North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State
Middle Tennessee
Wolfpack Fall To Middle Tennessee In First Round, 60-58
3/19/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 19, 2005
By PAUL J. WEBER
Associated Press Writer
DALLAS (AP) - Patrice Holmes hit the game-winning jumper with 1.6 seconds left, giving No. 12 seed Middle Tennessee another upset in the first round of the NCAA tournament with a 60-58 win Saturday night over fifth-seeded N.C State.
Last season, the Lady Raiders were a No. 13 seed when it knocked off fourth-seeded North Carolina 67-62.
The loss ended the postseason run for N.C. State coach Kay Yow. In January, she began treatment for a recurrence of breast cancer that forced her to skip two games, her first absences in 30 years of coaching.
Middle Tennessee players and a few fans rushed the floor after the upset, which went back-and-forth in the final minutes. The Lady Raiders trailed by as much as 10 in the second half before pulling off what might be the most dramatic win in the school's history.
N.C. State (21-8) tied the game at 58-58 with 26.6 left on a putback by Tiffany Stansbury, who led the Wolfpack with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
Middle Tennessee (24-8) then calmly pushed the ball up the floor, not dishing the ball to Holmes until less than 3 seconds were left on the clock. Holmes found a seam near the top of the key, caught the ball and immediately pulled up for the game-winner.
Holmes finished with 22 points on 10-of-17 shooting. She also had a key steal with 46 seconds remaining, feeding Krystle Horton on the break to give Middle Tennessee a 58-56 lead.
N.C. State played most of the game without leading scorer Billie McDowell, whose left knee buckled while planting her leg for a jumper with 11:57 left in the first half. She writhed on the floor for several minutes and remained in the locker room for the rest of the game.
N.C. State put an aggressive press on the Lady Raiders in her absence. The Wolfpack then came out on a tear in the second half, going on a 13-2 run to build a 10-point lead.
But Middle Tennessee responded, holding N.C. State scoreless for almost six minutes. The Lady Raiders hit six straight baskets to take the lead with 6:17 remaining on a layup by Tia Stovall, who finished with 11 points.
Middle Tennessee led 26-25 at halftime.
