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March 22, 2003
The Second Round game between No. 8 seed Virginia and No. 1 seed Tennessee is set for Monday, March 22 at 9:15 p.m. on ESPN.
By ELIZABETH A. DAVIS
AP Sports Writer
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Anna Crosswhite and Brandi Teamer each scored 17points as Virginia beat Illinois 72-56 in the first round of the MideastRegional on Saturday.
The eighth-seeded Cavaliers (17-13) advanced to the second round to facetop-seeded Tennessee, which beat Alabama State 95-43.
Virginia came out strong after halftime with a 12-3 run, started byCrosswhite’s 3-pointer. LaTonya Blue capped it with another 3 that gave theCavaliers a 45-34 lead with 15:29 to go.
Illinois (17-12), the ninth seed making its first NCAA tournament appearancesince 2000, trimmed the lead to eight after a basket by Tiffanie Guthrie.Safiya Grant-Farley hit a 3 at the other end to restore Virginia’s lead to 11.
The Cavaliers then went ahead by as many as 14, but Illinois cut it to eightagain with four minutes left on a basket by Janelle Hughes. Virginia answeredwhen Teamer hit a 3, and Illini couldn’t rally.
Grant-Farley finished with 11 points.
Virginia’s top scorer, Cherisse Graham, was held to six points – all freethrows. After scoring 36 points in a loss to North Carolina in the AtlanticCoast Conference tournament, she was 0-of-5 from the field.
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Virginia’s Brandi Teamer drives against Illinois’ Cindy Dallas. |
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Illinois struggled from the floor, shooting 33 percent (20-of-59).
Hughes finished with 12 points while Aminata Yanni added 11 and Guthrie had10. Cindy Dallas grabbed 11 rebounds for the Illini.
Virginia, playing in its 20th straight NCAA tournament, had lost in thefirst round the last two years.
The Cavaliers have plenty of tournament history with Tennessee even thoughthey have only beaten the Lady Vols once. The win the 1990 regional final inNorfolk, Va., was a big one because it kept Tennessee out of the Final Four,which it was hosting.
Tennessee avenged the loss the next year by beating the Cavaliers in thenational championship game.