No. 1 Gamecocks stay perfect in showdown win over No. 3 LSU New Mexico State players interviewed about alleged hazing 2 New Mexico State players quit day after program suspended UT Arlington fires Greg Young with 6 games left No. 18 UCLA women hand Oregon State 5th straight loss Sherrod helps No. 25 Colorado hold off Washington State 71-68

COLOMBIA, South Carolina. Camilla Cardoso scored 18 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, Zia Cook scored 17 points, and South Carolina’s No. 1 beat LSU No. 3 88-64 on Sunday in a tie-up between the last two undefeated teams.

Alia Boston finished with 14 points and nine boards to help the Gamecocks win their 31st consecutive game.

Billed as a showcase between Boston’s current AP Player of the Year and Angel Reese, the game quickly became a testament to South Carolina’s experience, talent and depth. The Gamecocks (25-0. 12-0 Southeastern) took an 18-2 lead to end LSU’s record start (23-1, 11-1).

Boston and Reese made the list with 39 double-doubles this season. Instead, it was the 6-foot-7 backup Cardoso who racked up double-digit points and rebounds.

Reese, a 6-foot-3 dominant, couldn’t handle the Gamecocks’ sizzling inside presence, scoring 5-of-15 shots, 16 points and four rebounds in her first game this season without a double-figure board.

Boston, South Carolina’s 76-game record in double-digit points and rebounds, also fell short of that standard. Not that it mattered, blocking Reese’s shots twice in the third quarter, as South Carolina took control for good.

Reese held her hands up, wondering where the foul had been as she sat on the court.

LSU cut a 10-point halftime deficit to 45-40 due to Reese’s inside bucket midway through the third quarter. But South Carolina ended the period with a 19-8 streak, culminating in Brea Beal’s second 3-pointer.

Her teammates rushed at her after the time was up, celebrating as if they had won the title. The Gamecocks have proven who rules women’s football this year.

The sold-out crowd was loud and raucous from the jump and went wild when the Philadelphia native Staley stepped out in a classic Eagles Randall Cunningham jersey for his team’s Super Bowl warm-up Sunday with LSU.

The Gamecocks then gave them more to shout about as they started 18–2 in the first six minutes, which threatened to knock the Tigers out of the building. Cook scored six points on the shot while Brea Beal made a 3-pointer and a 3-pointer.

Alexis Morris led LSU with 23 points.

Boston and Cardoso each had three blocks for the Gamecocks.

BIG PICTURE

LSU: The Tigers got off to a good start but didn’t face a team like the Gamecocks. Sophomore year coach Kim Mulkey will have to come up with a better plan as it is likely that this team will be playing for the SEC Tournament title in three weeks.

South Carolina: The Gamecocks are just continuing on their way to more titles. In what was considered a crucial leg of the road – UConn last Sunday, LSU a week later – South Carolina once again relied on its defensive superiority to remain perfect.

NEXT

LSU returns home to face Mississippi on Thursday night.

South Carolina at home against Florida on Thursday night.

The New Mexico State Chancellor says school staff spoke with players about the alleged hazing incident that led to the program being suspended.

In a letter to the school community, Principal Dan Arvizu said he was “heartbroken and disgusted to hear about these hazing allegations.”

“Hazing is a vile act,” he wrote. “It humiliates and degrades someone and can cause physical and emotional harm or even death. Unfortunately, bullying can become part of the corporate culture if left unchecked.”

He said the team, which returned to Las Cruces after its California Baptist game was canceled, will be suspended until further notice.

The letter came just hours after the school announced it was holding a closed meeting to “discuss limited personnel matters relating to individual employees.” The names of the employees involved have not been released.

In announcing a near-unprecedented suspension of the Division I basketball program midway through the season, the university placed coach Greg Heyar and his staff on administrative leave while an investigation into an alleged violation of university policy.

“NMSU policy strictly prohibits hazing in all forms and we simply will not tolerate it,” Arvizu wrote in a letter.

Hours before the letter was published, two Aggies, Shahar Lazar and Kent Olewiler, announced on social media that they were leaving the team.

None of the players played this season. It was a redshirt year for Lazar, a freshman who came to Las Cruces from Israel. Oleviler also took a detour to Las Cruces; he was a preferred assistant who was not on Aggie’s official list.

