TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Ball State Stuns Tennessee, 71-55

ADVERTISEMENT

The Associated Press

Published: March 23, 2009

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - Tennessee's title defense ended sooner than expected, wrapping up the worst season ever for Coach Pat Summitt's vaunted program.

Ball State stunned the two-time defending national champions 71-55 in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday night, snapping one of the more remarkable streaks in college basketball history.

The Lady Volunteers (22-11) had never lost on the opening weekend of the tournament, going 42-0 through the years.

Tennessee also became the first defending champ to lose in the first round of the women's tourney. Old Dominion won the title in 1985 and failed to make the tournament the following year.

The 12th-seeded Cardinals (26-8), who were making their NCAA debut, will play Iowa State in the second round on Tuesday in the Berkeley Region.

MICHIGAN ST. 60,

MIDDLE TENNESSEE 59

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State stymied the nation's leading scorer just in time.

Alysha Clark scored 34 points but none in the last 11-plus minutes and fouled out with 1 1/2 minutes left. That gave the ninth-seeded Spartans (21-10) the boost they needed for a win over No. 8 seed Middle Tennessee (28-6).

DUKE 83, AUSTIN PEAY 42

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Joanne P. McCallie was booed when she was introduced before her top-seeded Blue Devils played Austin Peay.

Fans of the school McCallie left behind didn't have much to jeer the rest of the afternoon, as Duke dominated in a win over the Lady Govs.

The NCAA sent Coach P to Michigan State, where she coached from 2000-07, and set up a possible second-round matchup with her former employer. Now, Duke (27-5) will play the ninth-seeded Spartans Tuesday night on their home court.

IOWA ST. 85, ETSU 53

Alison Lacey made six of Iowa State's record-tying 16 3-pointers and the fourth-seeded Cyclones (25-8) routed East Tennessee State.

Trenton Region

UCONN 104, VERMONT 65

STORRS, Conn. - Connecticut showed no rust from having the last 12 days off.
Tina Charles scored 32 points and Renee Montgomery added 19 - all in the first half - to help the top-seeded Huskies (34-0) rout No. 16 seed Vermont in an opening-round game in the Trenton Region.

It was the sixth time that UConn scored more than 100 points in the NCAA Tournament.

MINNESOTA 79,

NOTRE DAME 71

SOUTH BEND, Ind. - Notre Dame's homecourt advantage was no match for Minnesota's 3-point shooting and strong rebounding.

The 10th-seeded Gophers (20-11) started the game by making 11 of 13 shots and opened a 14-point first-half lead, then used timely 3-point shooting to hold off the seventh-seeded Irish (22-9).

TEXAS A&M 80,

EVANSVILLE 45

SOUTH BEND, Ind. - Texas A&M forced a season-high 30 turnovers, leading to 43 points, and Danielle Gant scored 21 to lead the Aggies (26-7) over the Purple Aces (15-19).

Raleigh Region

UTAH 60, VILLANOVA 30

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Kalee Whipple had 15 points and eight rebounds, all the while playing tough defense on Villanova star Laura Kurz, and the Utes (23-9) overwhelmed the poor-shooting Wildcats.

MARYLAND 82,

DARTMOUTH 53

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Maryland's opening game in the NCAA Tournament can best be summed up by the halftime score: Kristi Toliver 23, Dartmouth 23. Toliver finished with 27 points on 11-for-14 shooting, and the third-ranked Terrapins (29-4) extended their winning streak to 13.

LSU 69, WISCONSIN-G.B. 59

BATON ROUGE, La. - Allison Hightower scored a career-high 26 points to lead the sixth-seeded Tigers (19-10).

S. DAKOTA ST. 90, TCU 55

LUBBOCK, Texas - South Dakota State put itself in the NCAA Tournament win column - and the record book.

The Jackrabbits (32-2) made a record-tying 16 3-point shots in their tourney debut.

Okla. City Region

OKLAHOMA 76,

PRAIRIE VIEW 47

IOWA CITY, Iowa - Danielle Robinson scored 15 points, Ashley Paris added 14 and the top-seeded Sooners (29-4) overcame a sluggish start.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT