|
 The Gamecocks advance to an April 5 national semifinal game in
Tampa, Fla., against another No. 1 seed, Notre Dame.
Guard Tiffany Mitchell, the Southeastern Conference player of the
year, scored seven of her 21 points in the final two minutes for the
top-seeded Gamecocks (34-2), who trailed by as many as 10 points
late in the first half.
Guard Asia Dozier hit four free throws in the final 20 seconds to
preserve the victory for South Carolina.
Center Alaina Coates finished with 14 points, and guard A'ja Wilson
added 10 for the Gamecocks.
Guard Leticia Romero led second-seeded Florida State (32-5) with 13
points and guard Brittany Brown added 12.
Florida State shot 61.2 percent from the field, but played from
behind for much of the game.
The Seminoles led 31-21 with less than five minutes left in the
first half, and still held a seven-point advantage with 15:49 left
in the game.
South Carolina took its first lead with 10:10 left in the second
half. The game featured five ties and seven lead changes from that
point on.
The Gamecocks took the lead for good when Mitchell scored on a drive
that gave them a 69-67 lead with 2:01 left.
Brown then missed a shot for Florida State before Mitchell hit a
3-point shot from the corner to put the Gamecocks ahead by five with
1:15 remaining.
Mitchell later restored the five-point lead with two free throws
with 27.9 seconds left.
The Seminoles' Adut Bulgak made a 3-point shot to reduce the margin
to two points with 21 seconds left, but Dozier hit two free throws
with 18 seconds left and two more with seven seconds remaining to
clinch the win.
Notre Dame 77, Baylor 64
Jewell Loyd's layup with 11:41 to play gave Notre Dame the lead for
good, and the top-seeded Irish defeated second-seeded Baylor in
Oklahoma City to advance to the Final Four of the NCAA women's
basketball tournament.
[to top of second column] |
Notre Dame (35-2) will face South Carolina, another No. 1 seed, on
April 5 in Tampa, Fla.
Five consecutive points by forward Nina Davis put the Bears on top
54-53. After Loyd's layup, Notre Dame guard Lindsay Allen and Davis
exchanged baskets. Irish guard Madison Cable sank a 3-pointer, and
Loyd followed with two free throws to give Notre Dame a 62-56
advantage.
Baylor (33-4) pulled within four points several times in the last 10
minutes but never got closer.
Allen shot 10-for-16 and scored 23 points. She added seven assists,
five rebounds and four steals. Notre Dame guard Michaela Mabrey
scored 14 points, Loyd had 13, and forward Brianna Tucker added 12
points and 10 boards.
Davis hit 11 of 19 shots from the floor and finished with 26 points
and 13 rebounds, both game-high totals. Bears center Sune Agbuke
contributed 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Notre Dame outshot Baylor 47.6 percent to 42 percent from the floor,
and the Irish had a 43-38 advantage on the boards. The Irish hit 12
of 24 foul shots, while the Bears made seven of nine.
-----------------------------------------------
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
