By KRISTIE RIEKEN
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Jordan Nixon banked in a short jump shot at the buzzer in overtime, giving her a career-high 35 points and lifting No. 2 Texas A&M to an 84-82 victory over seventh-seeded Iowa State in the second round of the women’s NCAA Tournament on Wednesday.
Nixon scored seven of A&M’s nine points in OT, pushing the Aggies (25-2) into the Sweet 16 for the third straight time. She also led the rally in the fourth quarter, scoring the last four points of regulation.
A 3 by Lexi Donarski put the Cyclones up by two with two minutes left in overtime, and Nixon tied it with a layup a few seconds later. Ciera Johnson blocked a layup by Ashley Joens with 3 seconds left before Nixon drove into the lane and threw up the game-winner.
The dramatic finish comes after the Aggies narrowly escaped an upset bid by No. 15 seed Troy in the first round. Texas A&M is chasing its second title in the 10th anniversary of its first one. It won its first SEC regular-season title this season and rose to as high as No. 2 in the AP Top 25 for the highest ranking in school history.
Next up is No. 3 seed Arizona, which advanced with a 52-46 win over BYU.
Joens had 32 points and a career-high 18 rebounds for the Cyclones (17-11), who went 16 for 30 from 3-point range. Donarski finished with 18 points.
Johnson had 19 points, eight rebounds and three blocks for the Aggies, who are in the tournament for the 15th straight time.
Texas A&M trailed 75-71 with 20 seconds left in regulation, but Nixon made a short jumper and Alexis Morris forced a jump ball with Donarski to get the ball back for A&M with 11.2 seconds remaining. Morris appeared to take an elbow to the jaw and officials reviewed the play, but they did not assess a penalty on Donarski.
Nixon drove into the lane for a tying layup with 6 seconds left. Joens had a chance to win the game in regulation, but her shot was blocked by N’dea Jones. The ball went out of bounds, but the Cyclones weren’t able to get another shot up.
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