STORRS, Conn. -- It looked really bad for Syracuse when star Dyaisha Fair was being carried off the court at the end of the third quarter, unable to put any pressure on her legs.
It looked a lot better after the third-team All-American returned from the locker room just over two minutes into the fourth quarter, high-fived her coach and went back into the game.
Fair scored 32 points, including her team's final 13 to lead the Orange to a 74-69 come-from behind win over No. 11 seed Arizona in the first round of the women's NCAA Tournament on Saturday.
"When she came to the bench and I looked at her and she said two words, 'I'm good,' I smacked her hand so hard I might have broke her arm," said Coach Felisha Legette-Jack. "You know that's a fourth-quarter kid."
Fair's personal game-winning run began with the Orange trailing 66-61 with 3:16 left. Alyssa Latham added 10 points for Syracuse (24-7).
Freshman Skyler Jones had 24 points while Jada Williams and Helena Pueyo each added 14 for Arizona (18-16), which has played much of the season with just seven women in uniform.
"In this period, they're just tired," said Arizona Coach Adia Barnes. "So, I think it wears on you."
The Wildcats led by as many as nine points in the first half at 31-22 after a three-pointer from Williams. But Fair scored five points in the final 41 seconds of the second quarter to cut the deficit to 37-32 at intermission.
Syracuse kept chipping away at the Arizona lead and a steal and fast-break layup by Fair tied the game at 51.
The fifth-year guard went down hard after driving into Arizona's Isis Beh on the final play of the third quarter. She lay on the floor for several minutes and had to be carried into the locker room without putting any weight on her legs.
"I twisted it and landed on it I think," Fair said. "When you don't know, you don't know. I just prayed that it wasn't serious."
Kennedi Perkins jump shot to open the fourth quarter gave the Orange their first lead at 53-51.
Then Fair emerged from the locker room to cheers just over two minutes into the quarter and was back on the court a short time later.
But Arizona fought back. They went up 64-59 on a layup by Breya Cunningham and led 66-61 before Fair took over.
Her three-pointer from the top of the key with 1:17 left gave the Orange a 68-66 lead.
An offensive foul on Arizona's Jones gave the ball to Syracuse, and the Orange never gave back the lead.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 87,
TEXAS A&M-CORPUS CHRISTI 55
LOS ANGELES -- JuJu Watkins scored 23 points in her NCAA Tournament debut, leading No. 1 seed Southern California to a blowout victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
The Trojans (27-5) also got 23 points from McKenzie Forbes in a first-round game they dominated from the opening tip.
The 16th-seeded Islanders (23-9) scored the first basket, then the Trojans took over. Watkins hit a three-pointer for her first points to launch a 21-0 run in which five different players scored.
The Islanders managed just one other basket in the first and it came as time expired. They scored 16 points in the second quarter and trailed 36-20 at halftime.
Mireia Aguado, one of six players from Spain on the roster, scored 15 points and Alecia Westbrook added 12 for the Islanders.
USC poured it on in the third, outscoring the Islanders 35-21. The Trojans closed on a 20-5 run to lead 71-41 going into the fourth. Kayla Padilla hit consecutive three-pointers and Forbes made two consecutive three-pointers of her own with Watkins on the bench resting.
Watkins was 8 of 18 from the floor and 1 of 6 from three-point range. She made 6 of 7 free throws, had 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 blocks and 2 steals before sitting down with 3:37 remaining.
KANSAS 81,
MICHIGAN 72 (OT)
LOS ANGELES -- Zakiyah Franklin scored 22 points, including a tying three-pointer that bounced on the rim and dropped with 12 seconds left in regulation, and Kansas beat Michigan in overtime.
"My coach said you must be living right," Franklin said, grinning.
Wyvette Mayberry and S'Mya Nichols added 15 points each and Taiyanna Jackson had 14 points and eight rebounds for the eighth-seeded Jayhawks (20-12).
"March is about getting everyone's best basketball," Nichols said. "It was exciting, back and forth, not easy."
The Jayhawks rallied in the fourth quarter, when they outscored the Wolverines 23-14. Then Kansas stepped up its defense and controlled the five-minute extra session, 14-5.
"They never fragmented," Kansas Coach Brandon Schneider said. "They just stayed the course and made some really big plays that were preceded by stop after stop."
Lauren Hansen's three-pointer pulled the Wolverines within 75-72. Franklin missed, but the 6-6 Jackson grabbed the rebound. Nichols scored and drew the foul, extending the Jayhawks' lead to 78-72.
Franklin stole the ball with 22 seconds left and Nichols got fouled and made both.
Cameron Williams scored 18 points to lead ninth-seeded Michigan (20-14). Laila Phelia added 16 points.
UCONN 86,
JACKSON STATE 64
STORRS, Conn. -- All-American Paige Bueckers and her teammates had a special gift for UConn Coach Geno Auriemma on his 70th birthday. -- a 30th consecutive first-round win in the NCAA Tournament.
Bueckers scored 28 points, freshman Ashlynn Shade added 26 and the No. 3 seeded Huskies beat Jackson State.
"Happy birthday Grandpa," Bueckers said at the post-game press conference, as her coach flicked water from his drinking cup in her direction.
Aaliyah Edwards, wearing a mask after missing two games with a broken nose, had 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Huskies (30-5), who took control of the game early and led by as many as 28 points.
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 three-pointer from Bueckers, who also pulled down 11 rebounds and had seven assists in the game.
"Paige, when she starts off like that, it makes everybody feel a lot more confident," Auriemma said. "They can breath a little bit easier knowing that she's pretty much taken control of the game."
Boler's three-pointer from the right corner at the buzzer sent the teams into the half with UConn leading 49-28.
Michigan guard Laila Phelia (5) controls the ball against Kansas center Taiyanna Jackson (1) during a first-round college basketball game in the women's NCAA Tournament in Los Angeles, Saturday, March 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Michigan forward Cameron Williams (44) passes against Kansas center Taiyanna Jackson (1) during a first-round college basketball game in the women's NCAA Tournament in Los Angeles, Saturday, March 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Kansas guard Wyvette Mayberry, right, celebrates with guard S'Mya Nichols (12) after winning 81-72 over Michigan in overtime of a first-round college basketball game in the women's NCAA Tournament in Los Angeles, Saturday, March 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Kansas players celebrate after an 81-72 overtime win over Michigan in a first-round college basketball game in the women's NCAA Tournament in Los Angeles, Saturday, March 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Kansas guard Wyvette Mayberry (0) defends against Michigan guard Lauren Hansen (1) during a first-round college basketball game in the women's NCAA Tournament in Los Angeles, Saturday, March 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Kansas guard Zakiyah Franklin (15) controls the ball against Michigan guard Elissa Brett (0) during a first-round college basketball game in the women's NCAA Tournament in Los Angeles, Saturday, March 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Michigan guard Laila Phelia (5) defends against Kansas guard Holly Kersgieter (13) during a first-round college basketball game in the women's NCAA Tournament in Los Angeles, Saturday, March 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Michigan forward Cameron Williams (44) and Kansas guard Wyvette Mayberry (0) reach for a loose ball during a first-round college basketball game in the women's NCAA Tournament in Los Angeles, Saturday, March 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Michigan forward Cameron Williams (44) shoots against Kansas center Taiyanna Jackson (1) during a first-round college basketball game in the women's NCAA Tournament in Los Angeles, Saturday, March 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)