Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
23-8
North Carolina
27-8
Tar Heels End Dogs' Dance
3/19/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 19, 2011
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - Jaleesa Ross and Marnique Arnold put their arms around each other and slowly strode off the court Saturday afternoon.
It was a memorable moment to what has been a remarkable run. Together with fellow seniors Hayley Munro, Emma Andrews and Taja Edwards, Ross and Arnold helped usher in a new era with the Fresno State women's basketball team, resurrecting the program and giving the Bulldogs the legitimacy they so badly craved.
The four-year journey ended Saturday afternoon with an 82-68 loss to No. 5 seed North Carolina in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Still, Ross and Arnold were determined to savor what Arnold called "just a bit of recapping."
"Jaleesa just told me, `Way to go. We changed a program,'" said Arnold, whose class went 97-35 over four years. "We came here and left it better than it was when we got here. As far as that goes, we accomplished what we wanted."
Three players scored in double figures for Fresno State. Munro led the way with 15 points, while Ross and sophomore forward Rosie Moult added 14 points apiece. The loss snapped the Bulldogs' 10-game winning streak and leaves them in search of their first win in the NCAA Tournament (they are now 0-4). But even in defeat, there is no denying the strides this program has made.
Fresno State (25-8) came out with the confidence of a team that was making its fourth consecutive trip to the Big Dance. The Bulldogs weren't rattled by North Carolina's staggering reputation, its 23 NCAA Tournament appearances or its national championship title from the 1993-94 season.
They weren't intimidated by the Tar Heels' (27-8) towering size and their roster loaded with four players 6-foot-1 or taller.
Indeed, Fresno State trailed by only four points at halftime (40-36).
"We were containing them in the half court," Fresno State coach Adrian Wiggins said. "In the first half, we put ourselves in the right position, but in the second half, they had too many transition opportunities. I thought we did what we set out to do. At the end of the day, they just had too many second chances."
Senior guard Italee Lucas led all scorers with 22 points on 7-of-15 shooting and was just one of five Tar Heels to score in double figures. As a team, North Carolina out-rebounded Fresno State 50-38.
Not surprisingly, the Bulldogs relied on their 3-point shooting to stay within striking distance. Fresno State attempted a whopping 50 3-pointers, hitting 12. Its 50 attempts were the second-most in NCAA Tournament history and 10 more than any team has hoisted against the Tar Heels.
Ross started hot, drilling her first two 3-pointers and scoring eight quick points. She was 4-for-20 from the 3-point line, bringing her career total to 389, four shy of breaking the all-time NCAA record for 3s made in a career. With 15 points against North Carolina, Ross ends her decorated career with 2,002 points and becomes the only player in Fresno State history to score more than 2,000 points.
"I told Marnique that Fresno State has done a lot for us, and she's done a lot for me," said Ross, who played alongside Arnold at Pinole Valley High School (Pinole, Calif.). "We had the best time. We made the right choice."
The Bulldogs followed Ross' strong start and nabbed an early 14-5 advantage following a pair of free throws from Munro. The stellar beginning hit a bit of a snag, however, when point guard Taylor Thompson, Fresno State's freshman sparkplug, ran into a North Carolina screen, sending her to the deck.
Thompson left the game, and the Tar Heels responded with an 11-0 run. North Carolina took a 19-16 lead - its first of the game - following a 3-pointer by Lucas with 12:09 left in the first half.
Thompson returned to the floor four minutes later, and her presence made all the difference. With Thompson in the lineup, the Bulldogs matched the Tar Heels bucket for bucket the rest of the half.
"We have a vision of our program being one of the best in the country," Wiggins said. "That doesn't happen overnight. I'm sure that took UConn a long time.... We're not in any rush. I don't know when we're going to win in this tournament, but it's going to happen."
Notes
- Jaleesa Ross became the first Bulldog with more than 2,000 career points. She finished her career with 2,002 points after scoring 14 vs. North Carolina. Only two players in WAC history have scored 2,000 points, Becky Hammond (CSU), 2,740 and Julie Krommenhoek (Utah), 2,087. Krommenhoek was the alternate official for the Fresno State vs. UNC game.
- Ross finished her career with 389 career three-point field goals, most of any player in WAC history and among the most in NCAA history. She's had 34 more three's than CSU's Hammond, who ranks second in WAC history.
- Fresno State's 50 three-point field goal attempts were the second-most in a game in NCAA history, most by a team in a regulation game. The NCAA record is 52 set by Alabama in a 1995 NCAA tournament game vs. Duke that played four overtime sessions.
- This was Fresno State's first game against an opponent from the ACC. No. 14 North Carolina won its 27th game of the season.
- The Dogs trailed 40-36 at halftime, the closest scoring margin in the NCAA tournament for Fresno State.
- The Dogs averaged 25.3 points per game the last three seasons.
- Fresno State's senior class (Jaleesa Ross, Emma Andrews, Taja Edward, Hayley Munro and Marnique Arnold) finished its career with 97 victories, more than any in school history, and four straight NCAA tournament appearances.
"We are Your Team!" The Fresno State women's basketball team finished with a record of 25-8 on the season after a loss to North Carolina in the NCAA tournament in Albuquerque.
