Thursday, March 23, 2000
No. 2 NKU topples No. 1
Norse play in women's Division II semifinals tonight
BY RICKY HARVEY
Enquirer contributor
NKU's Jessica Jenson
(AP photos)
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PINE BLUFF, Ark. — In 34 tries, no team could do it. In one try, Northern Kentucky did it.
The second-ranked Norse overcame a sluggish first half with a spirited second half, rallying for a 60-50 upset victory over No.1-ranked and previously unbeaten Saint Rose (N.Y.) Wednesday night in the opening round of the NCAA Division II Women's Elite Eight at Pine Bluff Convention Center.
No.2-ranked Northern Kentucky (30-2), which outscored Saint Rose 40-25 in the second half, will play Western Washington at 9:30 p.m. today in one semifinal.
Michele Tuchfarber led NKU with 14 points. Michelle Cottrell and Bridget Flanagan had 13 points each.
Down 25-20 at halftime, the Norse took their first lead of the game at 45-44 on a jumper from Bridget Flanagan with 3:13 left. NKU wouldn't trail again.
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ELITE EIGHT
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At Pine Bluff, Ark.
Wednesday
Cols State, Ga. 76, Emporia St, Kan. 67
North Dakota State 71, Delta State, Miss. 64
W. Wash 84, Slippery Rock, Pa. 67
Northern Kentucky 60, St Rose, NY 50
Thursday
Cols State, Ga. vs. N Dakota St 7:30 p.m.
W.Washington vs. N.Kentucky 9:30 p.m.
Saturday
Championship, 4:30 p.m.
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Saint Rose (34-1) tied it with 2:57 left, but Northern Kentucky closed the game with a 3-pointer from Flanagan, eight points from Tuchfarber and a 3-point play from freshman Amy Mobley to seal the victory and move on to the Final Four.
“It was a great game, a great game,” Northern Kentucky coach Nancy Winstel said.
“We justed wanted to keep it close and have a chance at the end, and the girls really hung tough. All I know is we get to play (tonight), and that's all that matters.”
With Saint Rose trailing 52-47 with 1:24 left, Colleen Sheridan nailed a 3-pointer to pull the Golden Knights within two. But the Norse responded — thanks to Mobley, who drove the lane, made a layup and then hit a free throw with a minute left to give Northern Kentucky a 55-50 lead.
Heather Livingstone
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“I thought then that we had a chance,” Mobley said. “But I still knew we had to play tough defense the rest of the way.”
NKU shot 60 percent in the second half.
Sheridan and Ngalula Nana Lukengu scored 16 points apiece to lead Saint Rose.
“I thought we got good looks at the basket in the second half,” Saint Rose coach Curt Bailey said. “We just had shots that wouldn't fall. It's so hard for a team to dig in defensively like we had to do when the shots wouldn't fall.
“Give credit to Northern Kentucky. They played a great game and dug in deep.”
Despite shooting just 29 percent in the first half (8-of-28 from the field) and being outrebounded 22-14, Northern Kentucky trailed just 25-20 at intermission. A 3-pointer by Tuchfarber at the buzzer got NKU that close.
An inside basket from Julie Cowens to open the second half pulled the Norse within three at 25-22, but Saint Rose respond ed with seven consecutive points to lead 32-22 with 16:23 remaining.
A play that sent Flanagan to the line turned the tide for NKU.
Her free throw cut Saint Rose's lead to 35-29 with 15:20 left, but followed a hard foul that knocked Jessica Jenson out of the game. Jenson had collided with Lukengu, opening a small cut below her right eye.
She was taken to the locker room and later returned to the bench, but did not return to the game.
NKU continued to chip away, pulling within a point at 40-39 with 8:43 left.
NKU (60) — Livingstone 2-7 0-0 4, Tuchfarber 4-9 4-4 14, Cottrell 6-15 1-4 13, Cowens 2-6 0-0 4, Jenson 1-4 0-0 3, Mobley 3-4 2-3 9, Smith 0-1 0-0 0, Flanagan 5-6 1-3 13, Polosky 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 23-53 8-16 60.
SAINT ROSE (50) — Zeh 0-5 0-0 0, LaRocque 2-10 3-4 8, Sheridan 5-13 2-2 16, Lukengu 7-10 1-2 16, Mekendi 2-9 4-4 8, Griffith 0-2 0-0 0, Wright 1-2 0-0 2. Totals: 17-51 10-12 50.
3-point field goals: NKU 6-14 (Livingstone 0-2, Tuchfarber 2-4, Jenson 1-3, Mobley 1-1, Smith 0-1, Flanagan 2-3); Saint Rose 6-17 (Zeh 0-1, LaRocque 1-4, Sheridan 4-9, Lukengu 1-1, Griffith 0-2). Halftime score: Saint Rose 25, Northern Kentucky 20. Records: Northern Kentucky 30-2, Saint Rose 34-1.
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