WBB NCAA Semis (Carolina loses)

[throatybeard]

Maybe this is irrational, but Rutgers' butt whuppin of LSU (who beat UConn), makes me feel slightly better about our debacle against them. Regardless of the Carolina-Tennessee result, I'll be pulling for Rutgers on Tuesday night. Rutgers held LSU to 35 points in a FF game. (!)

The flying Lattas take the floor soon.

[duke98]

I just hope that Rutgers doesn't roll over and play dead in the final if they're playing UNC. That team has had it easy all season. And the thought of Ivory Latta winning a NC makes me sick to my stomach....

[throatybeard]

I just hope that Rutgers doesn't roll over and play dead in the final if they're playing UNC. That team has had it easy all season. And the thought of Ivory Latta winning a NC makes me sick to my stomach....

Now let's be positive here. Sing with me:

Once there was a girl on rocky top,
Half bear the other half cat.
Wild as a mink, sweet as soda pop,
I still dream about that.

That song is about Candace Parker, right?

The Lattas have started 0-13 from the floor but are somehow down just 5.

[DavidBenAkiva]

Tennessee is trying to come back from a big second half deficit against UNC in the women's final four right now. I have never wanted a non-Duke team to win more than I want Tennessee to beat Ivory Latta, Sylvia Hatchell and the lady Chapel Hillers. Plus, Candace Parker of the Volunteers is dating Shelden Williams, so that's an added bonus! Your thoughts?

I've recenlty concluded that Latta is my least-liked player EVER, men or women. Showy, classless.

Time flies like an arrow
Fruit flies like a banana

[throatybeard]

This has been almost as epic (dare I say, Duke-ian) a collapse as the UNC men suffered against Georgetown. :eek:

Given the paucity of WNBA highlights on TV, I will never have to watch Ivory Latta do anything again, ever. That's a relief.

[godukecom]

ends her carrer with an 0-2 record in the final four!
:D

[Channing]

and the nonslaught, confined to Durham for so much of the season, seems to have made its way down to our neighbors.

[tbyers11]

Tennessee outscores UNC 20-2 over the last 8 minutes or so. That is a humongous collapse.

I didn't detest the UNC men's team this year. I wanted them to lose every game they played, but I didn't detest them like I did the UNC women's team, particularly Latta and Hatchell.

[hc5duke]

http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20070402/capt.35b3ba4da09641d0a0cf0502aecb0e7b.final_four_t ennessee_north_carolina_basketball_cda147.jpg
http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20070402/capt.95407e3bb71348d084b953facf5ff744.final_four_t ennessee_north_carolina_basketball_cda146.jpg

[duke98]

Yessssssss....

Never thought I'd say it, but thanks to Pat Summit and the Lady Vols for sending the Evil Empire to an embarrassing defeat. How big of a lead did UNC blow this time? Was it bigger than the one the men blew against Georgetown?

I know, I know, glass houses, stones, etc. Don't hate me for finding some small bit of joy in this disappointing offseason.

And now, all together -- "Go Rutgers!"

[throatybeard]

Automatic ban for hc5Duke. :D

[Troublemaker]

Yessssssss....

Never thought I'd say it, but thanks to Pat Summit and the Lady Vols for sending the Evil Empire to an embarrassing defeat. How big of a lead did UNC blow this time? Was it bigger than the one the men blew against Georgetown?


The lead was 12 or so. Announcers said UT ended the game on a 20-2 run.

[gadzooks]

Whew! I was kind of concerned a couple times during that game, but UNC managed to implode quite nicely.

[wilson]

Looks like they've spent some time with the fellas recently. They followed the men's lead by allowing Tennessee to close with a 20-2(!) run:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/basketball/ncaa/women/specials/ncaa_tourney/2007/04/01/unc.tennessee.ap/index.html

Thus, like the men's season, the women's season is not a waste after all, and God has reminded us yet again that he does in fact exist.

[mgtr]

OK, I will risk it, since it definitely applies -- UNCle.

[heyman25]

Great collapse.Sylvia Hatchell and Ivory Latta are obnoxious twins in behavior. Glad Tennessee got its act together. If they play this bad Monday,don't expect Rutgers to collapse. I like Tenessee Candace has charisma even though she was not a factor til the last 10 minutes. I am just surprised how bad Tennessee played and still managed to win.Good riddance to Latta.That bicep pose after she scored a layup says it all about her character.
Sad thing is Duke had a golden opportunity to win it all and gave it away.

[NYC Duke Fan]

I am not a keen observer of women's basketball, but can someone who is tell me how Rutgers went from a team that lost by 40 points at their home court to Duke, to a team that is now one game away from a Nastional Championship ?

[JStuart]

Rocky Top, Tennessee?
Sung by Latta, Ivory?
a capella?
With Sylvia on percussion accompaniment?

[dukelifer]

I am not a keen observer of women's basketball, but can someone who is tell me how Rutgers went from a team that lost by 40 points at their home court to Duke, to a team that is now one game away from a Nastional Championship ?

