The fourth day of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament in San Antonio is in the book. Here are some quick takeaways:

Tipping off
Survive and advance: At this point of the season, it’s often not about which team is the best. It’s often not even about which team plays the best on a particular day.
The fine line between the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat often comes down to which team is the most resilient.
Few teams have a better argument than Texas A&M.
The Aggies overcame a 12-point deficit in the second half to edge Iowa State 84-82 in overtime on Wednesday at the Alamodome. Texas A&M trailed by four points with 39 seconds left in regulation before Jordan Nixon’s layup with 6 seconds left tied it at 75 and forced overtime.
Nixon gathered a missed shot by Iowa State, dribbled nearly the length of the floor, and then banked in a shot at the buzzer for the game-winner. A sophomore, Nixon finished with 35 points and seven assists.
It was the second straight game in which the second-seeded Aggies have escaped with a win. They defeated No. 15 seed Troy 84-80 on Monday, prevailing on two late free throws after a controversial no-call on a possible backcourt violation.
“I can’t say enough about this basketball team,” Texas A&M coach Gary Blair said. “Our kids were just fighting and clawing. People have doubted us all year. We’re not sure how good we are, but we know we’re good every night at giving energy and giving you entertainment.”

Shooting stars
Jordan Nixon, Texas A&M: 35 points, 7 assists

Kyra Lambert, Texas: 17 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists

Ashley Joens, Iowa State: 32 points, 18 rebounds

Celeste Taylor, Texas: 24 points

Olivia Cochran, Louisville: 13 points, 15 rebounds

Aari McDonald, Arizona: 17 points, 11 rebounds

Grace Berger, Indiana: 17 points, 6 rebounds

Jenna Staiti, Georgia: 18 points, 9 rebounds

Sedona Prince, Oregon: 22 points, 5 rebounds, 4 blocks

Jasmine Walker, Alabama: 23 points, 7 rebounds

By the numbers
11: Consecutive years in which all four No. 1 seeds have advanced to the Sweet 16. Stanford, Connecticut, North Carolina State and South Carolina — this year’s top seeds — have each qualified for the regional semifinals.

28: Points that Louisville limited Northwestern to over the game’s final 31 minutes after Northwestern build a 25-7 advantage in the first quarter. Louisville overcame the poor start, outscoring the Wildcats 55-28 en route to a 62-53 victory.

62: Maryland’s shooting percentage during its 100-64 triumph over Alabama. The Terrapins made 42 of 68 attempts. Angel Reese led Maryland with 19 points.

1983: The last time that Indiana advanced to the Sweet 16 before accomplishing the feat with Wednesday’s 70-48 win over Belmont. When the Hoosiers made it this far 38 years ago, the tournament was comprised of only 32 teams and not 64.

Quotable quotes
“It was really difficult to come back, and I just don’t feel like I was the same, but I would just say that I’m proud of myself. … It’s just a blessing to be able to play this sport. We can complain about things all we want, there’s people out there who can’t play. There are people out there who can’t walk, don’t have arms, don’t have legs. I have this opportunity. I came out on top. I can’t complain about anything. If I’m struggling, I’m just going to push.” — Syracuse senior guard Tiana Mangakahia, who missed the 2019-20 season after being diagnosed with breast cancer in June 2019 and undergoing chemotherapy and a double mastectomy, but return to help team reach second round. She is cancer-free.

“They trust me to make plays. They trust me to lead this team. Win, lose or draw, every single person on that bench is behind me and it just makes these moments that much more special. This team is so resilient. We never say die. I think you saw that tonight.” — Texas A&M guard Jordan Nixon, who made overtime-forcing and game-winning baskets in the Aggies’ 84-82 win over Iowa State. It was her third game-winner this season.

“It’s amazing that now I have such a big platform and I’m able to inspire and help so many people and bring attention to my sport because that’s what it deserves. I hope they see women’s basketball is not boring. It’s fun. It’s exciting. It’s different than men’s basketball, but in an amazing way. We play hard and with our hearts and there’s so many fundamentals. It’s such a different game, so we wanted to show that we’re fun to watch.” — Oregon forward Sedona Prince

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