Associated Press
NEW ORLEANS ó First-year LSU coach Van Chancellor can thank Sylvia Fowles for his first trip to a Final Four.
Fowles had 21 points, 12 rebounds and five blocked shots, lifting LSU to a 56-50 victory against top-seeded North Carolina on Monday night. The victory sent the second-seeded Lady Tigers (31-5) to their fifth Final Four in as many seasons.
iWe knew it was our last year, and we wanted to go all out,î said Fowles, a senior who was named the most outstanding player of the New Orleans regional.
For North Carolina (33-3), forced to play before a hostile crowd wearing purple and gold, the loss snapped a 16-game winning streak and left the Tar Heels one victory short of a third consecutive Final Four appearance.
LaToya Pringle led the Tar Heels with 21 points, all but two coming in the second half, but it was not enough as the rest of her team combined for 10 points after the break.
UNC came in with five players averaging double figures in scoring, but Pringle was the only one to eclipse 10. Rashanda McCants scored nine and Jessica Breland eight.
Stanford 98, Maryland 87
SPOKANE, Wash. ó Candice Wiggins scored 41 points as the second-seeded Cardinal pulled away from No. 1-seed Maryland 98-87 in the Spokane Regional final.
DUKE TRANSFER
DURHAM ó Freshman Taylor King has decided to leave Duke, school officials announced Monday. King saw action in all 34 games in 2007-08, averaging 5.9 points and 2.0 rebounds per game.
A Huntington Beach, Calif., native, King made the eight-most 3-pointers by a freshman in Duke history, finishing the season with 43. He also shot 38.7 percent (43-of-111) from 3-point rang to rank seventh among freshmen at Duke.
King had a pair of 20-point games, including a 27-point outburst against Eastern Kentucky on Nov. 25.
iTaylor is a solid young man and has the ability to be a good player,î Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. iWe support him in his decision to transfer and wish him the best of luck in the future.î
CBI
TULSA, Okla. ó Jerome Jordan scored 18 points, including two clinching free throws, to help lead Tulsa to a 73-68 victory over Bradley in the first game of a best-of-three series in the College Basketball Invitational finals on Monday.
EARLY ENTRIES
The Lopez twins are going pro together.
Stanford sophomore Robin Lopez is joining his 7-foot brother Brook in entering the NBA draft.
The brothers made their announcement to The Associated Press on Monday through their mother, Deborah Ledford.
It was expected that Brook would declare himself eligible for the NBA, but Robin was not so certain. They were prep stars in Fresno, Calif., and came to Stanford together. Now they will depart as a tandem, too.
NFL
PALM BEACH, Fla. ó NFL owners unanimously approved Wayne Huizengaís sale of 50 percent of the Miami Dolphins to New York real estate billionaire Stephen Ross on Monday at the league meetings.
n The Atlanta Falcons were awarded an extra pick in the NFL draft, receiving a third-round selection as compensation for their free agent losses last season. The league awarded the Falcons the 98th overall pick as part of 32 compensatory picks given to 15 teams.
NHL
NEW YORK ó Chris Drury scored a power-play goal 1:46 into overtime, giving the New York Rangers a 2-1 victory over Pittsburgh on Monday night that kept the Penguins from clinching their first division title in 10 years.
Thrashers 2, Lightning 0
TAMPA, Fla. ó Ilya Kovalchuk scored two third-period goals for Atlanta.
TENNIS
KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. ó Serena Williams defeated Kaia Kanepi 6-3, 6-3 on Monday to advance to the quarterfinals of the Sony Ericsson Open, where she has won four titles. Williams will next play top-ranked Justine Henin, renewing one of the best rivalries in tennis.
Tuesdayís winner could meet Venus Williams in the semifinals. Three-time champion Venus, seeded sixth, advanced by beating 17-year-old Caroline Wozniacki 6-3, 6-3. Henin defeated Elena Vesnina 6-2, 6-2.
No. 1 Roger Federer and
No. 6 Andy Roddick reached the fourth round on the menís side.