No plans yet for an encore
Stanford’s scintillating win over Maryland in the Spokane Region final of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament at the Arena Monday had to whet the appetite of area basketball fans.
With Stanford star Candice Wiggins, who was named a first-team All-American on Tuesday, scoring 41 points, the Cardinal turned back Maryland, which got 35 points from Kristi Toliver, a second-team All-American, 98-87.
At the moment, though, there are no plans for an encore. The women’s tournament is already scheduled through 2012.
That doesn’t mean Washington State University, which is the host institution for NCAA events in the Arena, including the opening two rounds of the 2010 men’s basketball tournament, won’t consider bidding on future tournaments.
“We will continue to put in bids for basketball and volleyball, as long as the arena and Washington State University think it’s in their best interest to invest that kind of time,” WSU associate athletic director Linda Chalich said. “It’s good for Spokane. We will continue to put in bids.”
The two-session tournament drew 14,447 fans, which is a far cry from the 22,092 that attended the other Spokane regional in 2001. One major difference is that Washington was in the first Sweet 16 and made it to the championship game. Another is the men’s tournament hadn’t hit Spokane yet, as it did in 2003 and again last year. The first two rounds of the tournament feature eight teams and six games while a region final is four teams and three games.
“For the most part, the people that did show up were enthusiastic,” said Chalich, media coordinator for the tournament. “They really got into the action and were really appreciative. Even though we weren’t a packed house, the people that were there were true fans. One thing everyone noticed was the number of young girls in the audience. That was very impressive.”
Shell-shocked
Stanford blitzed Maryland 51-41 in the first half en route to its 98-87 win on Monday, leaving the Terrapins, who shot 64 percent, in shock.
Though the Cardinal cooled off in the second half, they still hit six 3-pointers, each one seeming to come in a clutch situation.
“They did a great job in the first half,” Toliver said. “In the second half we weren’t counting on them making those same shots and they did. You’ve got to give them credit for stepping up.”
It was the most 3-pointers the Cardinal made in a game this season and the only other time they shot them better than their 14-of-28 effort was when they hit 11 of 19 against Arizona State.
Final foursome
Sunday is a day for rematches when the tournament resumes in Tampa Bay.
Stanford faces Connecticut and Louisiana State meets Tennessee.
The Cardinal (34-3) fell to Connecticut (36-1) 66-54 at the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands in their fourth game.
LSU and Tennessee split a pair of games. LSU (31-5) won the Southeastern Conference regular-season title on the strength of a 78-62 win in Knoxville, Tenn. The Lady Vols (34-2) captured the SEC tournament by beating the Tigers 61-55.
Stanford is the other team to beat Tennessee, winning 73-69 at home.
Tip-ins
Joining Candice Wiggins on the Associated Press All-America first team are Tennessee junior Candace Parker, Oklahoma junior Courtney Paris, LSU senior Sylvia Fowles and UConn freshman Maya Moore. … Maryland’s Crystal Langhorne joined teammate Kristi Tolliver on the second team. … Former Idaho Vandals star Leilani Mitchell, who finished her career at Utah, is on the third team. … Arizona State junior Brianne January (Lewis and Clark) is on the honorable mention list. … There are five coaching openings on the West Coast: Idaho, Santa Clara, UCLA, Arizona and UNLV. Gonzaga assistant Jennifer Mountain has interviewed at Santa Clara.