DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Ashlon Jackson scored 14 of her 20 points in the third quarter to power No. 2 seed Duke to a 59-53 victory over 10th-seeded Oregon in the second round of the women's NCAA Tournament on Sunday.
Duke (28-7) played without leading scorer Toby Fournier, the Atlantic Coast Conference rookie of the year who averages 13.4 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. Blue Devils' coach Kara Lawson said the 6-foot-2 Canadian forward “wasn't feeling well” and team doctors didn't clear her to play.
“We found out right before the game. That’s the way it goes,” Lawson said. “So, I don’t have a diagnosis, or a timetable either.”
Jackson shot 5 of 9 on 3-pointers and had four rebounds in Fournier’s absence. Reigan Richardson added 13 points while Delaney Thomas scored 12.
In her eighth career game against Duke, former North Carolina guard Deja Kelly finished with 20 points on 8-of-18 shooting for the Ducks (20-12). Phillipina Kyei had 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Oregon held a five-point advantage at halftime but came out cold in the second half, failing to make a field goal for the first six minutes of the third quarter. Meanwhile, Jackson had the hot shooting hand.
“I got tired of missing. It’s simple,” Jackson said. “But yeah, just seeing the ball go in, it was a great thing.”
Beginning with a 3-pointer off a feed from Jadyn Donovan, Jackson broke off an 11-0 run of her own to help Duke take the lead. She capped off a 16-1 run for the Blue Devils by connecting on her fourth shot from beyond the arc of the quarter, giving Duke a 10-point advantage.
“We just came up a little short today,” Oregon coach Kelly Graves said. “Usually, the third quarter has been our quarter, and today Duke came out and just kind of put their foot down."
Oregon: The Ducks' defense kept them in the game, but their offensive struggles in the third quarter proved to be too much to overcome. They did trim the deficit to a single point in the fourth quarter.
Duke: The win for the Blue Devils marks the first time they’ve advanced to at least the Sweet 16 in back-to-back seasons since they went to four straight Elite Eights under former coach Joanne P. McCallie more than a decade ago, the last of those coming in 2013.
“It was a gritty game. It’s what we expected,” Lawson said. “It’s hard to go to back-to-back Sweet 16s. It’s not something that a lot of programs are able to do.”
Duke scored 18 points off Oregon's 17 turnovers. The Blue Devils rank 19th nationally in turnovers forced per game with 20.7. Thomas led Duke in steals with three, while Kelly turned the ball over five times for the Ducks.
Duke will play the winner of Monday night's game between No. 3 seed North Carolina and No. 6 seed West Virginia in the Sweet 16 in Birmingham, Alabama.
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Oregon center Phillipina Kyei (15) is defended by Duke guard Ashlon Jackson, left, and guard Jadyn Donovan (4) during the first half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament Sunday, March 23, 2025, in Durham N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)
ST. LOUIS (AP) — The wins just keep on coming for the St. Louis Blues, and their seven-game streak has significantly improved their chances of returning to the playoffs after a two-year absence.
After beating the Montreal Canadiens 6-1 on Tuesday night, they have strung together their most consecutive victories since November 2022. It's the longest active winning streak in the NHL.
“We've just got a recipe that works and a game plan that everybody believes in,” said Dylan Holloway, who has 24 goals in a breakout season. “Guys are playing for each other. It's a good vibe in here, for sure.”
St. Louis has outscored opponents 36-10 and only trailed for a total of 5:24 during this winning stretch. It's just business as usual, according to Alexandre Texier.
“We've got a job to do,” said Texier, who like Holloway, scored against Montreal. “This game is over and we think about the next game. We're not enjoying too much about this momentum. We want to be in the playoffs. We just have to do it every single night.”
The Blues are 13-2-2 since the season resumed after the 4 Nations Face-Off break, outscoring opponents 70-38. No team in the NHL has more points or goals in that time.
“There's a pace and a purpose to what they're doing,” coach Jim Montgomery said. “They're just doing it naturally. There's smiles on their faces. They're loving doing things right."
The formula during the streak has been simple. The Blues are strong on the forecheck and work to limit transition opportunities for their opponents. They block as many shots as possible.
“It starts with the belief in this group and believing in the process and each other,” said Philip Broberg, who scored a goal and had three assists against Montreal to keep his impressive season rolling. “It's all about hard work.”
Montgomery agreed, calling his team's effort professional.
“Everyone's playing well: Our top line, our top six are scoring and playing defense,” Montgomery said. “Our bottom six are scoring and hanging on to pucks and protecting pucks. Our defense has been really solid. The little details have been there throughout the lineup. Everybody’s doing it."
Montgomery has helped turn things around since replacing fired coach Drew Bannister on Nov. 25 after a 9-12-1 start. But the Blues were still eight points behind Vancouver for the Western Conference's second and final wild-card spot coming out of the break and had not won three in a row all season.
It looked like the playoff drought would reach three. Now it looks like that could end.
“I know it’s a simple answer, but it’s just guys playing hard, playing for one another and playing together,” captain Brayden Schenn said. “They haven’t all been pretty, but we’re finding a way and that’s the most important thing this time of the year. There’s definitely buzz around the city. ”
The Blues hold a firm grip on the second wild card in the Western Conference, four up on Calgary and five up on Vancouver. They now have the Wild — holders of the first wild card — in their sights, just two points back after Minnesota lost 5-1 to Vegas.
All those teams have games in hand on the the Blues, who have nine left, compared to 12 for the Flames and 11 for the Canucks. Holloway doesn't think anyone is looking at how many games anyone has left.
“Obviously, we know it's a tight race,” Holloway said. “The biggest thing is we just have to control what we can control. We can't control other teams. The biggest thing for us is to just keep playing the way we are. It works. We just have to go a game at a time.”
The Blues hit the road to play Thursday in Nashville looking to extend their win streak to eight games.
AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL
St. Louis Blues' Tyler Tucker (75) is congratulated by teammates after scoring during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Vancouver Canucks Thursday, March 20, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington skates during a timeout in the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Montreal Canadiens Tuesday, March 25, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
St. Louis Blues' Alexandre Texier celebrates after scoring during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Montreal Canadiens Tuesday, March 25, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
