University of Washington - Home

March 17, 2001

* Pregame Washington/Florida Quotes

The Game: Washington (20-9) will face host Florida (24-5) in NCAA Second Round action at 8:35 p.m. EST (5:35 p.m. PST), Sun., March 18 at the OConnell Center in Gainesville, Fla. The Huskies, who are the No. 6 seed in the West Region, advanced to the second round with a 67-65 victory over 11-seed Old Dominion Friday night. The Lady Gators, the No. 3 seed, defeated 14-seed Holy Cross, 84-52, in the first round. Both Washington and Florida earned at-large berths to the NCAA Tournament.

Television / Radio
The Washington-Florida second round NCAA game will be televised live on ESPN Fullcourt with Larry Vettel and Leah Secondo, a pay-per-view option on the network. The game will air live in Washington on Fox Sports Northwest. It can also be heard on radio at KOMO Radio am 1000. Fans can access the game on internet at www.gohuskies.com and then going to http:www.broadcast.com/sports/ncaa/washington or from the Florida site at gatorzone.com

The Coaches

Washington
June Daugherty (Ohio State 78)
Record at UW: 79-65 (5th yr.)
Career: 202-139 (12th yr.)

Florida
Carol Ross (Mississippi 82)
Record at UF and career: 229-109 (11th yr.)

Tournament Notes
Washington improved to 12-12 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and 7-3 in first round action ... the Huskies are making their first appearance in the tournament since 1998 ... it is the third appearance under fifth-year Husky coach June Daugherty ... the victory over Old Dominion was the first win in the first round since 1995.

Series Notes
This will be the first meeting between Florida and Washington ... the Huskies own a record of 6-4 against teams from the Southeastern Conference ... the last time UW faced an SEC team was in the 1997-98 season when the Huskies knocked off Vanderbilt, 82-71, Dec. 6, 1997 in Seattle ... Florida has a record of 5-2 against schools from the Pac-10.

About Florida
Ranked No. 14 in the most current Associated Press Top 25 Poll ... returned to the NCAA Tournament after a one year absence that broke a string of eight straight appearances ... tied with Georgia for second place in the SEC ...five players average double figure scoring, led by junior guard Brandi McCain at 19.6 points per game ... Washington and Florida have no common opponents this season.

Statistical Comparison UW UF Overall Record 20-9 24-5 Points per game 73.3 78.6 Field goal percentage .405 .435 3-pt. FG percentage .333 .304 Rebounding average 42.7 45.0

Dawg Bites
A win over Florida would give June Daugherty victory No. 80 at Washington ... Husky sophomore Loree Payne and Florida junior guard Brandi McCain were teammates on the USA Basketball Jones Cup Team this past summer ... McCain was injured and did not travel with the team to Taiwan, but returned in time for an exhibition game against the 2000 USA Olympic womens squad ... UW is 2-3 versus opponents ranked in the AP Top 25 this season ... Florida is ranked 14th in the March 11 AP poll while Washington received votes ... sophomore Cheryl Sorenson will celebrate her 21st birthday on game day.

Three Point Barrage
By adding seven more three point baskets against Old Dominion Friday night, the Huskies broke the Pac-10 Conference single season record for treys ... the Huskies have made 215 three pointers this year, breaking the old conference mark of 213 set by Stanford just last seaon ... the mark far surpasses UWs previous single season high of 150 in 1998 ... earlier this year, the Huskies broke the Pac-10 single game record with 16 three pointers versus Arizona.

Last Game

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Loree Payne got Washington's tournament off to a magical start Friday, hitting a 7-foot jump shot at the buzzer to lift the Huskies past Old Dominion 67-65 in the first round of the West Regional.

With 0.7 seconds remaining, Payne, a sophomore, took the inbounds pass from Megan Franza, spotted up on the baseline and swished home the game winner as the buzzer blared.

The sixth-seeded Huskies (20-9) rushed off the bench and mobbed Payne, pushing her into press row, as they celebrated a triumphant return to the tournament after a two-season absence.

No. 11 seed Old Dominion (21-9) trailed by as many as 10, but chipped away, and when Monique Coker hit a layup, the Lady Monarchs tied the game at 65 with 54 seconds remaining.

After a Washington turnover, Old Dominion had a chance for the go-ahead bucket, but lost the ball after shooting an air ball, then getting whistled for a shot-clock violation.

The Huskies brought the ball down, and Franza missed a 15-foot jumper. But the ball went out of bounds off Old Dominion, giving Payne her chance to be the hero.

It was a quick turnaround for Washington, which blew its chance to win the Pac-10 outright with two bad losses to to UCLA and USC - both at the bottom of the conference - to close the regular season.

The Huskies,who depend largely on their 3-point shooting, won despite making justj 7 of 22 from long range. Payne hit four 3-points and led Washington with 20 points. Franza, an All-Pac-10 first-teamer, finished wih 12 points and six assists.

Long a powerhouse in the womens game, Old Dominion came into the tournament with its lowest seed ever, even though it won its 10th Colonial Athletic Association title. Myriah Spence came off the bench to lead the Monarchs with 13 points while teammate Hamchetou Maiga had 11 points and seven rebounds. The loss was ODUs first opening-round loss since 1995.

What's Next: The winner of the Washington - Florida game advances to the West Region Semifinals in Spkane, Wash., March 24 and 26.