Oregon edges Houston on final possession
to win 2002 Postseason WNIT crown
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March 23, 2002; Eugene, Ore. - Cathrine Kraayeveld scored on a finger-roll layup with 2.4 seconds remaining to give Oregon the Women's Postseason NIT championship with a 54-52 victory over Houston on Wednesday night before a season-high 6,835 fans at McArthur Court.
"Cathrine is a sophomore and began the season inexperienced, but now she's playing like a veteran," first-year Oregon coach Bev Smith said. "She made the play based on what the defense gave her." Kraayeveld, the tournament MVP, led the Ducks (22-13) with 15 points, all in the second half. She also had 13 rebounds to record her fifth straight double-double and 11th of the season. "I think the game was typical of our season," Smith said. "We had to keep fighting our way back. Defensively, we were there and we kept them to their lowest point total of the season, but offensively we were out of sync and that's a credit to them. They are very athletic." Chandi Jones, also named to the all-tournament team, led Houston (26-8) with 16 points after hitting just two of nine shots in the first half. With Shaquala Williams, Oregon's leading scorer, struggling, Houston opened a 43-35 lead midway through the second half. But Oregon came back with a 10-2 run that included eight points from Kraayeveld. Williams finished with three points. Houston regained the lead twice in the final three-and-a-half minutes, the last time coming on a free throw by Jones that made it 50-48 with 1:33 remaining. Oregon came back behind senior sharpshooterJamie Craighead, who hit a 3-pointer to put the Ducks in front 51-50 with 1:20 left. She added a free throw with 48 seconds to go to push Oregon's lead to two. Houston tied the game with Valerie Muoneke's basket with 32 seconds left on the clock. That set up a potential game-winning 3-pointer by Craighead that missed, going out of bounds off Houston. Oregon then ran the clock down before finding Kraayeveld cutting down the lane for the winning basket. "This is as good an environment you will have in college basketball," Houston coach Joe Curl said of 75-year-old McArthur Court. "The reason I love coming to play here is because of the character of the building." Senior guard Edniesha Curry was Oregon's only other double-figure scorer with 11 points; 10 of them coming in the first half of play where both Williams and Kraayeveld were held scoreless. Senior forward Alyssa Fredrick provided a spark off the bench with nine points and four rebounds in 17 minutes, while junior Alissa Edwards contributed three assists, three steals and five rebounds in a reserve role. Oregon's trip to the title included victories over Hawaii, Oregon State, Washington, and Michigan State, all at home. Houston beat Rice, Miami, Valparaiso, and Virginia Tech, with its final three games played on the road. "We had three tough consecutive road trips," Curl said. "We thought we had enough to get through. My hat's off to Oregon." The Ducks ended their season on a five-game winning streak, along with claiming victories in seven of their last eight. Oregon is one of two teams in Division I women's basketball -- the other being the NCAA champion -- to finish its season with a win. Oregon won its 15th overall national championship, which includes all sports, in the university's 125-year history. In addition to Kraayeveld and Jones, the all-tournament team included Oregon's Williams; Houston's Muoneke; Vnemina Reese of Michigan State; and Virginia Tech's Ieva Kublina. 
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2002 Postseason WNIT TeamsAlabama
Ball State Delaware DePaul Eastern Kentucky George Washington Georgia Tech Hawaii Holy Cross Houston Illinois Louisville Miami Michigan Michigan State Missouri Missouri State North Texas Oregon Oregon State Rice San Francisco Siena Southern Cal St. Joseph's St. Mary's UNC-Greensboro Valparaiso Vermont Virginia Tech Washington Western Kentucky | ||
