COLLEGE BASKETBALL / NCAA MEN’S TOURNAMENT : SOUTHEAST REGIONAL : Dehere Goes Cold, Seton Hall Goes Down

ORLANDO, Fla. — Terry Dehere had been Seton Hall’s go-to player all season, but when the Pirates turned to him during a crucial juncture Saturday, he came up empty.

Dehere missed two three-point shots and committed two costly turnovers during the final minutes of the Pirates’ 72-68 upset loss to Western Kentucky in the second round of the NCAA Southeast Regional.

“I’m a little bit shocked--not really because we lost but because this was the final game of my college career,” Dehere said. “I didn’t expect it to happen so soon.”

The seventh-seeded Hilltoppers (26-5) pulled off the upset against the second-seeded Pirates (28-7) with an 11-0 run during the final minutes, moving into a regional semifinal against Florida State on Thursday at Charlotte, N.C.

Dehere finished with 30 points, but the player that made the biggest shots was the smallest on the court--5-foot-8 Mark Bell of Western Kentucky.

The senior guard scored 20 points, including seven in a row on a lane shot, a three-pointer and a jumper that turned a 63-59 deficit into a 67-63 lead with 1:49 to play.

“If anybody’s got a bigger heart, I want to find him,” Hilltopper Coach Ralph Willard said. “And if anybody’s a better player, I want to find him, too. He just made all the plays.”

Bell, the youngest of 18 children, didn’t want to disappoint his siblings or his wife and child.

“If I don’t play how Mark Bell can play, I have to listen to nine sisters, eight brothers and my wife,” he said. “And now my son is getting old enough to get in on it, too.”

Darnell Mee completed the run and sealed the victory by making three foul shots during the final 59 seconds.

Seton Hall, which had won 12 in a row, went more than four minutes down the stretch without scoring. The Pirates missed three consecutive three-point shots and turned the ball over four times, including two steals by Mee.

The Hilltoppers, making their first NCAA tournament appearance since 1987, reached the round of 16 for the first time in 15 years.

Seton Hall seemed to have little trouble at first coping with Western Kentucky’s trapping defense, but the Pirates wound up with 20 turnovers, six more than their season average.

Another problem was outside shooting. Only five of Seton Hall’s 23 baskets came from outside the lane and the Pirates made only three of 15 three-point shots. Dehere made only one of nine three-point attempts.

Florida State 94, Tulane 63--Sam Cassell made all seven of his three-point attempts and scored 31 points to lead Seminoles.

“I think we’re playing the best we’ve played all year, especially defensively,” Florida State Coach Pat Kennedy said.

Doug Edwards had 22 points and 12 rebounds for the Seminoles (24-9), who made 67% of their shots during the second half.

Edwards scored 17 points during the first half and ignited Florida State defensively during an 8-0 spurt that set the stage for a blowout.

Tulane (22-9) trailed, 31-29, before Florida State turned up the defensive pressure during the last two minutes of the half.

A blocked shot by Edwards led to Derrick Carroll’s fast-break dunk, and the Seminoles scored again after a Tulane turnover on their way to a 39-29 halftime lead.

The Seminoles opened the second half with a 17-5 run.

“When they get a lead, you’ve got to speed up the game and that plays right into their hands,” Tulane Coach Perry Clark said.

Matt Greene scored 16 points, Pointer Williams 14 and Anthony Reed 11 for Tulane.