TRENTON, N.J. – One team held serve while another gave a big surprise at the NCAA Women’s Regionals at Sovereign Bank Arena on Sunday. Number one and unblemished UConn dispatched Cal 77-53 in a game that was more competitive than the score hints. In the nightcap, sixth seed Arizona State upset second-seeded Texas A&M 84-69.
The keys to the UConn-Cal contest:
1. Poise – There have been upsets in the women’s tournament this year. With just over 6 minutes remaining in the half, UConn trailed 31-23 and Cal had the momentum. The Huskies never hit the panic button and continued to execute on both ends with poise.
2. Defense – From that juncture with six minutes to play in the half, Cal scored six field goals the remainder of the game. Up until that point they had 11. UConn just dug down deep, forced a few shot clock violations and a succession of rushed attempts with the clock expiring. “The way we played the second half, especially on defense,” said coach Gene Auriemma, “was classic UConn basketball.”
3. Tiffany Hayes – the UConn freshman buried a few treys early and finished with a game high 28 points to spark the Huskies with a game-high 28 points. “She was open and took the shots,” said teammate and star lead guard Renee Montgomery of Hayes. “She showed a lot of confidence to step up like that in a Sweet 16 game.”
UConn led 35-33 at the half and opened it up immediately as the final twenty minutes began. Maya Moore with a relatively quiet start added 22 points. Tina Charles was limited by foul trouble but had a solid five-point, eight-board effort in 23 minutes. Cal’s big gun Ashley Walker sparked the Bears to the early lead. A strong inside player, Walker led Cal with 21 points, but only five following intermission.
In the final contest both coaches were planning on a grind-it-out defensive battle. Instead they got an offensive display as Arizona State pulled a big upset over Texas A&M. Sun Devil mentor Charli Turner Thorne studied the stat sheet following the game and said, “Giving up 69 points and 48 percent from the floor and we win?” As noted, it was an offensive display on both ends. It wasn’t a case of poor defense by either team. “There were times kids hit shots with a hand in their face or made a nice step-back,” Turner Thorne said.
At the half Arizona State held a 42-37 lead, a figure some may have expected to be a final tally. Arizona State was shooting 67 percent while A&M wasn’t too shabby, checking in at 55 percent. In addition, neither team missed a free throw as Arizona State was 9 of 9 and the Aggies were perfect in four attempts.
The second half saw much of the same: torrid shooting and the Sun Devils just refusing to relinquish a lead. A&M hung tough but could never grab the lead as the Pac-10 reps maintained a consistent two-possession lead. In the stretch the Sun Devils gained some separation. A&M had to gamble on defense and was forced into a late-game fouling mode that inflated the final margin.
Arizona State senior guard Briann January paced all scorers with 22 points. Texas A&M had three players in double figures, led by junior forward Tanisha Smith with 19 points. Arizona State finished the game with a 62 percent mark, while A&M cooled off with a 41 percent field goal percentage the second half. The defense for Arizona State may have been a little late but it got there – in time to send them to the regional final against UConn on Tuesday.
“They have a Hall of Fame coach,” Turner Thorne said. “This is one of his best teams for a number of reasons. This is an incredible opportunity to play against them. They are unbeaten and they are the team to beat.”