Lazar said he was leaving because “I don’t think the program I originally took on is in line with my beliefs and core values.”

Oleviler simply said, “My recruitment is 100% open.”

The hazing allegations came almost three months after Brandon Travis, a 19-year-old student at a rival school at the University of New Mexico, was killed in Albuquerque on Nov. 19. Aggie forward Mike Peake was suspended in early December while an outside investigator investigated his involvement in Travis’ murder. Moments before the shooting, Peak suffered a leg injury and was later taken to the hospital by three of his teammates.

Piqué has not been charged in the case, which is also being investigated by the Albuquerque District Attorney.

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*Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story was posted with the wrong photo. NBC Sports regrets the error.*

Two New Mexico State players left the team less than 24 hours after the program was suspended indefinitely while the university investigates possible violations of school policy.

Shortly after the team returned from Los Angeles, where their game against California Baptist was cancelled, Shahar Lazar and Kent Olewiler announced on social media that they were leaving the team.

None of the players played this season. It was a redshirt year for Lazar, a freshman who came to Las Cruces from Israel. Oleviler also took a detour to Las Cruces; he was a preferred assistant who was not on Aggie’s official list.

Lazar said he was leaving because “I don’t think the program I originally took on is in line with my beliefs and core values.”

Oleviler simply said, “My recruitment is 100% open.”

The school announced that it would be holding a closed meeting to “discuss limited personnel matters relating to individual employees.” The names of the employees involved have not been released.

In announcing an indefinite suspension of the basketball program, the university placed coach Greg Hayar and his staff on administrative leave while an investigation into possible violations of school policy.

The university said the violations were not related to the November 19 Albuquerque shooting of Brandon Travis, a 19-year-old student at a rival school at the University of New Mexico. Aggie forward Mike Peake was suspended in early December while a third-party investigator investigated his involvement in the shooting incident. Moments before the shooting, Peak suffered a leg injury and was later taken to the hospital by three of his teammates.

Piqué has not been charged in the case, which is also being investigated by the Albuquerque District Attorney.

The Associated Press requested a New Mexico State campus police report alleging hazing in the men’s basketball program. A police department spokesman said the report is part of an ongoing investigation and the department hopes to release it as soon as possible.

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*Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story was posted with the wrong photo. NBC Sports regrets the error.*

ARLINGTON, Texas – Utah Arlington fired second-year head coach Greg Young with six games left in the regular season.

Royce Johnson has been named interim head coach for the Mavericks (9-16, 4-8 WAC), who play their next game at Sam Houston State. They are in their first season in the Western Athletic Conference and made their first appearance in the NCAA tournament 15 years ago.

Young’s departure from the program was announced the day after a 64–58 win at UT-Rio Grande Valley. He was 20–34 years old as head coach after being UT Arlington’s assistant from 2009–21, working for former head coaches Scott Cross and Chris Ogden.

“After a holistic evaluation of our program, it has been decided that now is the best time for us to take this step,” said sports director John Fagg. “Change is rarely easy, and this decision was no exception, but we need to bring new, actionable, result-oriented energy to the program. We are in a new, highly competitive conference and a fresh look will give us the best opportunity to take our program to the permanent championship level that our fans and student athletes deserve.”

Johnson is in his fifth season with the Mavericks. He has been deputy head coach since the start of the 2021–22 season after three years as Ogden’s assistant.

LOS ANGELES. Gabriela Jaques scored 14 points, Charisma Osbourne scored 12 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and UCLA’s No. 18 beat Oregon State 62-54 on Friday night, losing a fifth straight loss to the Beavers.

Oregon State led 51-46 with 7:13 left in the fourth quarter, but didn’t score a field goal the rest of the way.

UCLA capitalized on Oregon State’s two consecutive passes to lead Jaques’ two quick breaks during the 12-0 series to give the Bruins a 58-51 lead.

Emily Bessoir missed the second of two free throws with 33 seconds left, but Lina Sontag intercepted the offensive rebound before being fouled to go 1 of 2 to lead 60–54.

Kiki Rice and Sontag each had 11 points for UCLA (19-6, 8-5 Pac-12). The Bruins finished 3 of 27 from long range, with their first 3-pointer, in 15 attempts, with 2:39 left in the third quarter to come back…