University of Connecticut Athletics
Women's Basketball Hold's Off No. 2 Tennessee
12/30/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
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The tussle of the two top teams in women's basketball lived up to its billing, as the Lady Vols rallied from a 17-point deficit in the first half and were a 3-pointer away from drawing even in the last minute.
The major East Coast snowstorm was not enough to keep fans from this one -- the 16,294-seat Hartford Civic Center was nearly filled.
Shea Ralph, the Final Four MVP, also had 15 points and two key steals in a 19-2 first-half run that gave the Huskies (9-0) the cushion they would need. She had a team-high five rebounds.
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| Connecticut players, from left, Swin Cash, Diana Taurasi, Shea Ralph, Sue Bird and Asjha Jones celebrate after they defeated Tennessee 81-76. (AP Photo/Bob Child) |
After Bird hit both, Kara Lawson scored on a coast-to-coast layup to keep the Lady Vols within 79-76. Bird converted her final two free throws with 19 seconds left on another Catchings' foul.
UConn leads the series, 7-5. They've met twice for national titles, and UConn won both, including last season's dominating 71-52 victory in Philadelphia.
Saturday's game looked as if it was heading in that direction, too.
The Huskies came out cold in the first half, missing eight of their first nine shots. The Lady Vols took advantage in the meantime, hitting four of eight and had a four-point lead four minutes into the period. That's when the Huskies' transition game took over.
Bird's 3-pointer with 15:33 left ignited a 19-2 run that made it 23-10. Ralph had five points and two steals in that run. The Lady Vols had five turnovers in that same period.
UConn led by as much as 17 twice, but the Lady Vols rallied to within eight late in the period. Michelle Snow went to work inside and had six points in a 14-9 Tennessee run to close out the half trailing 44-34.
Tennessee had 18 turnovers in the first half, but played more sure-handed in the final period and had just four turnovers. The Huskies had 11 of its 17 turnovers in the second half.
Tennessee outrebounded the Huskies 42-32. Semeka Randall led the Lady Vols with eight rebounds, getting six in the second half. She finished with 12 points and Lawson added 13.
Swin Cash had 14 points for UConn. Freshman Diana Taurasi, last year's high school player of the years finished with 12 points that included a key 3-pointer with five minutes left.
