Valerie King led the team in scoring as a freshman. (Tony Jones photos) | ZOOM |

        Laurie Pirtle has watched the last two minutes of the University of Cincinnati's 61-60 loss to Ohio State in the first round of last season's National Invitation Tournament at least 20 times.

        The game haunts the UC coach. The Bearcats were ahead by eight points with 2:05 left. They missed a layup and four free throws in the final eight seconds.

        They led by one point on the final possession, forced the Buckeyes to put up an air ball, then watched Tomeka Brown grab the rebound and throw up a no-look shot over her head at the buzzer for the game-winner.

        “It's never going to go away,”junior K.B. Sharp said.

        Ohio State went on to win the NIT championship.

        “That game might be the biggest payoff in our lives,” Pirtle said. “I think that's made us work really, really hard, harder than we would've worked if we had won that game.

        “It left us very focused and directed and very hungry. All I have to do is say, "All right, you want to go the distance or you want to play the Ohio State game?' There's a feeling deep inside that's not hard to find.”

        Go the distance. That's the team's motto.

K.B. Sharp | ZOOM |

        That means finishing plays, winning on the road, winning big games.

        Mostly, it means getting to the NCAA Tournament.

        “We've got to get in the NCAA,” Pirtle said. “It isn't because there's pressure on us. It's with all this work, we want more than a second-place finish (in the Conference USA Tournament) and more than the NIT.

        “We were good enough last year. Now we've got to make sure there's no question, so when it comes to choosing (for the NCAA), they say, "Oh, Cincinnati's for sure.'”

        The Bearcats, 22-10 last season, have reason to believe they will be in the postseason for a fifth straight year.

        Every starter returns: guards Sharp and Valerie King, forwards Laura Wilder and Brittani Young, and center Tammy Douglass. So does the sixth player, Portia Flournoy, and 3-point shooter Merelenea Dozier.

Coach Laurie Pirtle | ZOOM |

        Pirtle also has the nation's 29th-ranked recruiting class, led by Parade All-American Debbie Merrill, the highest-ranked player to sign with a Conference USA school (25th by All-Star Girls Report), and point guard Leslie Knoch.

        Another newcomer who probably will contribute immediately is junior DeAnna Stevenson, who attended Withrow High School and Cincinnati State. The Bearcats also have Carolyn Alexander, a junior who sat out last season after transfering from Kentucky, and freshman Sara Piepho.

        “We have a good mix,” Pirtle said. “We're deep, talented and experienced.”

        The challenges:

        • King will attract more attention. She was just the third freshman to lead UC in scoring (16.3 ppg) and was the C-USA Tournament MVP. “She's going to have a bull's-eye on her back,” Pirtle said.

        • UC needs a consistent 3-point threat besides King.

        • Scoring inside will help take pressure off the perimeter players. Merrill can score. Stevenson can rebound. Douglass and Wilder have experience.

        The Bearcats hope it all adds up to one thing: the NCAA Tournament.

        “We're not accepting anything less,” Sharp said. “And we were saying we don't just want to get in the NCAAs, we want to do something.”

UC 29, Houston 28 UC women driven to NCAA berth Hollman held up by sore shoulder

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