March 3, 2006
DALLAS, Texas - Sophomore forward Jennifer Sands scored a game-high 17 points as No. 6 Tulane bounced No. 11 UCF in the first round of the 2006 Conference USA Women's Basketball Championship presented by Aeropostale Thursday night. Tulane posted a 69-52 victory to open the tournament.
The Green Wave improved to 14-11 and advanced to play No. 3 and tournament host SMU on Friday at 9:30 p.m. ET. The Golden Knights finished their inaugural season in C-USA at 7-21.
Early in the night, the two teams fought for possession of the scoreboard as neither could put together an offensive run. At 12:39, junior guard Francine Houston would hit a three-pointer to give the Golden Knights their first substantial lead at 12-8.
UCF was able to hold onto the advantage until a three-pointer by freshman guard Sasha Staidum put Tulane up 20-18 with 4:41 left to play in the period. The Green Wave controlled the half down the stretch, shutting down the Golden Knights' for the final three minutes, and took a 30-22 lead at intermission.
TU finished the period shooting 13-for-28 (46.4%) from the floor, while UCF sank 10-of-26 (38.5%). The Golden Knights also held an 18-14 advantage on the boards but had double the number of Tulane's turnovers with 10.
The two squads opened the second half trading baskets before freshman guard Megan Valicevic hit the first of two consecutive treys and ignited a 10-2 run for Tulane. With the Green Wave up 46-30 at 12:01, senior Shelby Weber hit UCF's first field goal in five minutes then senior guard LaShay King knocked down a three in a comeback attempt that fell short. TU went up by a game-high 18 points on Valicevic's trey at 7:46.
On the night, Tulane shot 27-for-61 (44.3%) from the field, while UCF went 19-for-50 (38.0%). The Green Wave had a 37-31 favor on the boards.
Houston finished with a team-high 15 points for the Golden Knights.