Hoops Outlasts McNeese State, Advance to Second Round
Keyla Snowden scored 11 points, Azia Bishop added 10 and second-seeded Kentucky squeaked by McNeese State 68-62 in the opening round of the NCAA women's tournament Saturday. SEC Player of the Year A'dia Mathies had just six points for the Wildcats (26-6), who struggled to put away the upset-minded Cowgirls until late in the second half. McNeese State got within 63-57 on two free throws by Martika Hull with 40 seconds left, but the Cowgirls couldn't get any closer. Caitlyn Baggett had 22 points and Hull scored 20 with 13 rebounds for No. 15 seed McNeese State (26-8), which forced the nation's leader in turnover margin to give the ball away 20 times. But the smaller Cowgirls were outrebounded 58-40 and couldn't pull off the upset.