North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State
14-17 (4-10ACC)
Miami
27-3 (12-2ACC)
Comeback Falls Short Against No. 10 Miami
3/4/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 4, 2011
Box Score | Photo Gallery 
NC State postgame press conference
Miami postgame press conference
GREENSBORO, N.C. - One thing Kellie Harper knew about her second edition of the NC State women's basketball team: it would never quit.
Despite all the setbacks, injuries and misfortunes that visited her squad during the 2010-11 season, she knew she would get strong effort from the healthy players she sent onto the floor.
And that's what happened until the final play of the season, which ended Friday night with a 93-85 loss to 10th-ranked and second-seeded Miami in the quarterfinals of the ACC Women's Basketball Tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum.
“Our kids fought hard, all year long,” Harper said after the game. “I told them in the lockerroom that they have really defined this program this year, in a positive way.
“NC State is going to fight.”
Things looked bleak after Miami opened the game with a 15-2 scoring run then added seven straight points to end the first half to take a 46-34 lead into intermission. With just over 17 minutes remaining in the contest, that lead stood at 54-41.
That's when the Pack made a move, putting together a 12-2 scoring streak, book-ended by a pair of three-point plays by senior Brittany Strachan, to erase the Hurricanes' advantage. With just 12 minutes to play, the game was tied at 60.
“We weren’t going to give them the game,” senior Amber White said. “They were going to have to take it from us.”
After three ties over the next three minutes, the Hurricanes scored five straight points and seemed to be on the brink of pulling away. But every time the Wolfpack had an opportunity, it fought back.
"They've done that all year," said Miami coach Katie Meier. "I was very clear with my team and with my staff. This is the last team in America that you play for tomorrow against, because they play hard and they play tough until the end of the game."
Stefanie Yderstrom's 3-pointer with 4:58 remaining on the clock gave the Hurricanes a 78-73 lead that appeared to be the final straw. But one last time, Harper's team closed the margin to just one point, thanks to a layup by sophomore Marissa Kastanek and a pair of free throws by freshman Kody Burke on a four-point possession.
But the Hurricanes, who had a first-round bye, had fresher legs than the Wolfpack, who took a hard-fought 71-70 win over seventh-seeded Boston College Thursday night, a game that required more than 25 minutes of full-court press to come back from two double-digit deficits.
“Miami is a good basketball team, individually quite a bit more talented than we are,” Harper said. “What we focused in on is that this is a team game and that's how we were going to have to win. Miami has been successful in several of their games because they work harder and they play harder than everybody else. We felt very confident that we could match that.
“We just didn’t get enough stops down the stretch.”
The game wasn't really settled until the final minute when Miami grabbed three offensive rebounds on the same possession and got free throws by Riquna Williams and Shenise Johnson to give the Canes a 89-81 lead.
The Hurricanes (27-3) had four players with double-figure scoring, led by Johnson's team-high 25 points. Williams added 22, Morgan Stroman had 16 and Yderstrom had 15. For the Wolfpack, which finished the season with a 14-17 overall record, junior Bonae Holston matched Johnson's 25 points. White added 18 and Strachan contributed 17.
The Hurricanes opened the game in Top 10 fashion, jumping out to a 15-2 lead in the first four minutes against the slow-starting Pack.
But Harper's team went on an offensive scoring binge, cutting the lead down to 10 points with seven minutes to play and as close as five points with two minutes to play. Miami closed out the first half with seven consecutive points before intermission, including a five-point possession, to take a 46-34 lead into halftime.
Strachan kicked off the 12-0 run with a three-point play with 16:55 remaining in the game, and before the crowd could look up, the game was close the rest of the way.
"There's no question that NC State is a spirited team, and one that we have great respect for," Meier said. "We needed a couple of big steals at the end of the game to get the win."
Harper is confident that her team has learned from its difficult season. And even though she will have to find replacements for White and Strachan, she believes next year’s team will come back motivated for success.
“I hope that these young kids have grown up a lot,” Harper said. “You can’t go through a season like this without learning. You can’t come back next year any more motivated. I hate it for Amber and Brit, but I think we have a great foundation.
“Our first two years here, we've laid that foundation. Now it’s about recruiting and continuing to get kids who believe in everything we ask them to do.”
• By Tim Peeler, tim_peeler@ncsu.edu.
