Reese, LSU ladies push previous Miami 54-42 to succeed in Ultimate 4

GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Angel Reese had 18 rebounds and LSU returned to the ladies’s Ultimate 4 for the primary time in 15 years by beating Miami 54-42 on Sunday night time, carrying a speedy rise underneath second-year coach Kim Mulkey straight to the game’s largest stage.

Alexis Morris scored 21 factors and Reese added 13 for the third-seeded Tigers (32-2), who asserted management of a grinding, defense-first recreation. LSU’s size brought on Miami issues even with Reese — an Related Press first-team All-American — having a brutal capturing day, and the Tigers offset their offensive hiccups by dominating the glass.

LSU shot 30.2% and went 1 for 12 from 3-point vary, together with misses on its first 9 makes an attempt. However Miami was even worse from 3, lacking all 15 tries.

The third-seeded Tigers completed with a 49-35 rebounding edge behind Reese, which led to a 15-3 edge in second-chance factors — all desperately wanted on a day with offensive rebounds available.

Mulkey is in her second season at LSU, bringing a resume with three NCAA titles from her time at Baylor together with some flamboyant sideline appears similar to her shimmering silver jacket with white pants for this one. She had cautioned that the Tigers have been overachieving once they’re nonetheless strengthening a program for the lengthy haul.

Possibly so, however they’re forward of schedule after pushing their means by way of the NCAA Match’s Greenville 2 Area. The Tigers head to Dallas to face Ohio State or Virginia Tech in Friday’s nationwide semifinals. Reese, a Maryland switch who has led Mulkey’s staff all 12 months together with her bodily play, was named the area’s most excellent participant.

When the horn sounded, Mulkey turned to her bench and leaned ahead to place her fingers on her knees as if in disbelief. Gamers quickly started working to midcourt to have a good time — apart from Morris working straight to the scorer’s desk and leaping on prime of it.

Reese missed her first 9 pictures and didn’t handle her first basket till early within the third quarter, ending the day 3 for 15 from the sphere. However she went 7 of 10 from the free-throw line and contributed 4 assists, three steals and two blocks.

Jasmyne Roberts scored 22 factors for ninth-seeded Miami (22-13), which had taken a wild experience right here. The Hurricanes rallied from an enormous deficit to beat Oklahoma State within the first spherical, shocked No. 1 seed Indiana on the highway, then beat Villanova in Friday’s Candy 16 regardless of blowing a 21-point lead.

The final win set off an emotional on-court celebration for Katie Meier’s bunch, which had performed with toughness and athleticism to get to its first Elite Eight. The Hurricanes have been attempting to match the file for lowest-seeded staff ever to succeed in a Ultimate 4, set by Arkansas in 1998.

However the Hurricanes struggled from the beginning offensively, whilst their protection stored them hanging round and leaving open alternatives to make a push.

Outdoors of Roberts — coming off a career-best 26 factors in opposition to Villanova — seemingly no Hurricanes participant might make a shot.

The Hurricanes shot 31.6% and loads of their missed 3-pointers got here off clear appears. Future Harden, who hit the shot to beat Indiana, scored three factors on 0-for-9 capturing with seven missed 3s.

It was a disappointing conclusion to an unbelievable run for Miami, and the varsity fell in need of making historical past twice in someday.

The boys’s and girls’s groups have been every enjoying Sunday to succeed in this system’s first Ultimate 4. The boys pulled it off, beating Texas in Kansas Metropolis, Missouri. That recreation went last through the first quarter of the ladies’s recreation — drawing cheers when the ultimate play was proven on the world scoreboards.

Miami battled, however couldn’t full the double.

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Observe Aaron Beard on Twitter at https://twitter.com/aaronbeardap

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AP March Insanity protection: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

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