Texas A&M
27-7
Minnesota
20-12
No. 9 Aggies Advance to Second-Straight NCAA Sweet 16 Appearance
Mar 24, 2009 | Women's Basketball
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Coach Blair Opening Statement
Q&A with Gant, Starks, Colson, & Smith
Q&A with Coach Blair
SOUTH BEND, Ind. - Four players scored in double figures to lead ninth-ranked and second-seeded Texas A&M to its second-straight NCAA Sweet 16 appearance with a 73-42 victory over 10th-seeded Minnesota Tuesday night at the Joyce Center.
Senior All-America candidate Danielle Gant (Oklahoma City, Okla.) scored a game-high 20 points for the Aggies (27-7) who will make their third overall regional semifinal appearance in school history next to 1994 and 2008. Texas A&M head coach Gary Blair has now led seven all-time teams past the first week of March Madness.
A&M will take on sixth-seeded and 19th-ranked Arizona State (25-8) in the Trenton (N.J.) Regional semifinals on Sunday, March 29 at 1:30 p.m. (CT) at Sovereign Bank Arena on ESPN2. The Sun Devils defeated third-seeded and 19th-ranked Florida State, 63-58, in second-round action played on Monday.
Senior All-America candidate Takia Starks (Houston, Texas) added 17 points followed by junior Tanisha Smith (Kansas City, Mo.) and sophomore Sydney Colson (Houston, Texas) who each had 13 apiece.
The A&M defense proved too much for its second consecutive NCAA Tournament opponent in three days as Minnesota (20-12) committed a season-high 32 turnovers which also marked an opponent season-high for the Aggies. They were able to convert those miscues into 34 of their 73 overall points. A&M also didn't let U of M's height advantage get in its way as the Aggies outrebounded the Golden Gophers, 37-28.
Minnesota was never able to overcome a 21-9 lead that A&M built in the opening minutes of the first half of play. It also didn't help as the Aggies made a season-high 20 steals paced by Colson's career-high six in the ballgame. Ashley Ellis-Milan was the only double-figure scorer for the Gophers with a team-high 15.
POSTGAME NOTES
• For the 17th time this season, Texas A&M used the starting lineup of Danielle Gant and La Toya Micheaux (13-4).
• With the victory, A&M evens the all-time series record to 3-3 versus Minnesota. The Aggies advanced to their second-straight NCAA Sweet 16 appearance and third overall in program history next to 1994 and 2008. A&M is now 2-1 all-time when facing the No. 10 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
• The Aggies claimed their 27th overall victory of the season which now stands alone as the second-most wins in school history behind its 29-8 run to the NCAA Elite Eight a year ago.
• Texas A&M head coach Gary Blair has now led seven all-time squads to the Sweet 16 in his 24-year coaching career at Stephen F. Austin, Arkansas and A&M combined. He also picked up his 20th all-time NCAA Tournament game victory versus the Golden Gophers.
• Danielle Gant moved into second all-time in career rebounding with 913 boards to date. She surpassed former player Lisa Jordon (911) on the all-time list and is eight rebounds away from breaking the school record held by former standout Prissy Sharpe (920). Gant also turned in her seventh 20-point game of the season with a game-high 20 versus the Golden Gophers.
• Freshman Sydney Carter dished out five assists with one turnover in 19 minutes of play off the bench and also made a career-and season-high four steals against Minnesota.
• A&M shot 56.7 percent (17-of-30) from the floor in the first half, its third-best percentage in the first half this season behind a 9-of-12 performance from Gant and a 6-of-11 performance by Tanisha Smith. Gant, Smith and Starks have reached double figures in all postseason games thus far. Gant and Smith are both seven-game double-digit scoring streaks.
• The Aggie defense forced its second-straight NCAA Tournament opponent to 30-or-more turnovers as Minnesota turned over the ball an opponent season-high 32 times in the ballgame. The previous opponent-high was 30 by 15th-seeded Evansville in the NCAA First Round on March 22. It was the most by the Golden Gophers this season next to 26 turnovers at fellow Big 12 rival Iowa State on Dec. 21 in Ames, Iowa. A&M also made a season-high 20 steals in the contest.
• On their way to the Joyce Center, A&M host bus driver John Meisner put together a special video with clips from the movies, Hoosiers, Coach Carter and Glory Road, to pump up and inspire the Aggies prior to their second-round game versus Minnesota.
POSTGAME QUOTES
Texas A&M Head Coach Gary Blair
On the game ...
"Minnesota had to extend a lot of their energy to beat Notre Dame which I think had a lot to do with their play tonight. We were able to run the ball and keep it in transition. We made a little more turnovers than we wanted, but those were hustle turnovers. We played well especially with the jump shots early by (Tanisha) Smith to start it off and (Takia) Starks with three in a row. I think they were so worried about (Danielle) Gant inside that it opened it up for everyone else. I have those three (top shooters) who know when to share the spotlight. They know when it is their time and they are going to get their shots. They never overshoot. When you have Three Amigos like that you can do a whole lot. I also had the luxury of having two very, very good point guards tonight."
On seeing an NCAA Sweet 16 bracket without Tennessee and Duke ...
"This is what is good for the game. It is good for kids and recruits to see there are a lot of other great programs in the country out there like Texas A&M. Look what Ball State did the other night. I really believe parity is coming in women's basketball. More and more kids need to establish their own identity (at these non-traditional powerhouse schools who are building up their programs)."
On Danielle Gant play ...
"Wasn't that the quietest 20 points you've ever seen out of Danielle Gant? All of the sudden, we weren't even giving her the ball in the first half and she still had about 8-or-9. She gets out on the break from the post position, because she can anticipate steals and she starts her engine just a little bit quicker than a lot of our kids and we find her. When she's playing at the four position, there are not too many four players that can run with her. Gosh, she's unselfish and is just a great kid. She's going to make somebody a good player at the next level."
On the set-up of the team's offense ...
"I'm a little bit of an unorthodox coach. I don't run a lot of motion. We run a lot of sets and set plays and we run transition. It's just what I have to do with the material I have. My sets are working pretty well for me right now."
Texas A&M Senior Forward/Guard Danielle Gant
On importance of keeping Minnesota off the perimeter ...
"It was very important considering that threes can beat us a lot more than twos. Coach Blair and Coach Schaefer wanted us to get up and deny the wings, so they couldn't get a lot of three-point shots off."
Texas A&M Sophomore Point Guard Sydney Colson
On the team's defense on Minnesota ...
"We were just trying to be as intense as possible and get out in the passing lanes and disrupt their offense."
