The Guru NCAAAW Conference Tourney Report:Ziegler Buzzer-Beater Carries Saint Joseph’s to 50-49 Upset of Top-Seed Richmond Into A-10 Title Game Against George Mason

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

In back-to-back days at the Atlantic 10 tournament at the Henrico Sports & Events Center in Glen Allen, Va., just outside of Richmond, the third time was the charm for fourth-seeded Saint Joseph’s with a 53-50 overtime win against Rhode Island Friday in the quarterfinals and a buzzer-beating semifinals eliminator Saturday afternoon from Laura Ziegler inside the paint against top-seeded and defending champion Richmond for a 50-49 victory.

Now all the Hawks (23-8) need is for the third time not to go against them from second-seeded George Mason (26-5) Sunday afternoon (4 p.m., ESPN2) and the long NCAA drought dating to an at-large invite in 2014 will be over.

End up on the  winning side of the scoreboard and a dry spell one year older as Atlantic 10 champions will also be put to rest. This will be the third championship game since  the 2013 title for the Hawks, how’s that for the “charm” karma.

George Mason, which has had a landmark season for its program located just outside Washington, D.C., in Fairfax, Va., made it to the title game beating Davidson 63-50 ruining what had been a pretty good run for the Wildcats (19-13).

As it is, Saint Joseph’s became the first bid-stealer to someone on the bubble because Richmond (27-6) had been called a lock by the several publications and media companies that publish bracket projections, most prominently ESPN.

Those very same groups have also had veteran Saint Joseph’s coach Cindy Griffin’s team just inside and outside the field of 68 on the bubble the last several months.

A big week in which all 25 ranked teams in the current Associated Press women’s poll were in action in the first wave of conference tournaments has made for a lot of excitement across the the country and now only 11 remain of which eight will go against each other Sunday afternoon in the Power Four championships.

Two more could do it Monday night for the championship of the Big East at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn., if both third-ranked Connecticut and  22nd ranked Creighton get past the semifinals on Sunday, one of which has fifth-seeded Villanova trying to relive some past histories being a disruptor to Geno Auriemma’s Huskies.

And  the remaining one, No. 25 South Dakota State (28-3) on Sunday will take on Oral Roberts (24-7) for the championship of the Summit League in the Midwest in which the Jackrabbits are the top seed and held in the same regard as Richmond.

A year ago Saint Joseph’s was very close to wrapping up an NCAA bid before losing to Fordham down the stretch and then after getting a double bye, lost in the same round as Friday’s game, both against Rhode Island, which also beat the Hawks a week ago up in Kingston.

Richmond, which has had a remarkable rise under coach Aaron Roussell, had beaten Saint Joseph’s four straight, including twice in the last month in competitive contests that became part of the Hawks’ four-game losing streak with the Rhode Island game and at Dayton.

That put the Philly locals on a path sooner rather than later dropping to a semifinal meeting rather than playing the Spiders for the championship.

This one was tightly fought but Saint Joseph’s was able to throw a defensive lasso on the Spiders every time they tried to break it open.

Then drama time came at its height after Mackenzie Smith notched the score only to have Broomall’s Maggie Doogan connect on a putback for the Richmond lead with 3.8 seconds left.

Doogan, a former Cardinal O’Hara star whose mother Chrissie Donahue starred at La Salle, was also voted the A-10’s most outstanding player this season.

Ziegler, likely was runner-up, but all that mattered at the moment was there was plenty of time to win it.

“We just bought into what coach (Griffin) says about focusing always on the next possession,” said Ziegler, flowing with emotion. “What just happened we can’t so anything about it, it’s always … the next play.

“Coach told me to get the ball and go make a play. So I caught that (inbound) ball and I knew I had to go in, try and get the foul, try and do something, and when it went in, I just stood there.

“So many emotions and I don’t think my adrenaline has ever been that high.”

Smith scored 13 points for the Hawks and Ziegler 10.

Rachel Ulstrom had 16 points for Richmond while Addie Budnik scored 10 and Doogan was held to five, though the last two with 3.8 seconds seemed to be a heart-breaking dagger.

