March 21, 2009

Tar Heels Down UCF, 85-80

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) - Heather Claytor scored a season-high 17 points, while Italee Lucas and Jessica Breland added 17 each as the third-seeded Tar Heels beat the No. 14 seed Knights 85-80 in the opening round.

North Carolina will play No. 6 seed Purdue or 11th-seeded Charlotte on Monday night in the Oklahoma City Regional's second round.

Hatchell had her team play South Dakota on March 15--a day before the NCAA bracket announcement--to try and keep them fresh during the two-week layoff between the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament and the NCAA.

"If we had not played that game, we might've lost today," Hatchell said. "I'm just being serious with you. A lot of times you're rusty playing this first game because you've had such a long layoff. I think that game made us realize a sense of urgency a little more and helped make us be a little more focused for how good this team was."

North Carolina (28-6) matched its biggest lead at 85-71 on Breland's layup with 33 seconds left. Then Hatchell pulled her, too. UCF (17-17) went to work, scoring the final nine points in a flurry featuring a steal and a couple turnovers by the Tar Heels.

Florida State Advances Past NC A&T, 83-71

DULUTH, Ga. (AP)--Florida State was supposed to be too big for North Carolina A&T.

Instead, it was the Seminoles' depth that finally made the difference.

Alysha Harvin scored 18 points to lead five players in double figures and Florida State pulled away to beat North Carolina A&T 83-71 Saturday in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Tanae Davis-Cain added 16 points for the third-seeded Seminoles (26-7), who will face Arizona State on Monday night. Arizona State beat Georgia 58-47.

North Carolina A&T (26-7) trailed only 51-48 about 7 minutes into the second half and finished with a 33-30 edge in rebounds. The Aggies, who appeared to tire in the second half, lacked the depth to keep up with Florida State.

Mara Freshour, who tied a school record by playing in the 130th game of her career, had 14 points for Florida State. Two 6-foot-4 players, Cierra Bravard and Jacinta Monroe, each had 11 points for the Seminoles.

Virginia Advances To NCAA Tournament Second Round

Monica Wright wasn't about to allow an upset.

Virginia's junior guard scored all of her 13 points in the second half -- including two key 3-pointers down the stretch -- to push the fifth-seeded Cavaliers past No. 12 Marist, 68-61, in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Saturday night.

Ariana Moorer led the Cavaliers (24-9) with 16 points. Lyndra Littles added 13 for Virginia, which will face California in a second-round game in the Trenton regional on Monday.