SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) – Notre Dame simply had too much for
16th-seeded Alcorn State.
|  | | Alcorn State guard Aja Wellington tries to drive on Notre Dame's Niele Ivey. |
Too much size. Too much skill. Too much depth.
The Braves were able to keep the game close briefly, but
Notre Dame broke it open with a 15-0 run and the Irish easily
advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament Saturday with a
98-49 victory in the Midwest Region.
Ruth Riley was perfect from the floor and the free-throw line
while scoring 16 points in only 20 minutes.
"It was fun to watch from the bench," she said.
Four Irish starters scored in double figures, and all 12 players
on the roster scored as Notre Dame shot 54.5 percent for the game.
The top-seeded Irish, who have five players 6 feet or taller,
had a 62-34 rebounding advantage over Alcorn State (21-11), which
has no players taller than 5-11.
Notre Dame (29-2) will face Michigan in the second round Monday.
The Irish, wearing green uniforms on St. Patrick's Day, held
Alcorn State to a season-low 21.1 percent shooting. The Braves
said it was their shooting, not the Irish defense, that was their
biggest problem.
"We just missed a lot of shots," Cherea Wood said.
Wood, the Lady Braves' leading scorer at 17.2 points a game, was
held to nine points on 4-for-24 shooting. She had only two points in
the first half and fouled out with five seconds left in the game.
The Lady Braves used a pair of 3-pointers by Daisha Reed to open
a 10-6 lead. They led again 13-11 after Taresha Coleman's
3-pointer, but then the Irish took control.
"We jumped out pretty good in the first few minutes, but we had
some problems with their height down low," Alcorn State coach
Shirley Walker said.
The Irish went on their run when they switched from a 2-3 zone
to a man defense.
"Their shooting really surprised us and forced us out of the
zone," Irish coach Muffet McGraw said.
Notre Dame also had a 17-0 run and led 47-23 at halftime.
The Braves went 14:11 without making a shot from the floor.
Reed finally ended it with a 3-pointer with 14:22 left, making it
61-29.
Riley was 6-for-6 from the field and 4-for-4 from the
line while adding seven rebounds. Erica Haney had 14 points and six
rebounds, Kelley Siemon had 13 points and nine rebounds, and Alicia
Ratay scored 13.
Coleman led the Braves with 15 points.
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ALSO SEE
Women's College Basketball Scoreboard
Alcorn State Clubhouse
Notre Dame Clubhouse
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