Teams get better with time- team sthat play D well can stay with anyone- teams or players get hot in March. Ajavon went from a good to great player after she healed from a major injury. She has been almost unstoppable of late and was the main reason Duke lost. Take great D and improving O and you have one dangerous team in March.

[Delaware]

Erlana Larkins quote in the NandO.
"We gave it away. And the refs... sure didn't help".

Nice.

I do have a question. Larkins is their best player and with Parker out most of the first half, they could only get her 4 shots all game. Bad coaching by Sylvia.

[bird]

Sad thing is Duke had a golden opportunity to win it all and gave it away.


I am not sure Duke "gave it away" -- Rutgers is looking more substantial now, no? -- but I will agree that the two semi-final games displayed four very beatable teams. Duke-in-January would have had a very, very good shot against such competition; even Duke-in-March should have been able to take these teams. Luck, matchups, one-and-done -- part of the attraction, part of the frustration, with the tourney.

[Duvall]

Larkins is their best player and with Parker out most of the first half, they could only get her 4 shots all game.

That's just sad.

And by sad, I mean fantastic.

[UncleBill]

Is a 2-20 run in the last 8:18 of the Flying Lattas game worse than the Boys in Baby Blue's 6-16 run in the last 6:02 of regulation COMBINED with the 3-15 run in the five minute OT?

[bluey]

Rutgers totally revamped their system after the Duke loss and placed their focus oin defense. They also have one of the best coaches on the sideline as an assistant sideline - Marianne Stanley (in addition to head coach C. Vivian Stringer). Stanely took ODU to 3 NCs, 2 with Nancy Lieberman and Anne Donovan in the late 70s and another in 1985. She went on to USC and got in hot water when she demanded equal pay and sued the university. No big time programs have hired her as a head coach since except the WNBA (Washington Mystics), but she is still great coach. She recruited and coached Lisa Leslie and Tina Thompson at USC. Maybe LSU or FLorida (or Texas if Gail stays) will go after her if Rutgers wins it all. Not taking anything away from Stringer, but Stanley I'm sure has made a big impact.

http://www.scarletknights.com/basketball-women/coaches/stanley.html

[gadzooks]

Erlana Larkins: "The refs damn sure didn’t help. I think it all boils down to the free throw line."

I love how players and coaches will blame the refs while conveniently ignoring the fouls they *didn't* call, like the illegal screen Little put on Bobbitt where she moved into Bobbitt and didn't get called for it, just for one example. Also, where was your scoring? Did the refs cause you to fail to put the ball into the basket enough times? The refs made some marginal calls both ways, so don't try to pass it off onto them when your team simply failed to play well enough--it shouldn't come down to free throws.

[dukeENG2003]

Larkins had reason to be upset, the officials WERE bad IMO (not biased, just bad, so the officials didn't influence the outcome or anything), at least they let a LOT of contact go. As you said, players never remeber the fouls that THEY got away with, just the ones that others got away with against them. I don't agree with her bringing it up as a reason that decided the game, but they didn't exactly do a good job of keeping the game under control (scold me if you want Feldspar, but thats what I saw). I was AMAZED at the level of contact that was allowed on a regular basis in that game. Made the men's NCAA tourney look soft by comparison. . .

[Bostondevil]

I turned the game off at 48-40. I just can't stand Latta and I said, there's no way I'm going to watch her celebrate. And I didn't read the sports page this morning, so I was checking the date to make sure I didn't get zapped by a late April Fools joke.

Tennessee came back and won that game!!!???!!! I can't believe it. I can't believe I was rooting for Tennessee! I'm so happy! I said to my kids that if I had to have UNC win a championship this year, I'd rather it be the men. Latta is my all time least favorite Tarheel, I think, it used to be Yonaker but that was so long ago. I'm just so happy she's gone!

[Saratoga2]

Great collapse.Sylvia Hatchell and Ivory Latta are obnoxious twins in behavior. Glad Tennessee got its act together. If they play this bad Monday,don't expect Rutgers to collapse. I like Tenessee Candace has charisma even though she was not a factor til the last 10 minutes. I am just surprised how bad Tennessee played and still managed to win.Good riddance to Latta.That bicep pose after she scored a layup says it all about her character.
Sad thing is Duke had a golden opportunity to win it all and gave it away.

I watched the first half and found the game to be an exercize in incompetence by both teams. They can't be that bad, or can they? Seriously, my take is that both coaches told their players had had to try harder than normal and do more (rah rah). The effect was that they ran down the court, passed wildly, shot wildly and were infinitely sloppy. If one of the coaches had said not to rush it, value the ball and work for good shots, that team would have had a big advantage. The Duke women's team also looked out of control against Rutgers making numerous unforced turnovers that cost them the game. Linsay Harding said it well before the womens game last night. She and other Duke players should have done better earlier in the game, so it wouldn't have come down to two free throws at the end.

Maybe the "just try harder" than your opponent approach to coaching is not that effective. Sure, you have to work hard, but you also have to work smarter. Cut down on the unforced turnovers, and work for a quality shot.

[throatybeard]

Rutgers-LSU was even uglier, if that's possible.

Just like the men's game, the women's game has gotten too dang physical.