The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Oregon State shocks Tennessee
LEXINGTON REGIONAL
NO. 6 OREGON STATE 66, NO. 3 TENNESSEE 59: At Knoxville, Tenn., the Lady Vols lost for the first time at home in women’s NCAA Tournament history when Marie Gulich had 14 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Beavers (26-7).
The Lady Vols (24-8) had been 57-0 at home with most of those victories coming under late Hall of Fame coach Pat Summitt, who led the team to eight national championships. It’s the second straight season that Tennessee lost in the second round of the NCAAs and will miss the Sweet 16 in back-to-back seasons for the first time in the program’s 37-year tournament history.
NO. 1 LOUISVILLE 90, NO. 8 MARQUETTE 72:
At Louisville, Ky., Myisha Hines-Allen had 24 points and 13 rebounds, Asia Durr scored 19 points and the Cardinals (34-2) advanced to their second consecutive Sweet 16.
Hines-Allen and Durr made sure of that right away by combining for 26 points on 12-of-14 shooting in the first half after the duo totaled just 13 points in a first-round rout of Boise State. Hines-Allen earned her 16th double-double this season.
Their offensive recovery keyed Louisville’s 70 percent shooting effort in the first half and 64 percent for the game. Sam Fuehring had 19 points and eight rebounds and Jazmine Jones 14 points as the Cardinals won their ninth in a row.
SPOKANE REGIONAL
NO. 4 TEXAS A&M 80,
NO. 5 DEPAUL 79: At College Station, Texas, freshman Chennedy Carter hit a 3 with 3.2 seconds left, capping a 37-point performance, to help the Aggies rally from a 17-point second-half deficit.
Carter had 32 of her points after halftime and the Aggies pulled off another stunning second-half comeback for the second consecutive year. It was the largest comeback ever in the second round of the tournament and the fourth largest ever.
Texas A&M trailed by two when Carter’s long three from the top of the key gave the Aggies (26-9) the lead. Fifth-seed DePaul had a chance to win it after that, but Jasmine Lumpkin stole the inbounds pass to secure the victory and send the Aggies to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2014.
Carter, who scored A&M’s last nine points, got hot after halftime, making seven 3-pointers, to allow the Aggies to mount the comeback. Last season, Texas A&M rallied in the opening round from a 21point deficit to Penn to win.
DePaul was led by Tanita Allen, who had 19 points and Mart’e Grays added 14.
NO. 1 NOTRE DAME 98, NO. 9 VILLANOVA
72: At South Bend, Ind., with the Irish struggling to a halftime tie, a visibly angry Muffet McGraw had seen enough.
When the Irish returned from the locker room, enter Kathryn Westbeld, who sat out the first half with a left ankle sprain, and the Irish found their way to the regional semifinals for the ninth straight season.
Westbeld turned her ankle early in Notre Dame’s 99-81 first-round victory Friday against Cal State Fullerton and was listed by McGraw as a game-time decision. She was dressed for pregame warmups but clearly struggling, so McGraw started Kristina Nelson and tried freshman Danielle Patterson before using sophomore walk-on Kaitlin Cole, whose offensive rebound and layup had tied the game at halftime, 45-45.
KANSAS CITY REGIONAL
NO. 4 NORTH CAROLINA STATE 74, NO. 5
MARYLAND 60: At Raleigh, N.C., Kiara Leslie had 21 points and 11 rebounds against her former team.
Leslie, who spent three seasons at Maryland before graduating and transferring to N.C. State, finished one point shy of a career high.
Kalia Ealey and Chelsea Nelson added 12 points apiece while Akela Maize scored 11 to help the fourthseeded Wolfpack (26-8) earn their first Sweet 16 appearance since the late Kay Yow led an inspirational run in 2007.