Ever since Kay Yow returned from a 16-game leave of absence for cancer treatment, her North Carolina State women's basketball team has won 12 of their last 14 games. And now the Wolfpack is headed for the Sweet 16 -- after beating Baylor in overtime -- where the fourth-seeded team will play Connecticut on March 24 in Fresno.

This will be the first trip to the NCAA tournament in 16 years for Hall of Fame coach Yow who is battling breast cancer for the third time. First diagnosed with the disease in 1987, Yow had a recurrence during the 2004-05 season. And now this season too.

Yow, still enduring treatment and still working hard on the court, credits her team for their sweet victory.

"I know they want to win for me in that sense," she says. "I really am grateful and appreciate the fact that they do, but I think they're a real team. I think they can play with that kind of spirit every time they go out."

To read previous posts about coach Kay Yow, click here.

Kay Yow, head coach of the North Carolina State women's basketball team, returns to her job today following a two-month leave she took to fight cancer for a third time. Yow's first game back will be on Thursday against Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) rival Virginia.

Yow, 64, was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1987. Two years ago the disease returned and was treated. And in November, Yow left her team after doctors determined her cancer had returned once again.

For the past two months, Yow has been receiving chemotherapy along with other new therapies. And while Yow's disease is not gone and her life-extending treatment will continue throughout the season, doctors say her health has improved. And she says she's ready to get back in the game.

Yow, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001 and coached the U.S. women's team to a gold medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, has been a head coach for 32 seasons. Her assistant Stephanie Glance led the Wolfpack team (13-7, 2-3 ACC) in Yow's absence.