Thomas, Fournier propel Duke to 3rd straight Sweet 16

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Delaney Thomas had 17 points and Toby Fournier scored 13 of her 15 points in the first half, helping No. 3 Duke beat No. 6 Baylor 69-46 on Sunday in the second round of the women's NCAA Tournament.

Arianna Roberson had 10 points and 10 rebounds off the bench and Ashlon Jackson added 12 points for Duke (26-8), which never trailed.

The Blue Devils advanced to the Sweet 16 for the third straight season and 20th time overall. They will play No. 2 LSU, a 101-47 winner over No. 7 Texas Tech, in the Sacramento 2 Regional.

Baylor (25-9) was held to its worst offensive output of the season. The Bears managed just eight points in each of the first two quarters and finished 0-of-14 from beyond the arc, failing to make a 3-pointer for the first time this year. They shot 30.2% overall.

Taliah Scott, who scored 24 points in a season-opening 58-52 win over Duke in Paris, led Baylor with 13 points on 3-of-17 shooting.

Duke jumped ahead 9-0 as Baylor missed its first six shots and didn’t score for 5:56. Nine of the Bears’ 23 turnovers came in the first quarter,

The Blue Devils widened their lead to 38-16 at halftime before increasing it to 29 points in the second half.

Up next

Duke is off to the Sweet 16 for the third straight season. The Blue Devils will play No. 2 LSU in a rematch of an earlier meeting that the Tigers won 93-77.

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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness