Lady Tigers’ Season Ends With 67-53 Loss To NC State In ACC Tournament

March 2, 2006

GREENSBORO, NC – The Clemson women’s basketball team’s 2005-06 season was ended Thursday afternoon with a 67-53 loss to NC State at the ACC Tournament in Greensboro, NC. The Lady Tigers concluded the year with an 8-21 record. The Wolfpack will go on to face fourth-seed Florida State on Friday at 4:00 PM.

“We battled hard for a half,” Head Coach Cristy McKinney said. “Our defense was good in the first half, other than fouling a little too much. Both teams struggled to score in the first half, and we were able to really challenge some shots. But, NC State’s quickness hurt us in the second half and they played well enough to win the game.”

Sophomore D’Lesha Lloyd led the Clemson squad with 11 points on 4-8 shooting, while Julie Talley added nine in her final game as a Lady Tiger.

Marquetta Dickens led all scorers with 16 points, and Khadijah Whittington collected a game-high nine rebounds.

The Lady Tigers held the Wolfpack to a .241 field goal percentage in the first half, but NC State responded by shooting 60% in the second period.

Both teams struggled offensively in the first half, scoring a combined 47 points in the opening 20 minutes. Clemson held NC State scoreless on its first nine possessions but only managed six points of its own during the stretch. The Wolfpack then scored 12 straight points to tie the game at the 13:43 mark, and went up by six points during a seven-minute Lady Tiger scoring draught.

Clemson tied the score at 14-14 on a field goal by Talley and a Lloyd jumper regained the lead for the Lady Tigers at the 5:44 mark. Maxienne White then gave Clemson a five-point advantage on a lay-up with 2:23 remaining, but the Lady Tigers failed to score the remainder of the half and took just a one-point, 24-23, lead into the break.

The Wolfpack was 8-14 from the free throw line during the period while Clemson did not attempt a foul shot. NC State then converted 11-16 in the second half to aid its winning effort.

Sasha Reaves made a lay-up in the opening minute of the second period to give the Wolfpack a 25-24 lead. A Talley three-pointer put the Lady Tigers back up by two before NC State quickly went ahead by six points for an advantage it would not relinquish for the remainder of the game.

Clemson came within four points at 46-42 at the 9:58 mark on jumper by Tasha Taylor, but NC State then went on a 19-5 run during the next 6:15 to take its largest lead of the game at 65-47. The Wolfpack then went on the claim the game and its 18th victory of the season by a 67-53 margin.