Stunned in Semis
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central Oklahoma (22-9) | 25 | 43 | 68 |
| Northeastern St. (25-5) | 27 | 33 | 60 |
| Tahlequah, Oklahoma | |||
| Central Oklahoma | Northeastern St. |
|---|---|
| Pts: BECKLEY, Ashley - 22 | Pts: Jasmine Webb - 20 |
| Reb: BECKLEY, Ashley - 12 | Reb: 2 Players (#12, #14 - 8) |
| Ast: MORGAN, Britney - 5 | Ast: 2 Players (#21, #34 - 4) |
| Team Statistics | Central Oklahoma | Northeastern St. |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goal % | 37.9% (22-58 ) | 34.9% (22-63 ) |
| Rebounds | 46 | 39 |
| Assists | 19 | 18 |
| Turnovers | 12 | 9 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 11 | 10 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 10 | 7 |
| Pts in the Paint | 26 | 24 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 0 | 2 |
| Bench Pts | 5 | 4 |
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. (Mar. 12) --- Central Oklahoma, the No. 5 seed in the South Central Regional, outscored Northeastern State 16-4 over the final 3:45 and advanced to Monday's regional title game with a stunning 68-60 win at Dobbins Field House Saturday night.
The Bronchos, 22-9, overcame a 47-37 deficit with 9:43 left to hand the 11th-ranked RiverHawks their only home loss of the year. NSU, which ends its season at 25-5, had won 21 consecutive home games before Saturday's loss in the regional semifinals.
"They (UCO) made some plays and they present some size mismatches that are difficult to defend," said head coach Randy Gipson. "I think it wore us down a little bit and we got in foul trouble. A big thing was that they did a great job hitting free throws (18-of-23)."
UCO was 18-for-23 at the charity stripe and 10-of-10 over the last 3:45 to earn the victory. Its lone senior, Ashley Beckley, scored eight of her game-high 22 points during the stretch and she finished with 12 rebounds to earn a double-double. Teammate Alex Richardson also turned in a double-double with 19 points and 10 caroms.
The RiverHawks shot just 34.9 percent from the floor (22-of-63) and were 8-of-30 from behind the arc. NSU's poor shooting effort, and Central Oklahoma's ability to control the tempo, were certainly factors, according to Bronchos' head coach Guy Hardaker.
"I felt like we controlled the tempo tonight," said Hardaker, whose team advances to play Northwestern Missouri State at 7:00 p.m. Monday in the regional championship tilt. "Normally, I think that is what Randy (Gipson) has done to us every time. NSU shoots it so well. They didn't shoot it as well tonight. Usually they get that lead and you get to chasing them on defense and the stuff he runs on offense is so good. Typically, he controls the tempo and you feel like you're playing hurry-up and forcing a lot of offense."
The Bronchos didn't shoot particularly well either, hitting only 37.9 percenet (22-of-58) for the game.
Northeastern State led 27-25 at halftime despite Jasmine Webb, the team's only senior who took team-high scoring honors with 20 points, mired in a 1-for-8 shooting effort with five points. Webb ended her 4-year NSU career as the school's 3rd all-time leading scorer with 1,265 points. She had 394 this season and said she is proud of what she and her teammates have accomplished.
"I don't think the disappointment is any different," said Webb when asked to reflect on making it to the Sweet 16 a year ago and bowing out a game short in 2011. "We've had some people hurt and this team fought hard each game, in practice and we were focused. Really, I think I'm even more proud of this team than last year's."
Leading by one, 38-37 at the 11:21 mark, the RiverHawks reeled off a flurry with Webb scoring six straight points and Jasmine Wright adding a trey to put the team ahead 47-37 just 1:38 later. However, the RiverHawks made only three baskets over the next 9:27.
Tosha Tyler and Wright had 12 points apiece while leading scorer Taylor Lewis was limited to just five on a 2-for-11 shooting night.
In the other regional semifinal --- Northwest Missouri State 77, Tarleton State 61
Second-seed Northwest Missouri State got 26 points and 15 rebounds from Kyla Roehrig, while Gabby Curtis and and Gentry Diets added 22 and 17 points, respective, in a 77-61 semifinal win over Tarleton State in the semifinals of the NCAA Division II Women's South Central Regional.
The Bearcats (27-4) advance to play No. 5 seed Central Oklahoma, which stunned top-seed Northeastern State 68-60 in the other semifinal game. NWMSU and UCO will meet at 7:00 p.m. with the winner earning the regional championship and berth into the Elite 8.
Roehrig had a double-double before the first half ended with 14 points and 11 rebounds. At 6-5, her inside presence was too much for the TexAnns, whose season ended at 25-5.
"Northwest Missouri State is big," said TSU head coach Ronnie Hearn. "Big and big and bigger. You try to play behind Roehring. You try to play in front of her. We tried to work on a double-team against Dietz during shoot-around, but I don't know how much good it would have done to double-team Roehring. Those two (Roehring and Dietz) are a handful, but I'm proud of everyone who worked to guard them."
Tarleton State was led by Kiara Wright's 18 points. Guards Sonya Sundberg and Shelby Adamson had 16 and 15 for TSU.
"Tarleton State had a good gameplan against us," said head coach Gene Steinmeyer. "They went right at our big kids. They got one of our big kids (Dietz) in foul trouble. They were able to shoot it over Kyla better than any team has all year. But in the long run, I think our big kids wore them down a little bit.
"It's been the same thing all year. If we can prevent teams from shooting layups on us, we have a pretty good zone scheme. As long as Tarleton was hitting layups on us, they stayed with us. When we kept it out of the paint, we were able to get some margin."
Northwest Missouri State 77, Tarleton State 61
TSU 32 29 -61
NWMSU 39 38 -77
Tarleton State (25-5) --- Wright 18, Sundberg 16, Adamson 15, Benford 8, Stehling 4.
Northwest Missouri (27-4) - Roehrig 26, Curtis 22, Dietz 17, Henry 6, Martin 6.
