. We take it day by day with her. She’s learning how to play with less practice time. She’s not practicing and doing half of what the other kids are. It’s going to take some time.”
The reigning ACC rookie and defensive player of the year is still trying to work her way back. She doesn’t practice every day and even then takes drills off.
“I’m feeling good, just trying to get into a rhythm, get a lot of rebounds early,” the 6-foot-3 post player said.
No. 17 Kansas 97, Newman 64.
LAWRENCE, Kan. — Carolyn Davis scored 24 points and No. 17 Kansas never trailed in a 97-64 victory over Newman on Sunday.
Ten Jayhawks scored in the contest as Kansas (8-1) built a 51-31 lead at halftime. Davis was 11 of 16 from the field — Kansas shot 55 percent — and matched the team high with nine rebounds.
Chelsea Gardner had 17 points and nine rebounds for the Jayhawks. Angel Goodrich added 11 points and Monica Engelman scored 10.
Alexandra Cibattoni led all scorers with 27 points for the Jets (4-7). She was 11 for 20 from the field for Newman, which plays in Division II.
No. 15 Purdue 68,Tenn.-Martin 60
MARTIN, Tenn. — Sam Ostarello scored 14 of her 16 points in the second half and Taylor Manuel also scored 16 as No. 15 Purdue overcame a challenge from Tennessee-Martin to win 68-60 Sunday after trailing at halftime.
The Boilermakers (9-1) opened the second half with a 15-0 run, including nine points by Ostarello, to lead 40-29.
Purdue shot 53.8 percent (14 of 26) in the second half to 26.7 percent (8 of 30) for the Skyhawks (4-7) and out-rebounded them 24-11.
No. 22 Iowa St. 60, Fairfield 43
AMES, Iowa — Hallie Christofferson scored 18 points Sunday and No. 22 Iowa State defeated Fairfield 60-43.
Chelsea Poppens, back after missing three games with a concussion, had 12 points and nine rebounds for the Cyclones (6-1). Brynn Williamson scored 12 points, all on 3-pointers, and Nikki Moody had 10 assists and seven rebounds. Iowa State, which never trailed and led by as many as 24 points, bounced back from a 50-42 loss at Iowa on Thursday.
Katie Cizynski scored 13 points to lead Fairfield (5-3). The Stags shot just 32 percent from the field and were outrebounded 43-27.
No. 10 Penn St. 97, Georgetown74
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Maggie Lucas scored a career-high 39 points and ignited No. 10 Penn State’s potent transition game in a 97-74 rout Sunday of sloppy Georgetown.
Lucas, the Lady Lions’ prolific shooting guard, was 11 of 21 from the field including 7 of 13 from 3-point territory. She had 26 alone in a first half in which Penn State (7-2) led by as much as 34.
Sugar Rodgers scored 22 for Georgetown (7-3), which had its three-game winning streak snapped. The Hoyas shot only 31 percent on the afternoon.
It took just three minutes for Penn State to take control after Lucas hit an open 3 from the left corner to start a 10-0 run. The Lady Lions then converted steals on three straight Georgetown possessions, culminating in Alex Bentley’s easy layup for an 18-9 lead with 14:47 left in the first half.
Bentley finished with 23 points.
No. 7 Kentucky 68, MTSU 56
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Kentucky coach Matthew Mitchell was thrilled to see that Middle Tennessee was focusing on post players DeNesha Stallworth and Samarie Walker rather than reigning SEC Player of the Year A’dia Mathies.
Mathies was far from her best Sunday, finishing with seven points after a scoreless first half in which she only played six minutes due to foul trouble. And even with all that extra attention, Stallworth finished with 16 points and five assists in No. 7 Kentucky’s 68-46 win over the Blue Raiders.
Mitchell said Middle Tennessee State’s plan reinforced to him how far Kentucky (8-1) has come as a program under his watch the past several years.
“What’s so great about having a talented team is if you spend too much time on one person, it opens it up for other people,” Mitchell said. “We just beat a good basketball team by 22, and A’dia had zero points in the first half. It’s a good sign that we have that (balance).”
The two teams have now played five years in a row, and Blue Raiders coach Rick Insell said Stallworth is the best post player he’s seen on the Wildcats in that span.
Stallworth, a transfer from California playing her first season after sitting out last season, has scored double figures in seven of Kentucky’s nine games this season and averages 11.3 points per game.
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