The Lady Vols (10-0) led by 14 points at halftime and by as many as 29 late in the game. Memphis (6-6) never really threatened after the game was tied twice early.

Jackson made seven of 11 shots from the floor and all three of her free throws. Michelle Snow and April McDivitt added 13 each, both hitting 5-of-6 from the field. McDivitt was 3-for-4 on 3-pointers.

Lauren Jackson led Memphis with 17 points and five assists, while Shannon Hamp and Princess Swilley scored 14 each.

Tennessee shot 52 percent from the field, Memphis 43 percent.

The Lady Tigers had 18 of their 24 turnovers -- and only 11 field goals -- in the first half. The Lady Vols turned the ball over 11 times in the half and 20 overall.

Tennessee opened a 13-point lead in the first 8 1/2 minutes.

The Lady Vols led 32-17 when Memphis made its best run of the half, scoring seven straight points to make it 32-24.

But Tennessee outscored Memphis 11-7 the rest of the way for a 14-point halftime lead.

The Lady Vols steadily built the margin to 20 in the first eight minutes of the second half behind Snow's five points and Jackson's eight. McDivitt added two 3-pointers early in the half.

From there, Memphis got no closer than 18. Tennessee led by at least 20 in the final six minutes.

No. 16 Florida 73, Kent State 47
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- Florida center Vanessa Hayden had the second triple double in school history with 17 points, 12 rebounds and 10 blocked shots as Florida beat Kent State 73-47 in the State Farm Classic championship game on Saturday.

Hayden's 10 blocks are also a school record. She was named MVP of the tournament. Florida (10-3) had two other players record double doubles.

Courtney Cooper had 13 points and 12 boards, while Brandi McCain had 12 points and 11 assists.

Andrea Csaszar led Kent State (4-7) with 16 points but did not score in the second half. Christi Shibata lead Kent State in rebounds with 12.

Kent State held the game as close as two points until under four minutes to go in the first half, but then Florida went on a 26-4 run that spanned the end of the first half and the first nine minutes of the second.

Joining Hayden on the all-tournament team were Cooper, McCain, Csaszar, Duquene's Candace Futrell and Howard's Andrea Gardner.

Kentucky 83, Louisiana-Lafayette 60
HANOVER, N.H. -- Kentucky used a balanced scoring attack and forced a season-high 30 turnovers to defeat Lafayette, 83-60, in the championship game of the Blue Sky Restaurant Group Classic on Saturday. Sophomore center SeSe Helm, who scored a game-high 22 points, was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player after scoring a combined 39 points in the two-game event. Senior LaTonya McDole was named to the All-Tournament team, her second all-tournament honor this season.

UK (7-5) controlled the tempo the entire second half, leading by as many as 27 (75-48). All 10 players contributed to the scoring column with Helm leading four Cats in double figures. McDole, Kristin Connolly and Sara Potts all finished with 11 points.

The Cats also led the battle of the boards, 37-31, and out shot the Leopards 52.3 percent to 48 percent. Kentucky used a full court press to force 20 Lafayette turnovers in the first half. The Cats held the Leopards scoreless for three minutes late in the opening stanza to open up a 45-20 halftime cushion.

Lafayette (2-8) was led by Colleen Fitzpatrick’s 13 points and Jennifer Bayer’s 10 defensive rebounds. The Cats, who won the Dartmouth Classic in 1997, are now 69-27 all-time in regular season tournaments. UK defeated Southern Mississippi on Friday, 59-44, to advance to the title game.

In consolation play, Southern Mississippi defeated Dartmouth, 74-72. Kentucky will open the 2002 and league play at home against Southeastern Conference opponent Mississippi State on Thursday, Jan. 3, at 7 p.m.

No. 13 Texas Tech 81, No. 3 Vanderbilt 71
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) -- Amber Tarr scored 23 points, and Natalie Ritchie added 21 as 13th-ranked Texas Tech beat No. 3 Vanderbilt 81-71 Saturday for its sixth straight victory.

Tech (8-2) staved off a second-half comeback by the Commodores, seemingly coming up with a 3-pointer whenever Vanderbilt (11-2) got close. Tech put the game out of reach with a 14-6 run in the middle of the second half.

Zuzi Klimesova and Chantelle Anderson each scored 26 points to lead Vanderbilt, which had won eight games in a row.

The Lady Raiders denied Vanderbilt the outside shot, allowing it only one 3-pointer. Up against a taller team, Tech used its quickness to move the ball around the perimeter and score from the outside. Texas Tech scored only 14 points inside the paint.

Jia Perkins added 17 points and had nine assists for Tech, while Ritchie put up half the Lady Raiders' 3-pointers, hitting on 5-of-12.

