With the Hurricanes leading by one point with 17 seconds left to play Thursday night, sophomore forward Charmaine Clark went to the free-throw line with a chance to extend UM's advantage. Instead, she missed the front end of a one-and-one, and Florida State senior guard Shante Williams needed only 10 seconds to dash the Hurricanes' dreams once again.
Williams, playing in her second-to-last home game as a Seminole, raced downcourt and made a driving, spinning jump shot that lifted FSU to an improbable, 50-49 victory.
The win kept alive Florida State's chances for an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, and it was just the latest tough loss for UM.
SO CLOSE AGAIN
It marked Miami's ninth loss of six points or less.
''I don't know what the basketball gods have in store for me and this team this season,'' Hurricanes coach Katie Meier said.
``They're a hard-working bunch, and they played with guts. And absolutely we've played through adversity.''
The Hurricanes (9-19, 2-11 ACC) announced recently that second-leading scorer Albrey Grimsley had left the team for the rest of the season, and they were forced to play Thursday without starting point guard Epiphany Woodson, who is out with a pulled hamstring.
Despite all that, Miami maintained control for most of Thursday's game by keeping Florida State (17-11, 7-6) off-balance with a disruptive defensive effort. The Hurricanes forced FSU into 23 turnovers and limited the Seminoles to 30.5 percent shooting from the field.
WILLIAMS TAKES OVER
Miami led by as many as 11 points in the second half, but Williams took over down the stretch. She scored 15 of her game-high 17 points after halftime, including 10 points in the final 8:32.
''I was just playing basketball,'' Williams said. ``I've had opportunities earlier in the year to make game-winning baskets, and I've failed to do so. I'm just glad my teammates had the confidence to give me the ball and let me lead the team.''
With one game remaining, Saturday at home against Clemson, FSU coach Sue Semrau said losing to Miami probably would have ended the Seminoles' chances of returning to the NCAA Tournament.
''I just felt that she [Williams] wanted to go to the NCAA Tournament more than our poor shooting, our poor free-throw shooting and our inability to take care of the basketball,'' Semrau said. ``I've never seen anything like it.''
After Williams' final basket, Miami had one last chance, but senior guard Maurita Reid's desperation three-point attempt was off the mark.
Though she was disappointed for her players, Meier praised her team for ''laying it on the line'' and ``believing in the game plan.''
''We've battled some adversity, we're down in numbers, and these young kids just really came through,'' Meier said. ``I told the team, `You know what? We're going to go out of here and pretend that we won this one. We're not going to take this as a hard loss, and we're not going to spiral off of this one.'
``Florida State's a very good team.''
