ODU powers way past K-State 88-62

MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Old Dominion's pressure was too much for Kansas State's youth.

Lucienne Berthieu scored 30 points and the Lady Monarchs, angered by their seventh seed, beat Kansas State 88-62 in a Mideast Regional semifinal game Saturday.

Old Dominion will play Connecticut on Monday in the regional final, with the winner advancing to the Final Four.

"We're in a position now to ruin parties and that's a great place to be," Old Dominion coach Wendy Larry said. "When you're in that position, you can be more relaxed."

Berthieu shot 13-for-18 from the field, and the three-time Colonial Athletic Association player of the year was a dominating presence on the low post, drawing as many as three defenders.

"She got the best of me pretty much all the game," Kansas State center Nicole Ohlde said.

Old Dominion (28-5) shot 66 percent, including an 8-for-8 performance by Monique Coker, who finished with 16.

The Lady Monarchs played stingy defense early, limiting Ohlde to four first-half points. She finished with 23.

The Wildcats' other two top scorers also were held in check.

Laurie Koehn scored her first points with 15:41 left and finished with 11.

Kendra Wecker led Kansas State (26-8) early. After scoring 11 points in the first 15 minutes, Wecker picked up her third foul and sat out the rest of the first half.

"We had athleticism and size, and I'm not sure that's a combination they saw very often," Larry said.

Old Dominion limited the Wildcats' shot from beyond the arc, forcing Kansas State to attempt to penetrate. That move frustrated the Wildcats' lineup, which included two sophomores and two freshman, and forced 21 turnovers.

"We got intimidated early and never recovered from that emotionally," Kansas State coach Deb Patterson said. "We played extremely tight. We were our own worst enemy the first 10 minutes of the game."

The Lady Monarchs were up nine by the 10-minute mark. Myriah Spence put them up 45-21 at the half with a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

Old Dominion pushed its lead to 31 in the second half and maintained at least a 20-point lead the rest of the way.

Old Dominion displayed the same dominance on the boards its showed while knocking off second-seeded Purdue last week, finishing with 10 more rebounds than the Wildcats.

Larry said the Monarchs found inspiration in their seventh-seeded position.

"I can tell you we weren't just happy to be here," Larry said.

 

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