Last-second free throw lifts Oklahoma St. over Florida St. in women's NCAA
3/25/2008DES MOINES - Andrea Riley sank a free throw with 0.7 seconds left in overtime to give Oklahoma State a 73-72 victory over a gritty Florida State team last night in the second round of the New Orleans Regional.
The back-and-forth game appeared headed to a second overtime when Riley was trapped 18 feet from the basket with time about to run out. She went up for what would have been an awkward shot, and official Teresa Dahlem whistled a foul on Florida State's Shante Williams just as the buzzer sounded.
The officials then checked the TV monitor and put 0.7 seconds on the clock. Riley, who had missed two free throws on her previous trip to the line, bricked the first one but nailed the second, then intercepted Florida State's long inbounds pass, allowing the Cowgirls to escape.
So, two years after going 0-16 in the Big 12, Oklahoma State is in the round of 16. The third-seeded Cowgirls (27-7) will play No. 2 seed LSU in the regional semifinals Saturday.
Danielle Green led Oklahoma State with 23 points, and Riley scored 21, although she shot just 8-for-25.
Florida State (19-14), the 11th seed, surprised many by even getting into the tournament, but the Seminoles upset sixth-seeded Ohio State in the first round, then gave Oklahoma State all it could handle.
Mara Freshour led the Seminoles with 20 points, including four 3-pointers. Williams scored 16 of her 19 after halftime, and Jacinta Monroe added 14 points and 13 rebounds.
LSU 68, Marist 49
BATON ROUGE - Sylvia Fowles had 19 points and 13 rebounds, and Erica White had 15 points to help LSU end the Red Foxes' 22-game winning streak.
Fowles, playing her final game on campus, also became the leading rebounder in the history of the Southeastern Conference with 1,527.
White scored all of her points in the second half on an array of perimeter shots and determined drives to the hoop to help second-seeded LSU (29-5) break open a close game.
Julianne Viani led seventh-seeded Marist (32-3) with 21 points, hitting five 3-pointers. Rachele Fitz had 11 points and nine rebounds.
Marist fell to 0-9 all-time against the SEC, whose teams have ousted the Red Foxes from the tournament the last three seasons.
Spokane regional
STANFORD 88, UTEP 54
STANFORD, Calif. - Candice Wiggins scored a school-record tying 44 points in her final game at Maples Pavilion to lead second-seeded Stanford past UTEP.
It was the third-most points scored in women's tournament history and the most since Sheryl Swoopes had 47 in the 1993 championship game for Texas Tech. Lorri Bauman of Drake has the all-time record of 50, set in 1982 against Maryland.
Pittsburgh 67, Baylor 59
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - Shavonte Zellous scored 19 points and grabbed a key late rebound to lead the sixth-seeded Panthers.
Pitt (24-10) is in a regional semifinal for the first time in school history. Baylor (25-7) lost in the second round for the second year in a row, and the difference turned out to be Zellous and Marcedes Walker.
The Bears were led by their frontline duo of Danielle Wilson with 15 points and Rachel Allison with 14. Guard Angela Tisdale finished with 13.
VANDERBILT 64,
West VirGINIA 46
ALBUQUERQUE - Christina Wirth scored 21 points, and reserve Jessica Mooney added 11 points to help Vanderbilt beat West Virginia.
The fourth-seeded Commodores (25-8) advanced to the regional semifinals in Spokane, Wash., where they'll meet the winner of today's game between Nebraska and Maryland.
Olayinka Sanni led fifth-seeded West Virginia (25-8) with 14 points, while Meg Bulger scored 13 and LaQuita Owens had 10.
Greensboro Regional
George Washington 55,
California 53
STANFORD, Calif. - Sarah-Jo Lawrence rebounded a missed shot and beat the buzzer with a shot from the baseline to give sixth-seeded George Washington a comeback victory over No. 3 California.
The winning shot was set up when Natasha Vital traveled while trying to call timeout for Cal (27-7) with less than six seconds remaining. Lawrence hit the game-tying shot moments earlier.
Antelia Parrish scored 15 points to lead George Washington, and Lawrence added 13. Jessica Adair had 11, and Beck, the Atlantic 10 player of the year, was held to six on 2-for-14 shooting. Walker led Cal with 19 points and nine rebounds. Gray-Lawson added 14 points and a career-high nine boards.
RUTGERS 69, IOWA STATE 58
DES MOINES - Kia Vaughn scored 23 points to lead four players in double figures ,and Rutgers advanced to the regional semifinals for the fourth straight season.
The Scarlet Knights, who leaned on its stingy defense all season, shot over 50 percent for the second straight NCAA tournament game.
OKLAHOMA CITY REGIONAL
TEXAS A&M 63, HARTFORD 39
BATON ROUGE - Danielle Gant earned herself a trip to her hometown and has Texas A&M past the second round for only the second time in school history. Gant scored 21 points on 9 of 11 shooting to lead Texas A&M over Hartford.
Morenike Atunrase, playing in her home state of Louisiana, added 13 points to help the Aggies (28-7) win their 11th straight game.
Texas A&M, seeded second in the Oklahoma City Regional, will look to advance to the regional finals for the first time ever next weekend. The only other time A&M advanced to the round of 16 was in 1994.