FINAL FOUR DREAMS FALL SHORT AT NYU, 76-64

NEW YORK (3/10/07) - One of the most successful seasons in Kean University women's basketball history came to a close in the Elite Eight, as the Cougars' bid for a Final Four berth fell short at New York University, 76-64, on Saturday evening in the 2007 NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship Sectional Finals before a raucous crowd of 1,756 at the Jerome S. Coles Sports Center.

Sophomore Jessica McEntee scored 23 of her 28 points in the second half, including 10 straight during a decisive burst, and grabbed 16 rebounds as the New York University women's basketball team advanced to the Final Four with the victory over the Cougars.

 Sophomore guard Ebony Jackson (Newark, N.J.) scored 17 points for the second straight night, as the Cougars (27-4) came up one win shy of reaching its second Final Four in school history. The New Jersey Athletic Conference Champions tied the school record for most wins in a season and became just the second team in school history to reach the Elite Eight.

In addition to notching her 19th double-double of the season, McEntee went 12-of-13 from the charity stripe to help the Violets overcome a second-half deficit.

Kean used a 21-7 run spanning the first and second half to erase a eight-point deficit with just over five minutes left in the first half and take a six point lead at 48-42 on a layup by junior forward Chari' Cooper (Paulsboro, N.J.) with 15:49 left in the game.

With the Cougars holding onto a 55-51 advantage, the Violets scored eight straight points and McEntee would 10 straight points for NYU, as they built a 65-58 lead with 6:55 left in the Cougars' season. Kean pulled no closer than five points the rest of the way, the last on a layup by Cooper before the junior fouled out with just under five minutes remaining.

McEntee had a three-point play and the Violets hit all four free throws in the final 2:22 to send the Violets to their third Final Four.

For the Cougars, Cooper hit 5-of-8 from the field as she notched her 13th double-double of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds before fouling out. Freshman guard Cardiss Jackman (Tobyhanna, Pa.) tallied nine points and two steals in 23 minutes off the bench.

Sophomore guard Melissa Beyruti (Union City, N.J.) had a defender in her face the entire game as she was held to seven points. Her one three-pointer on the night gave her 110 for the season and moved her into a tie for fifth place in NCAA Division III single-season history.

Also reaching double digits for NYU were senior Stephanie Ryba (16 points) and sophomore Gena Brown (12 points). Senior Adrienne Rochetti played a solid all-around game, doling out six assists.