Down-to-the-wire win an expectant mother could love
WACO, Texas — Seven months pregnant, Cal head coach Lindsay Gottlieb felt more kicks than usual.
Guess her little point guard was just that into the game.
“I felt like I was having contractions,” Gottlieb said. “I credit LSU for that.”
Asha Thomas buried a go-ahead three-pointer with 1:19 to play, and the ninthseeded Bears survived a dramatic battle with eighth-seeded LSU, winning 55-52 in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament on Saturday night at Baylor University’s Ferrell Center.
Cal (20-13) next draws a date with top-seeded Baylor (31-3) on Monday in a game that will begin at 6 p.m. PDT.
In her first NCAA Tournament game, Thomas, a sophomore guard from Bishop O’Dowd-Oakland, played like a postseason veteran. She drained 6 of 9 shots from the floor for a game-best 18 points. All of those shot attempts came from behind the three-point arc, and none was bigger than the corner shot she swished to put Cal in front to stay.
“They were denying the inside, and they just left me open,” Thomas said. “I caught the ball and knocked it down, just like I knew I would knock it down. That’s how it happened.”
In addition to her big-time shooting, Thomas also secured possession for Cal on a critical loose ball with 8.1 seconds remaining. Several players hit the court in a mad scramble for the ball, but Thomas fell on it first before several LSU players descended. Officials whistled for a jump ball, and the possession arrow favored Cal.
LSU (20-12) had to foul, and Kristine Anigwe knocked down two free throws to push the Bears’ lead to 55-52.
The Tigers had one last gasp, as Raigyne Moncrief let fly a three-point attempt just before time expired, but the shot hit the front of the rim and Cal survived.
Cal overcame a sloppy 20turnover performance, including 12 turnovers by guard Mikayla Cowling.
“At the risk of sounding cliche, this was a survive-andadvance moment,” Gottlieb said. “It wasn’t the prettiest, but I credit LSU for that. They turn you over, that’s why they’re in the tournament . ... But I was proud of our players’ grittiness.”
Cal will face a serious challenge from Baylor, which won the NCAA title with a 40-0 season in 2012 and has reached the Elite Eight in each of the past three years. But Gottlieb said that “nobody will be more happy to play Monday night than us.”
She’s not sure if she can take another nail-biter, though.
“Any more games like this, and (the baby) is sure to come,” she said.