“We’re  really a good team, we play really good together, and I believe that’s the key to our win today,” said Griffin, lauding the way her players kept having answers for everything Richmond did.

Though the Spiders appear to be in good shape, Roussell stated the case.

“I think we’re more than a viable candidate to be in there,” he said. “I think what we did in the offseason where our administration supported us to do as a mid-major team, I literally don’t know what else we could have done.”

The Hawks win snapped a 17-game win streak by the Spiders.

This will be the first time George Mason, a former CAA member, is in the title game and this is the most wins the Patriots have claimed in a season.

In the triumph, Zhariah Walton scored 16 points, Paula Suarez scored 13, and Nalani Kaysia scored 11 with nine boards.

Davidson’s Katie Davidson scored 16 in the team’s first appearance in the A-10 semifinals.

George Mason coach Vanessa Blair-Lewis sees an advantage to have played the Hawks twice, even though both games ended in losses for the Patriots.

“Now we kind of have an idea of tendencies,” she said. “And I’m glad that we faced them less than a week and a half ago because now you can remember it.”

Villanova Stops Marquette to Advance to the Big East Semifinals

A year after Marquette knocked Villanova out of the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament, setting the stage for a wild offseason of roster changes, the fifth-seeded Wildcats (18-13) issued a payback with a 73-66 victory over the fourth-seeded Golden Eagles (20-10) as a freshman Jasmine Bascoe from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, scored 22 points with 10 rebounds for a double-double while coach Denise Dillon’s squad also got into Maddie Madness.

That would be Maddie Burke with 18 points, including five from deep, ahead of the three made by Bascoe, while Maddie Webber scored 10.

Denae Carter just missed a double -double with eight points and seven boards.

That put Villanova though into facing as a semifinals opponent, top seed and No. 3 ranked  Connecticut (29-3), which crushed eighth-seed St. John’s 71-40 as Paige Bueckers scored 20 for the Huskies, freshman Sarah Strong scored 20 with 14 boards, and Azzi Fudd scored 11 against the Red Storm.

Second-seed and No. 23 ranked Creighton (25-5) escaped an upset bid from No.  10 Georgetown (12-19), which had a lead most of the second half before Kiani Lockett sank a pairs of foul shots with 4.3 seconds left to give the Bluejays a 72-70 victory.

Lauren Jensen scored 22 points, with six assists for the winners, while Morgan Maly scored 20 with seven rebounds.

Kelsey Ransom became the third Georgetown player to collect 2,000 points and finished with 20 for the game along with nine rebounds and 10 assists while Ariel Jenkins had 16 points and 11 rebounds.

Villanova will play UConn at 2:30 p.m. on FOX, while at 5 p.m. on the same network, Creighton will meet  third-seeded Seton Hall (22-8) which ousted 11th-seeded and upset -minded Xavier 48-40 as the Musketeers ended their season at 7-24.

Penn Swept by Princeton at The Palestra but Likely Headed to Ivy Madness

“I’m going to keep playing into they stop telling me to play,” smiled Stina Almqvist, a native of Sweden, who scored 18 points on Penn’s senior day at The Palestra to honor her and Lizzy Groetesch, in what still resulted in a 67-53 loss to Princeton, much better than the rout suffered previously to the Tigers (21-6, 12-2) at Jadwin Gym.

Almqvist’s remark was in answer to the calculations needed to come down in Sunday’s NCAA Net rating that breaks a tie with Brown on the third parameter, the first two were moot because they matched two ties with a split in the series against each other and had identical opponent records.

Penn (15-12, 6-8) also got 13 points from Mataya Gayle, while Princeton’s Fadima Tall had 20 points and 10 boards, while Skye Belker scored 16.

Princeton’s two losses were to Columbia (22-5, 13-1), whose home win Saturday against Brown gave the Lions their first outright regular season Ivy crown after tying with Princeton the last two seasons. They also have the top seed in next weekend’s four-team Ivy Madness at Brown in Providence, R.I., the Pizzitola Sports Center.

“We didn’t reach our first goal, so on to our next one,” said Princeton coach Carla Berube here. “Which is winning the tournament and automatic bid. And that starts with beating Harvard.”

