Box Score
PINEVILLE, La. – McMurry University shot 60 percent in the second half and overcame 19 turnovers to defeat UT-Dallas in the American Southwest Conference Tournament quarterfinals round Friday at the H.O. West Field House. Four players scored in double figures for McMurry with
Anna Berthel's 18 points and seven rebounds leading the way.
With the win, McMurry will continue Saturday in the semi-finals round at 2 p.m. against Mary Hardin-Baylor. McMurry, the No. 3 seed from the ASC West Division, beat the No. 2 seeded Lady Comets and will take on the No. 1 seed from the west in UMHB Saturday.
McMurry led most of the way, however, UT-Dallas took a 46-45 lead with 7:07 remaining and Rachel Addison added another bucket for the Comets with 6:13 left to put UTD up three points. However,
Kelsey Lindemuth hit a 3-pointer to knot the score and then added a jumper to help McMurry regain the lead at 50-48 with 5:08 left sparking a 10-0 run from which McMurry would never relinquish the lead.
The Lady Comets got back within three points at the 1:13 mark on a Chelsea Edwards bucket. However,
LaPorsha Alexander and
Rikeita Thomas countered with two-straight buckets for McMurry in a matter of 17 seconds to build the lead back to seven. Then, McMurry hit the last four free throws of the contest while UTD tried to crawl back in the game unsuccessfully.
Berthel hit 8 of 12 shots from the floor and blocked two shots. Thomas scored 15 points, grabbed six boards and dished our four assists from the point guard position. Lindemuth and Alexander came off the bench to score 13 and 10 points respectively.
McMurry shot 36 percent in the first half, but caught fire in the second half connecting on 12 of 20 shots to finish the game with a 45-percent effort. UT-Dallas managed just 23 of 64 shots for 36 percent and lost the rebounding battle 39-27.
The Lady Comets' season ended with a 19-7 record while McMurry improved to 17-9. McMurry will take on the Crusaders Saturday after dropping two regular season contests to UMHB during the regular season. However, McMurry has defeated UMHB in its only two meetings in ASC Tournament history.
