Rutgers, Bowling Green advance

Kia Vaughn had 12 of her 16 points in the first half to help fourth-seeded Rutgers beat Michigan State, 70-57, last night in East Lansing, Mich., in the second round of the Greensboro Regional.

Rutgers' reward?

The Scarlet Knights (24-8) play top-seeded Duke (32-1) on Saturday in Greensboro, N.C. - about 50 miles from the Blue Devils' campus.

Rutgers took command of the game with a 13-2 run in the first half while holding the Spartans without a field goal for nearly eight minutes.

That dominating stretch put the Scarlet Knights up by 22-16 midway through the first half, and they maintained the lead with relentless defense and clutch shooting.

After trailing by 13 early in the second half, Michigan State woke up its fans by pulling within six, but Rutgers responded with five straight points to quiet the crowd.

Victoria Lucas-Perry scored 17, Rene Haynes had 14 points, and Aisha Jefferson added 13 for the Spartans (24-9).

Rutgers' Essence Carson had 15 points, and freshman Epiphanny Prince scored 14.

Bowling Green 59, Vanderbilt 56 - Seventh seed Bowling Green moved into the NCAA tournament's round of 16 for the first time in school history, holding off a furious rally to edge No. 2 seed Vanderbilt in the second game in East Lansing.

Amber Flynn scored 19 for the Mid-American Conference champion Falcons, who face No. 3 seed Arizona State on Saturday. Bowling Green (31-3) is the first team from the conference to reach the round of 16.

Liz Sherwood scored 18 for Vanderbilt (28-6), but the second-half comeback fell short.

Vanderbilt trailed by 13 at halftime, but used pressure defense and clutch shooting to cut the lead to 52-49 with 1 minute, 50 seconds left.

Ali Mann's three-pointer gave Bowling Green a 55-49 lead with 55 seconds left.

Vanderbilt cut the lead to 3 again with 10 seconds remaining, but Kate Achter sealed the win with two free throws.