By Mike Baldwin
Staff Writer
DES MOINES, Iowa — In the waning minutes of the Seminoles' first-round
NCAA Tournament win,
Florida State's band chanted: "We Be-long! We Be-long!”
It was a reference to some analysts saying the Seminoles didn't deserve a bid to the 64-team women's field.
Don't let
Florida State's No. 11 seed or "last team in” tag fool you. The Seminoles are athletic, talented and are used to winning in the
NCAA Tournament.
Oklahoma State faces the Seminoles at 6 tonight at
Wells Fargo Arena, the winner earning a Sweet 16 berth in the women's
NCAA Tournament.
OSU coach
Kurt Budke said FSU's 60-49 win over No. 25
Ohio State on Saturday night was proof the
ACC battle-tested Seminoles can play with any team in the country.
"If anyone thinks that was a big upset they didn't watch the game,” Budke said. "
Florida State is a very talented, very deep, well-coached team.”
The Seminoles aren't insulted by the "last team in” tag. Because of a 19-13 record, partly due to three players serving suspensions at various points this season, they knew they were a bubble team.
"We didn't have a chip on our shoulders,” said FSU coach
Sue Semrau. "We knew we had been through some tough things. If we got in, great. If we were not in, fine.
"During the selection show, there was a pureness in the excitement level they felt. It gave us a different kind of energy.”
Florida State has won a first-round
NCAA Tournament game five consecutive years. Last season, the Seminoles were a No. 10 seed but reached the Sweet 16 for the first time with wins over No. 7 seeded
Old Dominion and No. 2 seeded
Stanford.
"We felt it was a 50-50 chance (we'd get in),” said FSU forward
Mara Freshour. "I didn't hear the band chanting. I wish I had. But we do believe we belong. We're here to prove the selection committee was right.”
The Seminoles have been a different team since their leading scorer, 5-foot-11 junior guard Tanae Davis-Cain, returned in mid-January following a nine-game suspension tied to an academic misconduct scandal.
"We're still growing as a basketball team,” Semrau said. "As a team, we've really only been together for 13 games. If you started at the beginning of the season, the first 13 games weren't very good. Our chemistry is really just starting to develop.”
OSU's chemistry has been good for months. Led by All-American point guard
Andrea Riley, the Cowgirls are battle tested, having posted road wins at No. 8
Texas A&M and No. 12 Baylor and a run to the
Big 12 Tournament finals.
"They played in a tough conference, so they're game ready,” Semrau said. "Anytime you have someone like
Andrea Riley it's a difficult matchup for anybody. She's so dangerous. Obviously, she demands a lot of attention.”
The Seminoles have been hot and cold. They lost in overtime at No. 5 Maryland but were blown out by 32 points at Duke. The biggest difference is the Cowgirls are 4-4 against teams ranked in the final Top 25 AP national poll. The Seminoles are 1-8.
Tonight, one team will earn a Sweet 16 berth in New Orleans.
"This is something we've dreamed about our whole life,”
Riley said. "When I was younger I did brackets, and we'd say, ‘I wish I could make it to the Sweet 16, the Elite Eight.' ”
The Cowgirls have reached the Sweet 16 only once before (1991).
"They don't call it sweet for nothing,” said
OSU senior guard
Danielle Green. "We watched
Florida State on film. They're an amazing team. They're athletic. We'll have to play well. But if we make it, it will be an amazing feeling.”
Budke is encouraged, not discouraged, following
OSU's sloppy 85-73 first-round win over
East Tennessee State.
"The thing about this team is we very seldom put two bad (games) in a row together,” Budke said. "Right now it's about playing well and advancing, making sure that the 40 minutes is as close to perfect as you can get.
"It's a one-on-one thing with
Florida State and us. What other motivation do you need other than seeing that bracket and that Sweet 16 possibility?”