The Crimson 21-4, 10-3, lost both games to Princeton, one on the road at the buzzer, and one one to Columbia and will get the third seed, playing the Tigers who swept them.

Penn will meet Columbia in Friday’s semifinals for the women before Saturday’s title game.

Elsewhere, locally, Temple has a double-bye into Monday’s quarterfinals at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas at  the American Athletic Conference tournament, taking a six-game win streak into the competition.

Drexel fell at Stony Brook while Delaware on its senior day beat Towson in the final day of the Coastal Athletic Association regular season at the Bob Carpenter Center in Newark.

The Dragons will be the fourth seed and have a double bye into Friday’s quarterfinals of the tournament in Washington at the home of the WNBA Washington Mystics, while Delaware will be the seventh seed with one  bye and playing Thursday.

Rider, which had already missed the cut, lost at Niagara on the last day of the regular season in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, whose tourney returns Tuesday to Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.

Fairfield finished first but its long string of MAAC wins unbeaten last season through Thursday ended Saturday at the hands of nearby Quinnipiac, which finished second on the season play of Israeli freshman Gal Raviv.

Clash of Titans

As mentioned earlier, the ranked teams who rule the Power 4 all meet Sunday after wild semifinal games as they chase league crowns and top seeds when the NCAA draw comes out next Sunday night at 8 p.m. on ESPN.

In the ACC, top-seed and seventh-ranked NC State (26-5) in Greensboro, N.C., beat fifth-seed and 14th-ranked North Carolina  66-55 leaving the Tar Heels at 27-7.

No. 3 Duke (25-7) ranked 11th, upset second-seeded Notre Dame (26-5) knocking the Irish into the second row on the NCAA pecking order with a 61-56 victory.

In the SEC, top seed and fifth-ranked South Carolina (29-3) in the semifinals beat fifth-seeded Oklahoma (25-7), ranked 10th.

In the title game in Greenville, S.C., the Gamecocks will meet second-seed Texas (31-2), decided by a coin flip after a first-place tie. The Longhorns, ranked No. 1 in the country, beat No. 3 LSU 56-49 as the Tigers finish 28-4.

It will be the third time in their Big Ten meetings after two in Los Angeles  as No. 2 Southern Cal (28-2), also ranked second, beat No. 5 Michigan 82-70 and advanced against No. 2 UCLA (29-2), also ranked fourth, which beat No. 3 Ohio State (25-6) 76-46 in Indianapolis at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

In the Big 12 in Kansas City top seed and No. 8 ranked TCU (30-3) beat fourth-seed and No. 16 West Virginia (24-7) outscoring the Mountaineers 71-65  while No. 2 and  17th ranked Baylor (27-6) beat fourth-seed and ranked 21st Oklahoma State 84-74 dropping the Cowgirls to 25-6.

And that’s the roundup.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Guru NCAAW Conference Tourney Report: Drexel Routed at Delaware; La Salle Ousted in A-10s; Rider Misses MAAC Cut; Tennessee and Alabama SEC Upset Victims; Olsen Leads Iowa to Big Ten Quarterfinals

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

NEWARK, Del. — The NCAA  tournament is upon us even though the actual Big Dance is still one First Four kickoff and two weekends away.

But with all but three Associated Press ranked teams jammed into the Power Four conferences whose tourney’s got under way several days ago something’s got to give, and Friday’s the day it starts, though it already started giving on a Thursday night not very good for the locals as well as several ranked teams.

Down here at the Bob  Carpenter Center, the 99th meeting as rivals in several conferences through history between Drexel and  departing Delaware in the Coastal Athletic Association became  the exception rather than the rule in which the host Blue Hens (12-15, 9-8) gave the Dragons an Eagles Super Bowl style wipeout.

How bad was it?

  The 82–59 final score was the widest margin of victory by the Hens in the series since 2007 resulting in a split after Drexel (16-11, 12-5 CAA), the reigning conference  tournament champions as a seventh seed from last  season, won the earlier meeting  in early January 65-59 at the Daskalakis Athletic Center in Philadelphia.

