Xavier Defeats Clemson 77-62 in the NCAA Tournament |
CINCINNATI, OH - Nicole Levandusky scored 19 points and teammate Taru
Tuukkanen added 14 in leading Xavier to a 77-62 win over Clemson in the second round of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament at the Cintas Center in Cincinnati, OH Sunday afternoon. Xavier hit 12 three point goals as a team, including Levandusky who was 5-10 from the three point stripe. Amy Waugh who finished the game with 13 points was 4-4 from the three point line. Clemson was led in scoring by Chrissy Floyd who scored 24 points as she was 11-20 from the field. Xavier improves to 30-2 this season, while Clemson falls to 21-10 this season. Xavier is ranked 12th by the Associated Press, and 11th in the USA Today poll. Xavier has won 20 games in a row. The 30 wins continue a school record for most wins in a season. The Lady Tigers are ranked 19th by the USA Today poll and 22nd in the Associated Press poll. In the first half, Xavier jumped out to a 13-7 lead with 15:44 left as Jennifer Phillips hit two free throws. Clemson went on a 11-0 run and built a 18-13 lead with 12:52 remaining as Chrissy Floyd scored five points in the Lady Tiger run. From this point, Xavier outscored Clemson 36-9 as the Musketeers hit seven three pointers, giving Xavier a 49-27 halftime lead. Amy Waugh and Retta Piipari both hit three three-pointers in the Xavier rally. Xavier's largest lead in the game was 31 when Xavier took a 72-41 lead with 9:01 left in the game. Clemson came within 15 points of Xavier's lead, 77-62, with :28 seconds remaining. Xavier shot 15-22 in the first half for a .682 pct., compared to Clemson's 12-35 shooting in the first half for a .343 pct. In the second half, Xavier was 9-19 from the field for a .474 pct, Clemson improved its shooting in the second half and was 14-28 from the field for a .500 figure. For the game, Xavier was 24-41 from the field for a .585 mark. Clemson was 26-63 from the field for a .413 pct. Xavier was 12-18 from the three-point line for a .667 pct. in the game. The Lady Tigers outscored Xavier 35-28 in the second half. "I want to compliment Xavier in the way they put on this tournament," said Clemson Head Coach Jim Davis. "Everything about this university is first class. I also want to compliment their basketball program. Xavier is a very skilled team as you witnessed in the last two games. I was disappointed in our basketball team. I thought we were ready and focused. But I am proud in the way we fought back and we never game up. They have good balance inside and outside. They had a great game plan of taking the ball inside and getting Batth and Forns in foul trouble. We had a great season and I think our future is bright with the nucleus we have returning."
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