Jan. 20, 2008

No. 10 Duke Gets Past N.C. State, 71-57

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) - Duke pestered North Carolina State's best player into her worst game this season. That made up for the Blue Devils' disturbing knack of giving the ball to the Wolfpack as often as they took it away.

No. 10 Duke claimed a defense-dominated 71-57 victory against North Carolina State on Sunday behind Chante Black's 17 points and 11 rebounds and an impressive defensive performance against Khadijah Whittington, the Atlantic Coast Conference's leading scorer.

Joy Cheek -- who spent most of the game guarding Whittington -- scored 12 of her 14 points in the second half and started the game-deciding spurt for the Blue Devils (14-4, 3-1 ACC). They bounced back from a 15-point loss at No. 4 Maryland by grinding out a win over the N.C. State team that a year ago spoiled their perfect season.

Wanisha Smith added 13 points for the Blue Devils, who won this one with defense, forcing N.C. State into 24 turnovers. That helped Duke overcome 24 giveaways of its own.

The Blue Devils outrebounded N.C. State 46-34 and held Whittington to just seven points -- more than 11 below her average -- on 3-of-13 shooting. She was 0-for-5 in the first half.

Nikitta Gartrell scored 13 points, Shayla Fields added 12 and Sharnise Beal had 10 for N.C. State (12-7, 0-4). The Wolfpack lost their fourth straight league game, but first that was close to being lopsided; they entered having lost three ACC games by a combined 14 points.

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Tremendous First-Half Defense Leads Florida State To 63-39 Win At Clemson

CLEMSON, S.C. - With only eight players the previous nine games, the Florida State women's basketball team turned to the defensive end to the floor for its success. The return of two key players didn't stifle the Seminoles' defensive effort as they held Clemson to just nine points in the first half on their way to a 63-39 win over the Tigers on Sunday (January 20) at Littlejohn Coliseum.

Florida State got its first conference road victory of the year as it improved to 3-1 in the ACC, 13-6 overall. Clemson had its two-game ACC win streak halted to fall to 2-3 in the ACC, 9-11 overall.

Leading the Seminoles in her first game back was guard Tanae Davis-Cain (Dawson, Ga.) with a game-high 14 points. Forward Jacinta Monroe (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) turned in her second double-double of the year with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Guard Mara Freshour (Nashville, Ind.) was the third Seminole in double figures at 11 as well.

Five different players grabbed five or more rebounds, led by forward Cayla Moore (Albany, Ga.) with a game-high 11, as Florida State out-rebounded Clemson 52-to-37. Shooting was the key to the game as the Seminoles held the Tigers to 21.4 percent (15-of-70), which kept the hosts out of their full-court press defense. Florida State shot 52.2 percent in the second half for an overall rate of 42.6 percent (23-of-54).

Guards Shante Williams (Jacksonville, Fla.) and Courtney Ward (Montgomery, Ala.) dished out four assists each. Monroe had a trio of blocks and Moore had a pair. Despite turning the ball over six more times (22-16), FSU had a 16-10 advantage in points off turnovers. Florida State got 28 of its points in the paint.

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No. 4 Maryland Wins Thriller in Double Overtime Over Georgia Tech, 99-95

• Webcast on ACC Select

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) - Brenda Frese was fidgeting as the game moved into the first overtime. Her discomfort could only partially be attributed to the plight of No. 4 Maryland, which was locked in a seesaw duel with Georgia Tech.

Seven months pregnant with twins, Frese proved to be a source of amusement to her players during the Terrapins' dramatic 99-95 victory in Sunday.

Crystal Langhorne had 31 points and 15 rebounds, and Marissa Coleman scored Maryland's first five points in the second overtime to carry the Terrapins (22-1, 6-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) past the stubborn Yellow Jackets.

Laura Harper scored 24 and grabbed a career-high 20 rebounds for Maryland, which overcame 25 turnovers to earn its 12th straight win in a game that featured 23 lead changes and 18 ties.

Alex Montgomery scored 26 and Janie Mitchell and Iasia Hemingway had 20 apiece for the Yellow Jackets (16-3, 3-2).

Maryland finished with 36-for-44 at the foul line, and Georgia Tech made only half its 12 foul shots.

Coleman started the second overtime with a basket, but Jacqua Williams answered with a 3-pointer for Georgia Tech to make it 95-94. After Coleman sank three free throws, Mitchell misfired before Langhorne clinched it by making two free throws with 4.1 seconds to go.

The Yellow Jackets had the last shot in regulation and in the first overtime, yet failed to connect on both occasions.

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Boston College Women's Basketball Sinks Wake Forest, 66-58

• Webcast on ACC Select

CHESTNUT HILL, MA - Four Boston College players reached double figures as the Eagles earned a 66-58 victory over ACC foe Wake Forest on Sunday afternoon at Conte Forum. The Eagles improved to 15-5 overall and are 3-2 in the ACC, while Wake Forest is now 0-6 in the conference and 12-8 overall.

Boston College was led by Carolyn Swords with 15 points and five rebounds, while Mickel Picco added 14 points. Freshman Stefanie Murphy added 12 points and four assists, while freshman point guard Jaclyn Thoman finished with 10 points, six rebounds and five assists. Sophomore Ayla Brown had eight points and a season-high 11 rebounds in the win.

Wake Forest was led by Camille Collier with 21 points, while Mekia Valentine notched a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Boston College pulled away at the start of the second half when Picco scored all 14 of her points in a six minute span. Picco, who was 0-for-2 from the arc in the first half, went 4-for-4 from the 3-point line and hit a floater on the baseline. In the offensive spurt, BC went head, 48-29.

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Hokies outlast Dartmouth 80-73 in OT

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BLACKSBURG, Va. - Virginia Tech and Dartmouth met for the first time ever on the basketball court Sunday afternoon, and they ended up needing extra time to settle the score.

The Hokies halted a five-game skid by prevailing in overtime against the Big Green 80-73 at Cassell Coliseum in Tech's final non-conference game of the season, and improved to 13-7 overall with a 13-2 non-league mark. Dartmouth dropped to 4-11.

Tech was down 30-28 at the break and would trail nearly the entire second half, but finally evened the score at 56 on an Eleanor Brentnall layup at 2:55. Dartmouth's Kristen Craft answered at 2:18 with a jumper to put the Big Green up by two, setting up a wild finish to what had been an evenly-matched game throughout.