By saying this was the exception, that was the fifth straight for the Dragons and after a 12-point win in the first of the string, the other differentials were four, two, two, and six points.

“It’s the first  time I ever beat them as a  head coach,” Delaware’s  Sarah Jenkins completing her third season here smiled.

The home team has been on a late season 8-of-9 renaissance after being so injured that  two games had to be cancelled  and when Villanova came down here Delaware had just six players available.

“We still haven’t gotten everybody back,” Jenkins said when asked to recall what started to get things back on track.

For Drexel, coupled with the late drought in Sunday’s home  loss to Campbell, the performance comes a little short time from operating as the second seed and chasing front-running North Carolina A&T with the regular season ending Saturday when  coach Amy Mallon’s group goes to Long  Island to face Stony Brook.

It  could be worse but a win Saturday claims the third seed for next week’s  tourney down in Washington, D.C., which isn’t much off from being the second seed, now claimed by Charleston,  which the Dragons beat in their lone  meeting.

Though Delaware is heading  to Conference  USA  this summer both coaches have expressed a desire to continue the series as non-league opponents, not much different than the games played this season against each other by former members of the decimated  PAC-12.

In this one the  Hens had a season-best 21 assists and made 10 shots from deep.

Ella Wanzer scored 19 points shooting 70 percent from  the field incorporating 4 of 6 makes from deep. Ande’a Cherisier was 8-for-12 from the field for 18 points and six boards, while Tara  Cousins  collected 15 points on 7–of-8 shooting with six assists, and Rebecca Demeke scored 11, shooting 50 percent from beyond the arc.

Delaware  finishes with a senior  day celebration on  Saturday at 3 p.m. on Flo Sports currently in sixth place one  game ahead of a four-team gridlock.

Drexel is in third and at worst would be fourth, still good enough for a double-bye.

Against the Hens, Amaris Baker was 6-for-15 for 16 points  with a pair of makes from deep.

The tip time Saturday against the Seawolves is noon on FloSports.

Rider Misses the MAAC Tourney Cut While Fairfield Stays Perfect Over Two Seasons

Meanwhile, over in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, Rider’s bid to make make the field for next week’s  tournament, held again at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, came to a crushing 77-61  collapse at Canisius in Buffalo, N.Y.,  the host team also needing the win to make  the cut.

The MAAC,  like the Big Ten  and ACC,  off expansion, have lopped the bottom teams in the final regular season standings from  participating.

In the Big  Ten, Penn State was eliminated, and Rutgers made it by one game, having swept the Lady Lions in their two meetings, one in State College by way of rallying from  a deep  deficit. However, the 15th-seeded Scarlet Knights were quickly ousted by 10th seeded Nebraska in Indianapolis on Wednesday in a tourney opener.

Rider is currently is 7-21 overall and 5-14 in the MAAC, while the Golden Griffins are 9-20 overall and 8-11.

La Salle transfer Gabby Turcol had a game-high 18 points for the Broncs, who also got 15 points from Winner  Bartholomew,  and Camryn Collins scored 10.

Elsewhere at  the top  of the league, Fairfield,  which ran the table last season, has kept the string going, unbeaten in the MAAC and clinching the top seed with one  game left after a 62-49 victory over visiting  Siena at the Leo D. Mahoney Arena in Connecticut.

The Stags (25-3, 19-0) have  won 42 straight over the last two seasons, fourth—longest in the nation and second longest in MAAC history.

Meghan Andersen scored 16 points, Kaety L’Amoreaux scored 14, and Emina Selimovic scored scored 10.

In what could be a preview of the championship, Fairfield finishes Saturday at 4 p.m. with a trip to nearby second-seeded Quinnipiac, which has been on the heels  of the  Stags all season. The game will air on ESPN+.

The Bobcats avoided getting swept by Mount St.  Mary’s winning on the road Thursday 64-60 at Emmitsburg, Md., as Jackie Grisdale scored 14 points and freshman sensation Gal Raviv had 13 points and 11 boards. Anna Foley had 13 points, six assists, five rebounds, three blocks and  three steals, while Paige Girardi scored 11 and Grace LaBarge scored ten.