Tech led 37-28 at halftime.

Alabama 66, Massachusetts 65
VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Alabama used a late rally and a clutch free throw to earn a 66-65 victory over UMass in the opening round of the PNC Wildcat Classic on Saturday afternoon at Villanova's Pavillion.

The Crimson Tide (9-3) trailed by six points with 4:18 left in the game but rallied with an 8-2 run to knot the score at 61. After trading a pair of baskets, UA freshman Katie Sipe drove the ball into the lane and was fouled with 0.9 seconds left on the clock. Sipe made the first free throw to give 'Bama the lead, then missed the second on purpose to give UMass just 0.2 seconds to take a shot following its final timeout.

With the win, Alabama extended its current win streak to five games and sent the Minutewomen to their sixth loss in a row. The Tide advances to the championship game on Sunday against the winner of Saturday's second game between Villanova and Rider. UA has reached the championship game of every regular season tournament this year and is looking for its second straight title following a pre-Christmas crown in Mexico.

"After a week off, coming up here and getting a win against a very talented and determined UMass squad was important," said UA head coach Rick Moody. "Anytime you win a game especially after making a comeback you can't complain. Hopefully, we play with a little more desire and enthusiasm in tomorrow's championship game."

Both teams turned the ball over twice in the final minute as the two squads jockeyed to score the final points. Alabama's final possession came as a result of a Shondra Johnson steal with 21 seconds left. After a timeout, the Tide worked the clock down with Johnson dribbling at the point. Johnson drove the ball into the lane and kicked it out to Sipe, who drove to the basket and was knocked to the floor to set up the game-winning shot from the line.

Alabama finished the game with a near season-low 14 turnovers while forcing UMass into 19 for the game. The Tide also tallied 14 steals, including a career-high seven by Beth Vice. UMass became the first team to out-rebound the Tide, earning a 44-25 win on the glass, including a 28-9 lead in the first half.

Sipe and LaNisha Cartwell led the Tide with 12 points each, followed by Vice with 11. Johnson handed out eight assists and a trio of UA players finished with four rebounds to lead the team. UMass was led by Jennifer Butler's 15-point, 12-rebound double-double.

Alabama will play in Sunday's championship game at 3 p.m. Following this weekend's tournament play, the Tide return to Tuscaloosa to open SEC play on Sunday, Jan. 6, against Kentucky.

No. 18 Colorado 86, No. 21 LSU 65
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) -- Eisha Bohman scored 19 points, and Mandy Nightingale added 18 to help 18th-ranked Colorado defeat No. 21 LSU 86-65 Saturday.

Colorado (10-3) made 11 3-pointers -- six by Nightingale -- while the Lady Tigers (7-4) had troubled making shots from outside.

Nightingale played as a reserve for the first time in 77 games.

Tera Bjorklund scored 15, and Jenny Roulier 13 for Colorado.

Aiysha Smith led LSU with 18 points, and Doneeka Hodges and Ke-Ke Tardy added 13 each.

Colorado led 38-29 at halftime.

Cincinnati 74, Mississippi State 57
CINCINNATI, Ohio -- The Lady Bulldogs' five-game win streak came to a halt against Cincinnati Saturday afternoon losing 74-57. Cincinnati moved to 11-0 this season while Mississippi State dropped to 9-3.

Freshman Tan White again led the team and continued her double-digit scoring streak with a 25-point performance. She scored 21 of MSU's 34 points in the second half. Junior LaToya Thomas upped her double-digit scoring streak to 75 games with an 11-point effort. She had nine points in the second half leaving only three of State's second-half points to Keisha Stringfellow.

Sophomore Seneca Anderson recorded her first career start replacing Renae Jones who was sidelined with an ankle injury suffered during practice. Freshman Ebonie Ferguson scored a career-high eight points

The two teams played even in the first 13 minutes of the game to a score of 20-19 UC with 7:43 on the clock. The Bearcats then went on a 20-4 run, taking a 40-23 lead into the locker room.

State opened the second half with a 12-3 run cutting the lead to 45-35 with 14:48 remaining in regulation. UC continued to push and led my as many as 20 with under 10 minutes left.

"Cincinnati played scrappy and they played hard," said head coach Sharon Fanning. "They wanted it and they got after it. I saw us scrap and play hard in the second half, but we need to do that for a full 40 minutes."

Cincinnati was led by Valerie King with 25 points. Debbie Merrill recorded the only double-double of the game with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Tamara Douglass chipped in 11 for the Bearcats as well.

Mississippi State plays Xavier at 3 p.m. EST on Monday, Dec. 31, before traveling to face Kentucky on Thursday, Jan. 3, at 7 p.m. EST. Both games can be heard on WFCA 107.9 FM.