Southland Weekly Women's Basketball - March 12, 2001 NCAA Edition
3/12/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 12, 2001
The CenturyTel Center in Bossier City, La., was bathed in a sea of purple and white - both Stephen F. Austin and Northwestern sport the same colors - for the women's championship in the 2001 Southland Conference CenturyTel Classic Saturday afternoon. The opponents were very familiar with each other, having met in the final seven previous times with SFA coming out the victor each time.
History repeated itself.
SFA used speed, a second-half surge and a rich winning tradition to defeat NSU, 82-73, for its 13th SLC Tournament title in the past 14 years. After falling behind at the half, 35-32, the Ladyjacks made adjustments to their game plan. They broke the game open in the final three and half minutes by scoring eight unanswered points to lead by 14 at 76-62. The Lady Demons had to foul to get the ball, but they could not whittle away at the deficit as SFA sunk six of their last eight free throws.
Junior Latisha Prater, who was named the tournament Most Valuable Player, led the Ladyjacks' rally. After scoring just four points in the opening stanza, Prater tallied 17 in the second for a total of 21 points. She notched her second double-double of the season by adding a game-high 14 rebounds.
Four Ladyjacks scored in double digits - Prater, Chaquita Dilworth (15), Nathesia Wright (14), and Lashinda Winters (12) - and helped SFA register a .492 field goal percentage on 32-of-65 shooting.
Kia Converse was the game's high scorer, leading three NSU players in double figures (La'Terrica Dobin, 16, Jamila Newman, 12). NSU shot .400 from the floor (30-of-75).
"I am so proud of the way our players adjusted throughout the game," SFA Head Coach Royce Chadwick said. "We had some players step up big time. I thought we could get a five-point lead and hold on, but Northwestern State is a great young team and they wouldn't let us do that. We had to adjust the game plan. We're proud to be representing the Southland Conference in the NCAA Tournament."
SFA (26-6) is seeded 13th in the West Region and will face No. 4-seed Rutgers (22-7) Saturday in Piscataway, N.J. This is the Ladyjacks' 16th trip to the "Big Dance" and their 14th in a row.
Notes The Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks have written the book on Southland Conference appearances in the NCAA Tournament. The 2001 first-round trip is SFA's 16th appearance in the Division I Women's Basketball National Championship and 14th in a row.
SFA's 15-year NCAA Tournament record is 10-15 (.400) and it has received four first-round byes. The first two trips the Ladyjacks were not members of the SLC.
SFA's first-round record is 5-6. The Ladyjacks' second-round record is 5-4 and they are 0-5 in the Sweet 16. They have scored 1,734 points and allowed 1,821.
In last year's tournament, SFA upset No. 24 Xavier, 73-72, in the first round.
The Ladyjacks have made it to the Sweet Sixteen five times - in 1989, 1990, 1992 and 1993 under coach Gary Blair, and in 1996 under current coach Royce Chadwick.
Head Coach Royce Chadwick's tournament record with Stephen F. Austin is 4-6 in six years. He has led the Ladyjacks to the "Big Dance" all seven years he has been at SFA. He sports a 16-1 SLC tournament record and an overall postseason record of 20-7.
Five players were on last year's team that advanced to the second round - senior guard Patricia Brown, sophomore forward Amy Collins, senior center Tami Rater, junior guard Lashinda Winters, and sophomore guard Nathesia Wright.
Here's how SFA has faired against the teams competing in the first and second rounds in Piscataway, N.J. this weekend. SFA has never met its first-round opponent, Rutgers (22-7).
SFA is 0-1 against the No. 5 seed, Southwest Missouri State (25-5). The Ladyjacks lost, 81-75, back in the 1984-85 regular season.
SFA is 1-0 against the No. 12 seed, Toledo (25-5). The Ladyjacks defeated the Rockets, 79-66, in the NCAA First Round in 1997.
SFA's Year-by-Year Look 2000: First Round, Baton Rouge, La. - SFA 73, Xavier 72, Second Round - Louisiana State 57, SFA 45.
1999: First Round, Lubbock, Texas - Texas Tech 80, SFA 54.
1998: First Round, Knoxville, Tenn. - Western Kentucky 88, SFA 76.
1997: First Round, Boulder, Colo. - SFA 79, Toledo 66, Second Round - Colorado 66, SFA 57.
1996: First Round, Clemson, S.C. - SFA 67, Oregon State 65, Second Round, Boulder, Colo. - SFA 93, Clemson 88 (OT), Midwest Regional, Nacogdoches, Texas - Georgia 78, SFA 64.
1995: South Regional First Round, Chapel Hill, N.C. - Seton Hall 73, SFA 63.
1994: Midwest Regional First Round, Nacogdoches, Texas - Kansas 72, SFA 63.
1993: Second Round, Nacogdoches, Texas - SFA 89, Clemson 78, Midwest Regional, Nacogdoches, Texas - Vanderbilt 59, SFA 56.
1992: Second Round, Nacogdoches, Texas - SFA 75, Creighton 74, West Regional, Seattle, Wash. - USC 61, SFA 57.
1991: First Round, Nacogdoches, Texas - SFA 73, Mississippi 62, Second Round, Charlottesville, Va. - Virginia 74, SFA 72.
1990: Second Round, Nacogdoches, Texas - SFA 73, Long Beach State 62, West Regional, Stanford, Calif. - Arkansas 87, SFA 82.
1989: Second Round, Nacogdoches, Texas - SFA 73, Washington 63, West Regional, Austin, Texas - Maryland 89, SFA 54.
1988: First Round, Nacogdoches, Texas - SFA 84, Louisiana State 62, Second Round, Iowa City, Iowa - Iowa 83, SFA 65.
1983: First Round, Long Beach, Calif. - Long Beach State 88, SFA 61.
1982: First Round, Manhattan, Kan. - Kansas State 78, SFA 75.
The other Southland teams to make it to the NCAA Tournament have been Louisiana-Monroe (1983, '84, '85, '87), Northwestern State (1989), North Texas (1986), and Southwest Texas (1997).
ULM advanced to the Final Four in 1985, losing to Old Dominion, 57-47.
Southland Conference teams have made 20 appearances in the NCAA Tournament for a record of 15-20 (.429).
Stephen F. Austin has one of the longest streaks of consecutive tournament appearances. The Ladyjacks are in the top four in NCAA history with 14th straight berths.
Southland Seeds in the Big Dance 1982 - *Stephen F. Austin (5) 0-1 1983 - La.-Monroe (no seed) 1-1 *Stephen F. Austin (7) 0-1 1984 - La.-Monroe (6) 1-1 1985 - La.-Monroe (2) 3-1 1986 - North Texas (10) 0-1 1987 - La.-Monroe (10) 0-1 1988 - Stephen F. Austin (8) 1-1 1989 - Stephen F. Austin (4) 1-1 Northwestern State (10) 0-1 1990 - Stephen F. Austin (3) 1-1 1991 - Stephen F. Austin (8) 1-1 1992 - Stephen F. Austin (2) 1-1 1993 - Stephen F. Austin (4) 1-1 1994 - Stephen F. Austin (8) 0-1 1995 - Stephen F. Austin (11) 0-1 1996 - Stephen F. Austin (11) 2-1 1997 - Stephen F. Austin (7) 1-1 Southwest Texas (14) 0-1 1998 - Stephen F. Austin (9) 0-1 1999 - Stephen F. Austin (15) 0-1 2000 - Stephen F. Austin (11) 1-1 2001 - Stephen F. Austin (13) tbd *not a member of the Southland -SLC-
