European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 30, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday March 30 2007 stars and stripes Pace 29 air Force rally Falls Short in nit semifinal by Jake Schaller the Gazette new York air Force senior Center Nick Welchs nose was broken and his blood was on the floor at Madison Square Garden but he had air forces Trainer reset the Bones in his nose by hand and then stuff a tissue up his nostril to Stop the bleeding and he headed Back to the court he want going away and neither were the Falcons air Force lost to Clemson 6867 in the National invitation tournament semifinals on tuesday night but the Falcons did not let their season end without a valiant fight clawing Back from a 12point second half deficit before time ran out on their season theres no quit in these Young men said air Force coach Jeff Bzdelik who declined to discuss if he plans to return unbelievable character unbelievable Perse Verance we battled All the Way to the end the Falcons loss marked the end of an Era As six seniors four of whom were starters played their last game for a pro Gram they helped Rescue from the cellar of the Mountain West conference their 26 victories this season set a school record Frank air forces Nick Welch is helped off the court after breaking his nose against Clem son tuesday during the an nit semifinal at Madison Square Garden in new York whether the loss ends the Bzdelik Era re Mains Uncertain after the game the coach who is a candidate for the vacant head position at Colorado refused to address his future that not a question that needs to be addressed right now Bzdelik said when asked if he would be Back at air Force next season its for this basketball team this is their moment their moment almost was incredible air Force went on a 142 run capped by a Welch three Pointer that tied the game at 51 with to play Clemson edged Back in front thanks in Large part to a pair of three pointers by pc Rivers who scored a game High 19 Points the tigers seemed to have the game in hand with a 6862 Lead 145 seconds left and Rivers on the line Rivers however missed both free throws and Welch scored with 42 seconds left off an assist from Anderson to Cut the tigers Lead to four Dan new allele then stole Clemson ensuing inbound pass and drained a three Pointer to bring air Force within a Point 6867 with 12 seconds to play they Are not the kind of team that goes away Clemson coach Oliver Purnell said but the Falcons  Complete the magic trick and the players were left to consider some painful statistics Clemson out rebounded the Falcons 3023 and grabbed 11 offensive boards air Force missed eight of 14 free throws Between free throws and not enough defensive rebounds we dug ourselves a Hole Bzdelik said and against a great team like Clemson and we congratulate Clemson its Tough to overcome the tigers now 2510 will play for the not championship thursday night against West Virginia which beat Mississippi 6362 with a Buzzer eating three Pointer Welch who made All seven of his shots from the floor led the Falcons with 16 Points Matt Mccraw added 15 new allele had 13 and Jacob Burtschi had 12 and a game High eight rebounds air Force trailed 2813 with less than four minutes to play in the first half but went on a 90 run the Falcons 269 forced turnovers on three straight Clem son possessions to help fuel the run two on steals by Burtschi and the third when Mccraw picked up a charge it was the first of several bursts that gave the Falcons Hope that they could extend the careers of their six seniors one More game you can honestly look and say that we did leave it on the court in the second half Burtschi said we gave it everything we had unfortunately we came up one Point Short North Carolina Tennessee headed Back to final four the associated press Dallas teams heading to a second straight final four often downplay the Victory that sends them Back choosing instead a Bee there Don that attitude North Carolina has a different attitude make that Latta tude Spunky Point guard Ivory Latta caught the final rebound of an 8472 Victory Over Purdue in the finals of the Dallas regional on tuesday night then held the Ball for about 10 seconds until time expired her smile widened As time narrowed then she let out a scream and threw a sky High pass to no one the tone set a wild Celebration followed by the time Latta finished blowing kisses to the crowd and turning the putdown net into a necklace tar heels athletic director Dick Baddour was on the court dancing in a Circle with three players Latta kept beaming at a news conference saying Shes looking Forward to visiting one of my Best friends Lebron James when unc Rolls into Cleveland this weekend in definitely going there to get a Job done definitely going to have fun Latta said North Carolina has been knocked out in the late rounds of the Mcaa tournament by the eventual Champion each of the last two seasons last years title shot was ruined when Latta Hurt her knee Early in a loss to Mary land in the National semifinal she bounced Back from sur Gery last april and various other things this season All the Way Down to a leg cramp that sent her to the locker room several min utes before halftime of this game through it All there was one theme Latta refusing to be de Nied a return trip to the final four to Cap her standout collegiate career Ive definitely sacrificed a lot to make sure my team gets Back there said Latta whose 21 Points were the most Shes scored in this tournament ill do what Ever it takes ill Lay my body out on the line every single night i dont think it hit me yet when i get Back to Chapel Hill ill bust out crying or something like that the Reward for North Carolina improving to 343 and setting a school record for wins a National semifinal game against fellow no 1 seed Tennessee in Cleveland on sunday tonight on to before we went out they showed the top 10 and Only two Are left us and ten Nessee unc coach Sylvia Hatch Ell said North Carolina won this one by doing the dirty work in the Lane led by Erlanna Larkins Larkins was too much for the boilermakers 316 to handle scoring 20 of her career High 29 Points in the paint and grabbing 10 rebounds the tar heels out scored Purdue 5228 in the Lane there real physical and Tough Down there boilermakers Forward Erin Lawless said there fantastic Down Low Dayton regional Tennessee 98 Mississippi 62 to beat Tennessee Mississippi needed to play a nearly perfect game instead Candace Parker and the lady vols did with Parker dominating at both ends and the talented lady vols getting contributions from Al most everybody else on the Ros Ter they rolled Over the rebels and into their 17th final four Parker scored 24 Points and had 14 rebounds but she dictated the game in Many ways she hit 10 of 14 shots from the Field and also had three assists three steals and five blocked shots in a virtual highlight film of a game she might have posted even gaudier numbers if coach Pat Summit haunt rested her at the end of the first half and for the final of the game Sidney Spencer had 16 of her 22 Points in the second half Shannon Bobbitt had 14 Points including 10 of Tennessee first 24 in a fast Start Alberta Auguste added 12 Points Armintie Price dazzled for 30 Points for seventh seeded Ole miss which has been within a game of the final four five times and has lost every time Ashley awkward chipped in with 14 Points the lady vols shot 52 percent from the Field and hit 8 of 11 three pointers while limiting Ole miss to just 32 percent shooting from the Field the rebels were just 3for20 from behind the arc this team is very special Summitt said after she was presented with the regional championship trophy enjoy the Freedom you fight for its your turn to ride order your Bike exactly the Way you want it have it waiting for you when you arrive Home prices always under Srp lowest Price 100 satisfaction guarantee Harley Davidson visit us on base and Start living the dream 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