Sunday's NCAA Tournament Capsules

Apr 7, 2008 - 3:57 AM FINAL FOUR ----------

(2) STANFORD 82, (1) CONNECTICUT 73 -----------------------------------

TAMPA, Florida (Ticker) -- Candice Wiggins had 25 points and 13 rebounds and Kayla Pedersen added 17 points as Stanford held off overall No. 1 seed Connecticut, 82-73, in the national semifinals on Sunday.

Jayne Appel chipped in 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Cardinal (35-3), who will face either Tennessee and Louisiana State on Tuesday night in their first national title game appearance since 1992.

The Wade Trophy winner, Wiggins shot 7-of-19 from the floor and added five assists to lead the Cardinal to their 23rd consecutive win.

Stanford went on a 10-4 run midway through the first half to open up a 25-18 lead with 8:33 to play and held a 40-33 advantage at the break.

Connecticut scored the first five points of the second half and later pulled within 47-46, but Stanford had an answer.

Wiggins made consecutive 3-pointers to ignite a 10-0 spurt as Stanford took a 57-46 bulge with 10:28 remaining.

The Huskies (36-2) closed within 71-66 with under three minutes to play but Pedersen made a 3-pointer and Wiggins scored on a jumper to push Stanford's lead up to 76-66 with 1:42 to play, and the Cardinal cruised to the finish.

Freshman Maya Moore had 20 points and eight rebounds to pace the Huskies, who shot 37 percent (26-of-69) from the field. The 82 points were also the most the Huskies have allowed in a game this season.



(1) TENNESSEE 47, (2) LSU 46 ----------------------------

TAMPA, Florida (Ticker) -- Alexis Hornbuckle scored on a putback shot with seven-tenths of a second left to lift Tennessee to a 47-46 victory over Louisiana State on Sunday in the national semifinals.

Hornbuckle's dramatic follow shot of a miss by Nicky Anosike sent the defending champion Lady Vols (35-2) into Tuesday's title game against Stanford.

It also was a bitter loss for the Tigers (31-6), who are only the second team to earn a berth in five consecutive Final Fours but never have advanced to the championship game.

It was the only basket for Hornbuckle, who finished 1-of-8 from the floor and came after LSU's Erica White hit a pair of free throws to put the Tigers ahead, 46-45, with 7.1 seconds to play.

Candace Parker, playing with a separated left shoulder, had 13 points and 15 rebounds for seven-time national champion Tennessee, which lost in overtime at Stanford, 73-69, in December.

Sylvia Fowles had 24 points and 20 rebounds for the Tigers, who connected on just 7-of-19 shots at the free-throw line.

The teams had split two earlier meetings this season. LSU rallied from a 21-2 deficit to win at Tennessee, 78-62, in the regular season before the Lady Vols avenged that defeat with a 61-55 victory in the Southeastern Conference championship game.