La Salle Felled By Dayton in A-10  While Saint Joseph Starts Play Friday

The 14th-seeded Explorers were unable to sustain Wednesday’s buzzer-beating finish, falling in the second round of the Atlantic 10 tourney 60-45 to sixth-seeded Dayton (18-12) at the Henrico Sports and Events Center in Glen Allen, Va., a suburb of Richmond.

The Flyers, coached by former Connecticut star Tamika Williams-Jeter, move on to Friday’s quarterfinals playing third-seeded Davidson at 7:30 p.m.

The Wildcats, suffering a slew of injuries, opted  out of the tournament last season.

“We’re playing another team, full of seniors, who want to win, who are going to claw, who are aggressive, and we got to make the game ugly.”

Ivy Wolf scored 14 points for the Flyers, Rikki Harris scored 11, Molly O’Riordan and Arianna Smith each scored 10.

“Credit to Dayton on finding a way to get that ball in the paint against our zone and be efficient,” said La Salle coach Mountain MacGillivray.  “They deserved it. They went to their strengths and capitalized on it.”

Mackenzie Daleba was 7-for-14, scoring 14 for La Salle (10-23), while Aryss Macktoon scored 12.

All four of Friday’s games are airing on Peacock.

Fifth-seed Rhode Island (17-15)  beat 12th-seed George Washington 52-41, putting the Rams in position to bedevil Saint Joseph’s again in Friday’s second quarterfinal game at 1:30 p.m. a year after  ousting the Hawks (21-8) in the same round, ruining a chance to end a long-running drought missing trips to the NCAA tournament.

Last month Rhode Island at home upset Saint Joseph’s in the teams’ only meeting.

Defending champion Richmond (26-5), the top seed, opens Friday’s round at 11 a.m. hosting ninth-seed Duquesne (19-11), which advanced with an upset by seed number beating No.  8 Fordham 79-63 as the Dukes were on target as Jerni Kiaku scored 21,  Megan McConnell scored 17, and Andjela Matic scored  15,

“When the ball goes into the basket, you tend to have that confidence and that rhythm that the next one is going to go down,” said Duquesne coach Dan Burt. “And not just you as an individual but as a team.”

Rhode Island, coached by Dawn Staley’s backcourt mate at Virginia in Tammi Reiss, who said after beating GWU (11-18),  “We win games when we defend and rebound. And the difference is today they did that. They stayed lock in no matter how they were shooting.

“No matter what happened, they stayed lock in to `if I keep crashing  the glass and they keep fouling usL’’’ eventually I’ll get to  the free throw line and now I can see the ball go through the hoop.”

Harsimran Kaur had 12 points and 11 boards for Rhode Island and Ines Debroise scored 11.

No. 10 Saint Louis (15-18) upset No. 7 Massachusetts 67-57 as  Brooklyn Gray shot 12-17 and scored 30 points, marking the losing Minutewomen (16-14) in their last appearance since their bound for the Mid-American Conference this summer.

The Billikens will meet No. 2 George Mason at 5 p.m.

The semifinals Saturday will air on CBS Sports and Sunday’s championship  for the NCAA automatic bid will air at 4 p.m. on ESPN2.

The National Scene

The day’s big stunner occurred in the SEC tourney in Greenville, S.C. Where eighth-seeded Vanderbilt took out No.  9 and 18th-ranked Tennessee 84-76, the third loss for the Lady Vols (22-9) in the last four games.

The SEC is a grind  and I don’t  think we handled the load well,” said first-year coach Kim Caldwell. “Now we get a lot of rest and then we’ll go right back at it.”

It’s the first time the Commodores (22-9) have beaten their in-state  rival twice in the same  season.

Vanderbilt, which got 24 points from freshman sensation Mikayla Blakes and 23 from Iyana Moore, will meet top-seed and fifth ranked South Carolina in a quarterfinal on Friday.

“Take care of the ball,” said Commodores coach Shea Ralph, another former Connecticut standout,  on the key to the win and dealing with the pressure instituted by first-year coach Kim Caldwell.

The upset likely cost Tennessee a chance to be one of 16 hosts for the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament.

