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UConn Women Rip Louisville In Big East Tournament Final

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The Associated Press

Published: March 11, 2009

Updated: 03/11/2009 12:22 am

HARTFORD, Conn. - Maybe Connecticut's women's team will find some competition in the NCAA Tournament. The Big East Tournament was a breeze for the top-ranked Huskies.

Maya Moore scored 28 points and UConn cruised to its 15th Big East Tournament championship with a 75-36 victory against No. 5 Louisville on Tuesday night.

When the sensational sophomore walked off the floor with eight minutes left, she had single-handedly outscored Louisville 28-27. Moore was selected the tournament's most outstanding performer, and the Huskies won their three tournament games by an average of 35 points.

The Huskies (33-0) have won four of the last five conference tournament titles and enter the NCAAs unbeaten for the fourth time in school history. UConn went on to win the national championship in 1995 and 2002. In 1996-97 they lost to Tennessee in the regional final.

All-Big East forward Angel McCoughtry was held to nine points to lead Louisville (29-4). She averaged 33 in the first two tournament games and 24 for the season.
Tina Charles added 21 points and 15 rebounds for UConn for her ninth double-double of the season.

NO. 17 S. DAKOTA ST. 79,

OAKLAND, MICH. 69

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Jennifer Warkenthien scored 23 points and No. 17 South Dakota State (31-2) earned an NCAA Tournament bid in its first season of Division I eligibility with a victory against Oakland (26-6) in the Summit League championship.
Cleveland State Men Upset No. 16 Butler

INDIANAPOLIS - Cedric Jackson scored 19 points and Cleveland State used a flurry of 3-pointers to beat No. 16 Butler 57-54, winning the Horizon League tourney championship and its first NCAA Tournament berth since 1986.

Six of Cleveland State's first seven field goals in the second half were 3-pointers, helping the Vikings (25-10) erase an 8-point lead by the Bulldogs (26-5).

FSU's Hamilton Tops Among ACC Coaches

Florida State's Leonard Hamilton became the first person to win Atlantic Coast Conference and Big East coach of the year awards for his career when the ACC named him its top coach for 2008-09. He received 55 of a possible 76 votes from voting members of the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association. Boston College's Al Skinner was second with 10 votes.

Hamilton, the Big East's coach of the year in 1995 and 1999 at Miami, led a Seminoles team that was picked in the preseason to finish 10th in the ACC. FSU (23-8, 10-6) is the No. 4 seed in this week's league tournament, is ranked No. 22 nationally and likely will get the school's first NCAA Tournament berth since 1998.

A roster that included talented upperclassmen, led by dynamic scorer Toney Douglas and forward Uche Echefu, successfully blended with newcomers such Solomon Alabi and forward Chris Singleton.

Douglas finished second to North Carolina's Ty Lawson in voting for ACC player of the year. Lawson earned 31 of 76 votes; Douglas got 27.

In the Southeastern Conference, first-year LSU coach Trent Johnson was named by his peers as the league's coach of the year after leading the 20th-ranked Tigers to the league's regular-season title. LSU scoring leader Marcus Thornton was named the SEC's top player.

Florida's Nick Calathes was a first-team All-SEC pick, along with South Carolina's Devan Downey, Tennessee's Tyler Smith, LSU's Tasmin Mitchell, Kentucky's Patrick Patterson and Mississippi State's Jarvis Varnado.

OUT OF HOSPITAL: Former UCLA coach John Wooden has been released from a Los Angeles hospital after a bout with pneumonia.

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