Boston College seeks another NCAA tournament upset against Utah

3/23/2006 1:58 PM

Boston College has already pulled off the biggest upset of the NCAA tournament. A repeat performance wouldn't be nearly as surprising, but it would earn the Eagles their first trip to a regional final.

The eighth-seeded Eagles (21-11) will try to continue their postseason run when they meet No. 5 seed Utah (26-6) on Saturday in an Albuquerque Regional semifinal.

These teams, meeting for the first time, are the two lowest seeds remaining in the tournament. In the other three regions, the top four seeds all advanced to the round of 16.

Boston College earned its third regional semifinal appearance in four years with Tuesday's 79-69 second-round upset of No. 1 seed Ohio State. The Eagles shot 51 percent from the field, made 7-of-13 from 3-point range and 14-of-17 at the foul line, handing the Buckeyes the earliest exit for a top seed since Texas Tech in 1998.

``I think even before the game, we were very confident that we could beat Ohio State,'' said Eagles junior guard Sarah Marshall, who scored 11 points. ``I think we're probably some of the only people who are not surprised.''

Junior guard Kindyll Dorsey led Boston College with 24 points and six 3-pointers, a school record for a tournament game. Senior forward Brooke Queenan, who leads the Eagles with 14.9 points and 8.0 rebounds per game, had 19 points and five boards while Kathrin Ress added 12 points.

Boston College had lost five straight games entering the NCAA tournament before a 78-61 win over Notre Dame in the first round. While the Eagles would love to get two more wins and earn a trip home to the Final Four in Boston, coach Cathy Inglese said her team remains focused on Saturday.

``We certainly want to play in Boston,'' said Inglese, whose squad is making its fifth consecutive tournament appearance and seventh overall. ``But right now, it's New Mexico.''

The Utes also are seeking their first trip to a regional final after advancing with an 86-65 win over No. 4 seed Arizona State on Monday. The only other time Utah made a regional semifinal came in 2001.

The Utes overcame a 15-point deficit Monday to tie the game at halftime and outscored the Sun Devils 34-13 in the last 10 minutes of the game to earn their sixth consecutive victory. Utah also rallied from 15 down in the second half of its first-round matchup with Middle Tennessee, winning 76-71.

``It's just a testament to our team,'' said senior forward Kim Smith, who had 25 points and nine rebounds Monday. ``We just keep on believing in ourselves and we just keep on battling back.''

Smith, a four-time Mountain West Conference player of the year, has averaged 19.7 points and 8.0 rebounds this season.

Shona Thorburn, who averages 7.3 assists, also had a big game Monday with 24 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds. Julie Larson added 19 points for the Utes, who shot 55 percent from the floor and 7-of-13 from 3-point range while outrebounding the Sun Devils 35-25.

Utah, which won the Mountain West tournament, is 17-0 when scoring 70 points or more.

The winner of this game will face No. 2 seed Maryland or No. 3 Baylor on Monday in the regional final.