BOX SCORE

BRIDGEPORT, Conn.- Led by junior guard Latia Williams, Prairie View A&M did all it could to stay within striking distance of the No. 1 seed Connecticut Huskies in its Round 1 game of the NCAA Tournament, but the Huskies had too much fire power and knocked the Lady Panthers out of the “Big Dance” with a 83-47 win in Bridgeport, Conn. Saturday afternoon.

Williams scored a team-high 20 points and added five rebounds for the Lady Panthers, but UConn was too powerful and too proficient in the paint for Prairie View A&M to stay in the game.

“(Williams) is a phenomenal athlete,” Prairie View A&M coach Toyelle Wilson said. “She's been our veteran and our leader. She scored 20 against one of the No. 1 defenses in the country. She's the ultimate fierce competitor. She will do whatever it takes to win, and I can tell that she was genuinely hurt about how we went out this year.”

Freshman forward Larissa Scott, who had been lightening the scoring load for Williams as of late, only played nine minutes in the first half after picking up two quick fouls while guarding 6-5 UConn center Stefanie Dolson (15 points and two blocks).

Scott, who was averaging 11 points and 10 rebounds through her last five games heading into the Kingston Regional, was held to four points, seven rebounds and had four fouls in just 23 minutes of play.

The Lady Panthers trailed 46-32 in the first half and seemed to be able to score at will in the first 20 minutes against the second-ranked defense in the nation. However, the Huskies started out the second half on a 19-6 run to take a 67-38 lead. During that run, the Lady Panthers went on an eight-minute span in which they did not score.

That offensive lapse proved to be the end of the Lady Panthers' post-season as they were unable to recover.

Though Prairie View A&M lost its opening round game, the Lady Panthers will go down as the first team in program history to win back-to-back SWAC Tournament Championships and earn back-to-back NCAA Tournament automatic bids.  

“I'm so proud of the girls,” Wilson said. “I'm proud of their fight, because they never gave up at any time this season. They bought into my system. I'm happy that they were able to experience everything that they were able to experience this year.

The Lady Panthers ended the 2011-12 season with a 17-16 record and as reigning SWAC Tournament Champions.