Clemson's Mia Moore and USC's Kara Dunn renew rivalry in overtime thriller
· Yahoo Sports
COLUMBIA SC – With 4.4 seconds left on the clock and a Women’s NCAA Tournament game against USC tied at 61, Clemson senior guard Mia Moore took an inbounds pass and dribbled the ball to just past the half-court line. With seemingly milliseconds left, she just threw the ball up and, boom, the shot fell.
Clemson players rushed the court as fans screamed and shouted in disbelief at what just happened. The referees, though, went to a video review.
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"I immediately froze,” USC senior guard Kara Dunn said. “I was literally praying and I was like if this goes into overtime, it’s purely God.”
The Tigers’ screaming and shouting turned into frustration as the shot was waved off, forcing overtime.
“I was like, all right, come on y'all, you don't get second chances without a reason,” Dunn said.
The No. 9-seeded Trojans took that second-chance opportunity and ran with it, beating the No. 8 Tigers 71-67 to advance to a second-round game against top seed South Carolina on Monday.
Dunn scored 22 points in the game, including two free throws in overtime.
College isn’t the first time Moore and Dunn have met each other on the court. They both grew up near Atlanta, and they first matched up in middle school. They also played AAU basketball together and played against each other in high school.
“The fact that she was about to hit that shot, I was like, that would have been hard,” said Dunn, who transferred to USC from Georgia Tech. “It was really cool, full circle moment to be in this game, first game in March Madness with Mia.”
Moore and Dunn attended competing private high schools – St. Francis School and Mount Paran Christian Academy, respectively. Moore’s school held the edge in the matchups, Dunn said.
Dunn led Mount Paran, coached by her mom, Stephanie Dunn, to its first state title in 2022, scoring 30 points.
She transferred from Georgia Tech, which was headed into a rebuilding phase, for her senior season hopeful of an opportunity to finish off her college career strong.
With the Trojans this season, Dunn got a chance to do that. On Saturday, after a controversial referee decision, the entire team got another chance to finish strong.
Alyssia Hamilton and Ella Sather are students in the University of Georgia's Carmical Sports Media Institute.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Clemson's Mia Moore and USC's Kara Dunn renew rivalry in overtime thriller