2018 OVC Women's Basketball Championship - First Round

2/28/2018 9:15:41 AM

#1 BELMONT 88, #8 MURRAY STATE 64
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - A barrage of threes down the stretch helped No. 1 Belmont get past a pesky No. 8 Murray State squad in the first round of the OVC tournament inside the Ford Center Wednesday afternoon. The Bruins defeated the Racers, 88-64, to extend its winning streak to 20 games and 44 consecutive OVC contests.

Ten threes in the final 13 minutes of the game helped propel the Bruins past the Racers who had made it one-point game just seconds before the BU scoring frenzy from beyond the arc.
Junior guard Darby Maggard (Larwill, Ind.) led the charge, throwing in four to bring her point total to 15 on the day. She was joined by Kylee Smith (Alpharetta, Ga.) who scored a team-best 21 points while collecting 10 rebounds for her second consecutive double-double.
Belmont (29-3) also saw extensive contributions from senior center Sally McCabe (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) along with junior guards Maura Muensterman (Evansville, Ind.) and Jenny Roy (Brentwood, Tenn.). McCabe also registered a double-double with 19 points and a season-best 13 rebounds. Roy was the third Bruin to collected double figure rebounds with 10 of her own, while Muensterman accounted for 12 points on a 4-for-6 performance from three-point distance.

Murray State (11-19) was powered by its senior duo, Ke'Shunan James and Bria Bethea, who combined for 38 points. Bethea tallied 21 while James had 17 and 11 rebounds for the Racers. The veterans were joined by Abria Gulledge who also scored 15 for MSU.

The Bruins got out on a roll to start, pouring in eight unanswered before allowing the Racers to get a bucket. The early run helped sustain the squad's lead throughout the first half despite Murray State coming within two possessions on a couple of occasions. Playing in her hometown, Muensterman got settled in quickly, draining a triple on her first play of the game to put BU up, 18-9, at the 3:34 mark. The Racers stayed within striking distance with the help of a 5-for-7 performance from the field down the stretch of the first stanza. Belmont led by six, 20-14, after a period of play.

Senior guard Sierra Jones (Huntsville, Ala.) netted the first five points for the Bruins in the opening minutes of the second, sinking a three-pointer with just a few seconds expired. The team once again took control early before suffering a four-minute scoring drought that allowed Murray State to get four points back. Muensterman once again found favor behind the arc, hitting a trey that snapped the scoreless span. The Bruins held on to a 32-25 lead at the half.

After McCabe scored six quick points to force a Murray State timeout, the Racers mounted a 6-0 run of their own to make it a three-point game, 38-35. They continued to put the pressure on the Bruins, to come within a point with four minutes remaining in the third. From then on both squads traded buckets with BU always keeping the edge. Back-to-back threes from Maggard helped Belmont push its lead back to six points, 51-46, down the stretch. It wasn't until the last two minutes that BU woke up, sinking three-consecutive threes.

The long-range shooting carried over into the fourth as Belmont hit six field goals in a row from three-point distance. Over the span of five minutes the Bruins mounted a 28-10 run that halted Murray State's comeback bid. BU continued to distance themselves from the Racers for the remainder of the game with junior guard Hannah Harmeyer (Kenosha, Wisc.) sealing the deal on back-to-back three pointers in the final minutes.

No. 1 seeded Belmont will play the winner of No. 4 Jacksonville State/No. 5 Morehead State on Friday, March 2 inside the Ford Center. Tip is slated for 1 p.m.

#2 UT MARTIN 63, #7 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 60
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - The No. 2 seeded University of Tennessee at Martin women’s basketball team overcame a second-half deficit to pull out a hard fought victory in the Ohio Valley Conference Basketball Championship semifinals with a 63-30 victory over No. 7 seed Southeast Missouri.

The Skyhawks (18-13) notched their 10th win in its last 11 outings while knocking off the Redhawks for the third time in the past 18 days behind a strong second half push. In a game which saw the game become tied on seven separate occasions along with 12 lead changes, UT Martin found a way to advance in the tournament bracket.

A strong defensive effort in the second half held Southeast Missouri to just 24 points while UT Martin won the battle of the boards and secured the paint late in the contest. With the victory, UT Martin advances to the OVC Basketball Championship semifinals for the eighth time in the past nine years while improving its record in tournament play to 14-5 under head coach Kevin McMillan.

Freshman OVC All-Newcomer honoree Chelsey Perry played a huge part in the comeback victory, scoring 11 of her team-high 19 points in the second half while notching five rebounds, two blocks and a steal. Sophomore All-OVC first teamer Kendall Spray also notched a nice tournament appearance, scoring 14 points to round out the Skyhawks in double figures.

Southeast Missouri (14-17) saw its season come to a close despite an impressive showing. The Redhawks would shoot 45.1 percent from the field but its 56.3 percent mark from the free throw line proved to be costly. Seniors Ashton Luttrull (20 points) and Deja Jones (14 points, 11 rebounds) would both close out their Redhawk careers with impressive outings.
The game went back-and-forth in the opening five minutes of play as the segment featured three ties and seven lead changes alone. Spray would score eight of the team’s first 12 points while Luttrull equaled her pace with eight of her own to pace the Redhawks. After the first 10 minutes of play, Southeast Missouri would take a 22-17 advantage into the second quarter of play.

The Redhawks remained aggressive after shooting 60 percent in the opening quarter by pushing out their lead to as large as nine points with seven minutes to play in the first half. Luttrull would play a big part in the strong play by the lower seed, scoring 13 first half points. The Skyhawks would trim the margin to as close as four points with just under two minutes to play before taking a 36-30 deficit into the halftime break.

UT Martin came out of the third quarter looking to make things interesting. The Skyhawks would start the second half on a 10-2 run to erase a deficit and take their first lead since the first quarter on a three-pointer by Spray forcing a timeout. From there the game would seesaw with three tied margins and four lead changes in the period. When all things would be said and done, Southeast Missouri would cling to a one-point advantage heading into the fourth quarter.

With a one-point deficit heading into the final quarter of play, UT Martin looked for one final push down the stretch. After being held with a point for the first four minutes of the quarter, the Skyhawks scored on back-to-back possessions via a layup by Perry and a three-pointer by Spray to take a two-point advantage. With the lead intact, the Skyhawks margin would fluctuate down the stretch but never flip back to the Redhawks, resulting in a 63-60 victory.

UT Martin will return to action in the OVC Basketball Championship semifinals on Friday, March 2 against the winner of No. 3 SIUE and No. 6 Austin Peay. Tipoff from the Ford Center is scheduled for 3 p.m.