NCAA Women's Basketball ACCtion: Sunday, March 23

March 23, 2008

2008 Postseason ACCtion Central
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NORFOLK, Va. (AP) - On Easter Sunday 14 years ago, Charlotte Smith's buzzer beater gave North Carolina its only women's national basketball championship.

The top-seeded Tar Heels started their pursuit of another one Sunday, beginning their game against 16th-seeded Bucknell with a 21-2 run and then sloppily coasting to an 85-50 victory in the first round of the New Orleans regional.

LaToya Pringle had 19 points and Erlana Larkins and Rashanda McCants had 15 each as the Tar Heels - a No. 1 seed for the fourth year in a row - won their 14th straight. They will play Georgia or Iowa in the second round Tuesday night.

"It's good to get the first win and gel together and get our chemistry right for our next game," McCants said. "We definitely have to work on our intensity level."

Seeking their third consecutive Final Four appearance, and with designs on finally getting past the semifinals, No. 2 North Carolina (31-2) had all the intensity it needed in the first 7 1/2 minutes to keep Bucknell from ever thinking upset.

Maryland Downs Coppin State in NCAA Tournament Opener, 80-66

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) -- Crystal Langhorne had 25 points and 12 rebounds, Marissa Coleman scored 17 and Laura Harper had 14 as Maryland pulled away to an 80-66 victory over Coppin State on Sunday in the first round of the Spokane Regional.

Coppin State made more field goals (27-24) than the Terrapins and had fewer turnovers (16-15). Maryland -- who will face No. 8 seed Nebraska on Tuesday in the second round -- held a 28-10 advantage at the foul line and a 42-26 rebounding edge.

Everything seemed to be going according to form in the opening minutes, when Coleman and Langhorne dominated the paint to stake the Terps (31-3) to a 15-6 lead. The Eagles had already burned a timeout in an effort to blunt the onslaught, even thought it appeared to many in the crowd to be a futile gesture.

Then everything went askew. It began with an innocent layup by Suber. Then Oakley made two free throws, and a jumper. And by the time those two got finished playing this little round of 2-on-5, they had combined for 14 straight points to put Coppin State ahead 20-15.

Duke Advances To Second Round With 78-57 Win Over Murray State

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) - The third-seeded Duke Blue Devils never trailed Sunday night and cruised past Murray State 78-57 to advance to the second round of the NCAA women's tournament.

Duke has been to the NCAA tournament 15 times, including 14 straight, without losing its opening game. The Blue Devils (24-9) can earn a berth in the round of 16 for the 11th consecutive season by defeating sixth-seeded Arizona State on Tuesday at 7 p.m. Arizona State defeated 11th-seeded Temple 61-54 on Sunday evening.

This is the second time the Duke women's team has been seeded third. The last time it happened, the Blue Devils went to the 1999 title game before falling to Purdue.

Wanisha Smith scored 16 points and Chante Black had 14 for Duke, which finished with a 48-29 rebounding advantage. After allowing Murray State to cut a 15-point deficit to 37-32, the Blue Devils used a 17-3 run to make it 54-34 with 12:21 to go.

Virginia Downs UCSB 86-52 to Advance in NCAAs

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) -There's nothing like a two-year absence from the NCAA tournament to inspire a team to bring its best when it returns. Right, Virginia?

Lyndra Littles scored 17 points and the Cavaliers (24-9) used a 16-0 run early in the second half to break open their first-round game against UC Santa Barbara on Sunday night, then kept pouring it on to win 86-52 in the Greensboro regional.

The victory sets the Cavaliers up for a showdown with Old Dominion for state bragging rights on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. in Norfolk. The Lady Monarchs beat Liberty in the early game, and as Virginia's victory became apparent, most of the Lady Monarchs fans filed out.

Aisha Mohammed added 15 points and Sharnee Zoll had 13 for Virginia.

The Cavaliers outscored UC Santa Barbara 31-12 from the line, and had a 47-31 rebounding edge.