Maryland bounces Tennessee again, reaches Final Four
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Spokane, WA (SportsNetwork.com) - Tennessee got the rematch it wanted, but Maryland proved too much down the stretch to knock the Lady Vols out of the NCAA Tournament for a second straight year.
Brionna Jones totaled 14 points and nine rebounds, Lexie Brown stepped up in the second half, and top-seeded Maryland captured the Spokane Region with a 58-48 victory on Monday.
Brown scored 13 of her 15 points after the break for the Terrapins (34-2), who will bring a 28-game winning streak into its second straight Final Four.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}They will face Connecticut, the top overall seed, in Tampa on Sunday.
Ariel Massengale led the second-seeded Lady Vols (30-6) with 16 points.
The loss extended a relatively long Final Four drought for Tennessee, which has dropped all four of its Elite Eight games since last winning one in 2008.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}On this same day last season, Maryland upset the Lady Vols in the regional semifinal. Tennessee was looking to return the favor and held a 46-44 lead with under five minutes remaining.
From that point on, Tennessee shot 1-of-11 from the floor.
Brown hit her third 3-pointer of the half to put the Terps back in front, Laurin Mincy inadvertently banked in a long jumper from the top of the key, and Brown made a reverse layup for a 51-46 lead.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Massengale scored inside to pull UT within one possession, and a turnover in the backcourt gave the Lady Vols a chance to tie. Cierra Burdick, though, airballed a 3-pointer, and Maryland sealed its fifth trip to the Final Four at the foul line.
The Terps came out sluggish, making just one field goal over the first six- plus minutes, but they slowly chipped away at their 9-2 deficit and went into the break with a 22-21 lead on Brown's late bucket.
Both teams combined to shoot an ugly 31.7 percent from the floor in the first half, and it went back-and-forth before Maryland took over in crunch time.