Memphis, Tenn. — Although top-ranked Tennessee had history and the crowd on its side Saturday, Vanderbilt had Ashley McElhiney.
The sophomore guard hit 12 of 14 free throws in the final 3:16 and finished with 27 points as No. 15 Vanderbilt upended Tennessee 77-74 in the semifinals of the Southeastern Conference tournament.
Vanderbilt center Chantelle Anderson added 26 points as the Commodores (21-8) ended a 14-game losing streak against its instate rival.
"Ashley is awesome," Anderson said. "You can't get in her head. They tried to take her out of the game, and she runs this team and it's very obvious. We all know that. Obviously, they did too because they tried to take her out, and she refused to let it happen."
The loss also snapped an 18-game winning streak for top-seeded Tennessee (29-2).
Vanderbilt scored its last 16 points at the free-throw line, going 16-of-20 in the final 3:16. McElhiney, who played all 40 minutes, handled most of the load despite Tennessee fans almost shaking the court at times with cheering that made The Pyramid the Vols' home away from home.
Tennessee, which had won the past three SEC tournaments, pulled within three twice in the final 19 seconds with three-pointers from April McDivitt and Semeka Randall, but the Vols ran out of time.
Tennessee led by as much as 13 three times in the first half. Michelle Snow and Semeka Randall each had 15 for Tennessee, which hadn't lost since Dec. 30 at Connecticut.
No. 5 Louisiana Tech 86, Kentucky 63
Mobile, Ala. Cheryl Ford scored all 13 of her points in the second half for Louisiana Tech in the quarterfinal round of the Sun Belt tournament. Ayana Walker scored 22 points for Tech (26-4).
No. 6 Georgia 63, Arkansas 44
Memphis, Tenn. Kelly Miller scored 12 points and Tiaunna Briggans added 11 as Georgia (25-5) advanced to the finals of the SEC tournament.
No. 8 Purdue 74, Michigan 55
Grand Rapids, Mich. Katie Douglas scored 18 points as Purdue (26-5) beat Michigan (18-11) in the semifinals of the Big Ten tournament. Camille Cooper added 16 points and 14 rebounds.
No. 12 Xavier 86, Massachusetts 64
Philadelphia Jennifer Phillips had 22 points as Xavier won its 16th straight game and advanced to the semifinals of the Atlantic 10 tournament.
No. 13 Utah 64,
New Mexico 59
Salt Lake City Lauren Beckman had 16 points and nine rebounds as Utah (25-2, 14-0) rallied for the win. The Utes went unbeaten in the Mountain West for the first time in 18 seasons under coach Elaine Elliott.
No. 21 N.C. State 74, Maryland 61
Greensboro, N.C. Carisse Moody scored 22 points and Tynesha Lewis added 14 as N.C. State won its first ACC postseason game since 1996. Maryland (17-11) had swept the Wolfpack (19-9) during the regular season. Deedee Warley led Maryland with 26 points.
Oregon State 72,
No. 22 Arizona State 64
Corvallis, Ore. Felicia Ragland scored a career-high 32 points as Oregon State (16-11, 8-9 Pac-10) extended its winning streak to five games. Ragland tied a school record with six three-pointers.
No. 23 Iowa 86, Illinois 79
Grand Rapids, Mich. Cara Consuegra's 21 points led five Iowa players in double figures as the Hawkeyes held off Illinois in a semifinal game of the Big Ten tournament. Leah Magner hit five three-pointers and scored 19 points for Iowa.
No. 25 Clemson 75, North Carolina 57
Greensboro, N.C. Marci Glenney scored 18 points as Clemson won its fifth straight and advanced to the semifinals of the ACC tournament.
No comments
Commenting is turned off for this story.