Canadian Aaliyah Edwards, Paige Bueckers lead UConn over Jackson State

Paige Bueckers scored 28 points and freshman Ashlynn Shade added 26 as No. 3 seed UConn celebrated coach Geno Auriemma's 70th birthday with an 86-64 win over Jackson State in the first round of the women's NCAA Tournament on Saturday in Storrs, Conn.

Aaliyah Edwards of Kingston, Ont., wearing a mask after missing two games with a broken nose, had 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Huskies (30-5), who won in the opening round of the tournament for a 30th straight time.

Ti'Ian Boler scored 25 points and Angel Jackson had 13 for 14th seeded Jackson State (26-7), which lost for the first time in 22 games.

The Tigers' Miya Crump opened the game with a jumper and Jackson State led briefly at 4-2.

But Bueckers sparked a 17-0 Husky run by scoring eight of UConn's first 10 points. She gave Connecticut its first lead at 5-4 on an up-and-under layup and foul shot.

UConn led 22-8 after 10 minutes, and took its first 20-point lead at 39-19 on a 3-pointer from Bueckers, who also pulled down 11 rebounds and had seven assists in the game.

A 3-pointer from Nika Muhl as the third quarter expired put the Huskies up 72-50 and Connecticut cruised from there.

The Huskies improved to 13-1 in games played on their coach's birthday.

Calgary's Ejim dominant for Gonzaga

Calgary's Yvonne Ejim had 25 points and 14 rebounds and No. 4 seed Gonzaga overcame a slow start to roll past UC Irvine 75-56 in the first round of the women's NCAA Tournament on Saturday.

The Bulldogs (31-3) rallied from an 11-point first-half deficit and led by as many as 26 points in the fourth quarter. Kayleigh Truong added 16 points and the Zags shot 62 per cent and scored 45 points in the second half.

Gonzaga will face No. 5 seed Utah or No. 12 seed South Dakota State in the second round on Monday.

The Bulldogs started 0-for-10 from the 3-point line and managed just 10 points in the first quarter, their lowest output in any quarter this season.

Brynna Maxwell, the Zags' top outside shooter, shook off a slow start and sank two 3s and a long jumper to fuel a 21-2 run to end the first half and start the third quarter.

It was the first time Gonzaga hosted NCAA Tournament games on its home floor since 2013.

Nevaeh Parkinson scored 18 points and Moulayna Johnson Sidi Baba added 15 for UC Irvine.

The Anteaters (23-9) were in their first NCAA Tournament since 1995 and raced out to a 17-6 lead. Parkinson hit back-to-back buckets during the stretch, and UC Irvine's physical defence flustered the Zags early.

The Bulldogs mounted a 10-0 run to slow the Anteaters' early momentum and took their first lead midway through the second quarter.

Iowa's Clark shakes off slow start to down Holy Cross

Caitlin Clark struggled to make shots early, but finished with 27 points and 10 assists as Iowa defeated Holy Cross 91-65 in a women's NCAA tournament first-round game Saturday in Iowa City.

Kate Martin also had a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds for the Hawkeyes (30-4), the top seed in the Albany 2 Regional. Iowa advanced to Monday's second round to face either eighth seed West Virginia or ninth seed Princeton.

Clark, a unanimous Associated Press All-American selection, was just 8 of 19 from the field, 3 of 9 in 3-pointers, showing her frustration with missed shots multiple times during the game.

She was constantly complaining to officials and at one point cameras caught her dad Brent telling her to stop.

"I should probably smile more. I'm a competitor," said Clark, who even headbutted the basketball during the game in frustration. "I love this game. I'm a perfectionist."

Clark finished with her 65th career double-double, and added eight rebounds.

She got off to a slow start and didn't make her first field goal until 22 seconds were left in the first quarter. She committed five turnovers in the first eight minutes.

Iowa had a similar start. The Hawkeyes had a 10-0 run midway through the first quarter that didn't bother the Crusaders, who were within 23-21 at the end of the quarter.

Holy Cross (21-13) made 12 3-pointers in Thursday's 72-45 First Four win over UT-Martin, but were just 7 of 34 in 3-pointers in this game, with only three in the second half. The Crusaders, who missed their first 10 shots of the fourth quarter, shot just 32.4 per cent from the field.

Addison O'Grady had 14 points and Gabbie Marshall had 11 for the Hawkeyes. Iowa had a 50-37 rebounding edge despite starting forward Hannah Stuelke, the team's second leading rebounder, playing just 10 minutes.

Bronagh Power-Cassidy had 19 points for Holy Cross. Janelle Allen had 18.