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Sun Devils moving on

ASU's Betsy Boardman (23), Amy Denson (33) and CV grad Emily Westerberg celebrate after beating Notre Dame. (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
Associated Press
ASU's Betsy Boardman (23), Amy Denson (33) and CV grad Emily Westerberg celebrate after beating Notre Dame. (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)

When Arizona State honored its seniors last month, Kylan Loney knew there would be more to celebrate later.

Arizona State’s aggressive defense, timely shooting and gritty determination earned the Sun Devils that coveted trip home for the Tempe Regional.

Loney scored eight points in the final 1:29 and finished with 20 and the fifth-seeded Sun Devils (24-9) erased an early 13-point deficit to shock No. 4 Notre Dame (27-6) 70-61 Monday night in Fresno, Calif.

“We said on senior night that this really isn’t senior night because we’re going to be back,” Loney said. “This confirms it.”

She and her teammates immediately rushed to center court of the Save Mart Center to celebrate the school’s first second-round victory in the NCAA Tournament.

Aubree Johnson from Post Falls had 12 points and nine rebounds and Amy Denson added 11 points and eight rebounds off the bench for the spirited Sun Devils, who gained the momentum on Betsy Boardman’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer at halftime.

The Fighting Irish, ranked 11th in the nation and trying to advance past the second round for the third straight year, didn’t exhibit the kind of fight the Sun Devils showed in the second half.

“We looked tired mentally,” Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw said. “It seemed like we hit a wall, and mentally we just couldn’t get over it.”

Also in the Tempe Regional:

Baylor 69, Oregon 46: In two NCAA Tournament games, Baylor has made a statement. The Lady Bears are putting opponents away early and playing like a championship contender.

The second-seeded Lady Bears (29-3) scored 18 straight points, holding the 10th-seeded Ducks (21-10) to just two points over the final 8 minutes of the first half, and coasted to a win in Seattle.

Minnesota 73, Virginia 58: Jamie Broback had 23 points and five rebounds to help the third-seeded Gophers (26-7) upend the sixth-seeded Cavaliers (21-11) in Minneapolis.

In her final home game, Minnesota’s Janel Mcarville went 3 for 7 from the floor and finished with 11 points, 14 rebounds and four fouls – blowing a kiss and waving to the roaring Williams Arena crowd of 10,043 as she left the court.

Chattanooga Regional

Georgia 70, Texas 68: Tasha Humphrey scored 26 points and Cori Chambers had 15 to lead the sixth-seeded Bulldogs (24-9) past the third-seeded Longhorns (22-9) in Dallas.

Georgia advanced to the round of 16 for the third straight year and the 15th time in 21 appearances.

Philadelphia Regional

Texas Tech 80, Middle Tennessee 69: Alesha Robertson had 25 points and Cisti Greenwalt 19 as the fourth-seeded Red Raiders (24-7) beat the 12th-seeded Blue Raiders (24-9) in Dallas.

Kansas City Regional

Michigan St. 61, Southern California 59: Rene Haynes came out of a wild scramble with the ball and made a layup with 2.9 seconds left, giving the top-seeded Spartans (30-3) a victory over the eighth-seeded Trojans (20-11) in Minneapolis.

Vanderbilt 63, Kansas State 60: Carla Thomas scored 18 points and the fifth-seeded Commodores (24-7) overcame a late Kansas State rally to beat the fourth-seeded Wildcats (24-8) in Seattle.

Kansas State senior Laurie Koehn broke the NCAA career record for 3-pointers, hitting three to finish her career with 392. Erin Thorn of BYU made 391 from 1999-03.

Stanford 88, Utah 62: Brooke Smith scored 20 points as the top-ranked and No. 2-seeded Cardinal (31-2) cruised to a victory over the 10th-seeded Utes (26-8) in Fresno, Calif.