Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, April 3, 1994 TAG: 9404030206
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ANDREA KUHN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
North Carolina had 17 steals and forced 28 turnovers en route to an 89-74 victory over the Boilermakers in a semifinal of the women's NCAA Tournament. The Tar Heels advance to their first championship game at 3:45 p.m. today against Louisiana Tech, a 69-66 winner over Alabama in the other semifinal.
"We talked about their quickness all week, but we certainly weren't prepared for this," said Lin Dunn, Purdue's coach. " . . . I have to give Carolina credit, they are exceptionally quick."
Tar Heels freshman Marion Jones was responsible for many a gasp from the crowd of 11,966 with her speed. Jones, a world-class sprinter, finished with a team-high six steals.
"We wanted to take advantage of Marion's quickness and use it to make things happen," said Sylvia Hatchell, North Carolina's coach.
Jones' steals definitely got things going for Charlotte Smith, who sparked a 20-3 run in the second half that defused the Boilermakers.
Purdue (29-5) trailed by as many as 13 points in the first half, but closed to 39-37 at intermission, thanks in large part to the inside efforts of freshman Leslie Johnson.
The 6-1, 225-pound bruiser scored her only two field goals of the first half in the closing 2 1/2 minutes. However, Johnson scored four points early in the second half and the Boilermakers took their only lead of the game, 47-45, with 16 minutes, 39 seconds to play.
But then the game turned into what Dunn described as "the Charlotte Smith Show." The 6-foot junior went on a tear, scoring 12 of the next 22 points for the Tar Heels (32-2), including 10 in a row.
"When I hit those first few shots, I was just so confident. I basically did the same things as I did in the first half, but was more confident in my shooting," said Smith, who finished with a team-high 23 points and eight rebounds.
Tonya Sampson, North Carolina's senior All-American, got into early foul trouble and played only 16 minutes. The 5-9 guard still managed 16 points, six rebounds and five steals.
Sampson committed two fouls in the game's opening three minutes and picked up her third - a charge - three minutes later. She was called for No. 4 with 16:05 left in the game on a questionable collision with Purdue's Jennifer Jacoby at midcourt.
Hatchell decided enough was enough and switched to a zone defense. Purdue scored three points in the next seven minutes.
"That was definitely a turning point in the game," Hatchell said. "It did mess up their rhythm a little. It was a gamble, but it paid off."
The Boilermakers couldn't get around or above Sylvia Crawley, a 6-5 senior center, or Smith, who switched off on Johnson, the Big Ten Conference's freshman of the year.
Crawley, who averaged 13.5 points per game this season, finished with 16. She also added three steals, two rebounds and a block. Tonya Cooper, a reserve forward, added seven rebounds and two steals for the Tar Heels, whose only losses this season were to Virginia.
"We're a balanced team," Hatchell said. "That's the strength of our team. When one player is down or having a bad game, everyone else steps up."
Jones, who finished fourth in the 200 meters and fifth in the 100 meters at the 1992 U.S. Olympic Trials, added 19 points and five assists for the Tar Heels, who shot 53 percent from the field.
Purdue was paced by 16 points from Johnson and 12 from Stacey Lovelace, who also had a team-high 15 rebounds. Freshman Jannon Roland came off the bench to add 14 points and six rebounds.
by CNB