Connecticut Upended by Iowa State

Iowa State had never reached the final 16 before Saturday. Now the Cyclones have advanced to the round of eight.

They strung together five three-point baskets in the final minutes to upset top-seeded Connecticut, 64-58, in the semifinals of the Mideast Regional at Cincinnati.

“The win was obviously huge,” Iowa State Coach Bill Fennelly said. “It’s great for the program. We’d never been on ESPN before.”

Connecticut (29-5), which was 6-0 in regional semifinals, became the first top-seeded team to be eliminated.

“You feel like you got kicked in the gut,” Coach Geno Auriemma said. “It hurts.”

Three-point specialist Stacy Frese hit twice from beyond the arc in the closing minutes and finished with 16 points, as Iowa State rallied for the upset. Iowa State (25-7) outscored Connecticut, 15-5, during a three-minute stretch.

“That’s our game. We’ve been shooting a lot of threes the whole year,” Frese said. “Coach never said stop shooting them. We were just trying to take the best available shots. We weren’t hitting them at the beginning of the game. It was a matter of percentages. It was a matter of time before we started hitting.”

The Cyclones started hitting after Connecticut had taken its biggest lead.

“The three-point shot has really changed the game,” said Auriemma, whose team made only one of 14 shots from long range in the first half. “If theirs don’t go in, we’re sitting up here smiling because we’ve won the game. It’s not how many go in, it’s when you hit them, and they hit theirs at the worst possible time for us.”

Megan Taylor had 13 points for Iowa State, including the basket that put the Cyclones ahead for good, and Angie Welle and Tracy Gahan had 10 apiece.

Connecticut, which led the nation in scoring average and field goal percentage, was bothered throughout by Iowa State’s aggressive defense and shot only 30% from the field.

Tamika Williams led Connecticut with 14 points, 12 in the first half. Stacy Hansmeyer added 11.

The closest the Huskies came in the closing minutes was 61-58 on a three-point basket by Marci Glenney with 40 seconds remaining. Iowa State closed out the scoring with one free throw each by Welle, Gahan and Frese.

Iowa State held Shea Ralph, the Huskies’ leading scorer with a 17.2 average, to five points.

Georgia 67, Clemson 54--Kelly Miller scored 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Bulldogs into the regional final.

The Bulldogs used a 10-0 run to take control midway through the second half. Tawana McDonald had 12 points for Georgia (26-6), and Elena Vishniakova and Pam Irwin-Osbolt had 10 apiece.

Natasha Anderson led Clemson (26-6) with 12 points, Erin Batth had 11 and Amy Geren had 10.

EAST

Duke 76, Old Dominion 63--The Blue Devils got defensive at Greensboro, N.C., and earned their second consecutive trip to the round of eight.

Nicole Erickson scored 16 of her 24 points in the second half, helping third-seeded Duke (27-6) set a single-season record for victories. The Blue Devils also got 15 points from Georgia Schweitzer, moving them within a victory of something the women’s program never has done--a trip to the Final Four.

Second-seeded Old Dominion (28-4) saw its 17-game winning streak halted in a barrage of miscues, many of them unforced.

Tennessee 68, Virginia Tech 52--The three-time defending national champion Volunteers forced the Hokies into 25 turnovers and a season-low point total at Greensboro, N.C.

The result extended Tennessee’s winning streak in the NCAA tournament to 21 games.

Chamique Holdsclaw led Tennessee (31-2) with 27 points, and Tamika Catchings added 15.

Michelle Houseright led the Hokies (28-3) with 13 points.

MIDWEST

Purdue 82, North Carolina 59--Ukari Figgs scored 15 of her 24 points in the first half and the Boilermakers dominated from the start in rolling into the regional final at Normal, Ill.

Purdue (31-1) had struggled offensively and shot only 36% in its first two tournament games, but the Boilermakers were a different team in round three.

They zipped to a 15-3 lead in the first 5 1/2 minutes and were never threatened in posting their 29th consecutive victory.

Purdue also was superb defensively, holding North Carolina (28-8) to 40% shooting and a season low for points. The Tar Heels were averaging 82.6 points a game. Their previous low had come in an 86-68 loss to UCLA on Nov. 28.

Rutgers 53, Texas Tech 42--The Scarlet Knights relied on their smothering defense and Tomora Young’s 15 points to advance to the regional final.

Rutgers (29-5) held Texas Tech (30-4) scoreless for the first 8:54, as the Red Raiders missed their first eight shots and never got into any offensive rhythm.

Rutgers scored the game’s first 11 points, built a 25-11 halftime lead and led by as many as 22 in the second half.

Cara Gibbs led Texas Tech with 12 points.

DIVISION II

Jenny Crouse’s 24 points led four players in double figures as North Dakota won the championship with an 80-63 victory over Arkansas Tech at Pine Bluff, Ark.

Kami Winger had 17 rebounds for North Dakota (31-1). Arkansas Tech (31-7) made only 40% of its shots.

DIVISION III

Tasha Rodgers scored 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds as Washington University of St. Louis won its second consecutive title with a 74-65 victory over the College of St. Benedict at Danbury, Conn.

Washington extended its winning streak to 38 and finished 30-0. The Blazers finished 28-2.