In another upset of a ranked team in the SEC, 11th-seed Florida (16-16) eliminated sixth-seed and 19th-ranked Alabama 63-61 as freshman Liv McGill had 11 of her 29 points in the fourth quarter against the Crimson Tide (23-8).

The Gators advance to play third-seeded LSU.

No. 10 ranked Oklahoma handled Georgia 70-52 and will meet 12th-seeded Kentucky (22-6) at 2:30 p.m.

Seventh seed Ole Miss beat 10th-seed and in-state rival Mississippi State 85-73 as Kennedy Todd-Williams and Madison Scott each scored 20 points, sending the Rebels against second seed and No. 1 ranked Texas Friday.

The Longhorns and Gamecocks tied for first and Dawn Staley’s defending NCAA champions won the coin flip to determine top seed.

Olsen Leads Iowa to Upset of No. 24 Michigan  State and the Big Ten Quarterfinals

Villanova transfer Lucy Olsen carried the Hawkeyes to another key win in the Big Ten tourney at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, beating the sixth-seed Spartans 74-61 as she scored 21 points to knock Michigan State (21-9) out of the tournament.

The Hawkeyes (22-9), whose former star Caitlin Clark was in the building of the WNBA Indiana Fever she plays with in the summer, move on to play third—seed and eighth-ranked Ohio  State.

This is the day the new make their conference tourney debut in top-seed and No. 2 ranked Southern Cal with national player of the year contender JuJu Watkins, who will meet  ninth-seeded Indiana, which moved on beating eighth-seeded Oregon, another former Pac-12 member, 78-62, as Yarden Garzon scored 18 points and Penn State transfer Shay Ciezki scored 17.

Fourth-seed Maryland (23-6), ranked 15th, is hoping to pick up some wins to gain a hosting nod for the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament. The Terrapins will fifth—seeded Michigan (21-9), which advanced beating Washington 66-58, another of the former Pac-12  quartet.

The fourth one, second-seeded and fourth-ranked UCLA (27-2), which features Lauren  Betts whose only two losses were to Southern Cal,  meets 10th-seeded Nebraska, which advanced beating Illinois 74-70 after ousting Rutgers in the first round.

TCU Seeks First Big 12 Crown

Having their best year in history, the top-seed and eighth-ranked Horned Frogs (28-3) playing Colorado (20-11) in a quarterfinal in Kansas City after the Lady Buffs advanced beating former Pac-12 rival Arizona 61-58 as Tabitha Betson scored 16 points.

Second-seeded Baylor (25-6), with Oklahoma and Texas gone to the SEC,  hopes to return to old times when the Bears start play in the quarterfinals playing Iowa State, which advanced beating Arizona State 96-88 as Addy Brown scored 41 points, third most in tournament history.

Texas Tech upset Utah 75-64 as Bailey Maupin scored 22 for the Red Raiders, while Gianna Kneepkens scored 23 for the Utes.

With 20th-ranked Kansas State taking out UCF 80-65 as Serena Sundell scored 21, the Wildcats in the quarterfinals meet another ranked team in West Virginia (23-6), ranked 16th.

The other quarterfinal has No. 21-ranked Oklahoma State hosting Texas Tech.

Tobacco Road Trio Featured in ACC  Quarterfinals

Having survived the second round, fifth-seed and 14th-ranked North Carolina (26-6) collides with fourth-seed and  22nd ranked Florida State (23-7) featuring Ta’Niya Latson, the nation’s leading scorer, in one of the ACC quarterfinals in Greensboro, N.C., on Friday.

Second-seeded and sixth-ranked Notre  Dame (25-4), featuring sophomore Hannah Hidalgo from Merchantville, N.J., will play seventh-seeded California (25-7), which advanced beating Virginia 75-58 as Ugonne Oniyah, Marta Suarez, and Lulu Tvidale each scored 16 points for the Golden  Bears.

Third seed  and No. 11 Duke (23-7) meets Louisville, which edged Clemson 70-68.

Top-seed N.C. State ranked seventh, will meet Georgia Tech in the other quarterfinal.

And that’s the report.