Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Thursday, January 10
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
6:30 PM
Middle Tennessee
12-4, 3-0
66
vs
49
Southern Miss
8-8, 0-3
1
2
3
4
F
USM
10
21
13
5
49
Middle Tennessee
24
14
20
8
66
Team Stats
USM
MT
FG%
.429
.490
3FG%
.294
.444
FT%
.533
.769
RB
27
26
TO
17
10
STL
4
9
Game Leaders
Pts
16
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Pts
16
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
4
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballLady Raiders get defensive in win over Southern Miss
1/10/2019 8:49:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MT improves to 3-0 in C-USA
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Middle Tennessee welcomed an unpopular opponent to the Murphy Center Thursday, as the Southern Miss Lady Eagles made the trip from Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
The teams have played in some classic matchups under head coaches Rick Insell (14th season at MT) and Joye Lee-McNelis (15th season at USM), but Thursday's edition probably couldn't be classified as one of them.
Unless you're a Blue Raiders fan.
After leading by a single point in the third quarter, the Lady Raiders (12-4, 3-0) used an impressive run to cruise by their Conference USA rival Lady Eagles (8-8, 0-3) 66-49.
"They got back in it, and we just toughed it out," MT Head Coach Rick Insell said. "They're 0-3 in the conference but have a very good basketball team. I'm glad we're through with them for right now."
Few teams get circled on Middle Tennessee's schedule like Southern Miss, in large part because of the Lady Eagles' ability to seemingly have the Lady Raiders' number in every matchup. Southern Miss went into the game 8-3 in the series all-time and had won three in a row.
The visitors had been struggling going in, however, losing three consecutive games and averaging just 46.3 points per game during the skid.
Middle Tennessee's C-USA third-ranked scoring defense made things tough on the struggling Lady Eagles from the start, forcing six turnovers that led to 13 points in the first quarter as the home team finished the last five minutes of the frame on a 19-2 run. It led 24-10 at the first stoppage.
Senior Jess Louro guided the ship offensively in the quarter, hitting three 3-pointers and four from the charity stripe to grab 13 early points.
"I guess I was just feeling it tonight," she said. "When I'm in rhythm like that early, it keeps me in rhythm throughout the game."
Southern Miss came out on a mission to get back into the ballgame in the second quarter, starting on a 17-6 run in the first 6 ½ minutes to cut the lead to as little as three before the Lady Raiders stretched it to 38-31 at halftime.
The run continued to start the second half, and the Lady Eagles got as close as 45-44 with just over five minutes left in the third quarter.
That's when the Lady Raiders tightened down their defense.
They held Southern Miss scoreless over the rest of the quarter, using a 13-0 run to push the lead to 14 going to the fourth. Sophomore Taylor Sutton led the way, scoring the last seven in the stretch including a buzzer-beating steal and layup.
"We played pretty good defense again and held another team in the 40s," Insell said. "Anytime you do that, you're supposed to win. I was pretty proud of our little bunch."
Middle Tennessee's defense continued to dominate in the fourth quarter, allowing the Lady Eagles to make just a single shot and three free throws. Southern Miss ended with 17 turnovers and shot 6-for-20 in the second half, 1-for-11 in the fourth quarter.
The defensive effort was exciting to see for Insell, who missed the previous two games at FIU and Florida Atlantic while recovering from an illness.
"It was very different [without Insell]," Johnson said. "I think it meant that much more to bring back those two wins without him with us."
Four players ended in double-figure scoring for MT, Johnson and Louro leading the way with 16, Sutton with 15 and senior A'Queen Hayes with 12. Sophomore Anna Jones had a team-high seven rebounds, while Johnson had five and Hayes had five rebounds and six assists. Louro was 4-for-5 from the field, all coming from 3-point range.
The Lady Raiders will get one day of rest before taking on LA Tech at the Murphy Center on Saturday. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.
"Tomorrow is more of a mental day than a physical day at practice," Louro said. "We have to come in mentally ready to prepare for LA Tech."
Josh Vardaman is the staff writer for goblueraiders.com. Follow him on Twitter @J_Vardaman and also follow @MTAthletics for more on the Blue Raiders.
The teams have played in some classic matchups under head coaches Rick Insell (14th season at MT) and Joye Lee-McNelis (15th season at USM), but Thursday's edition probably couldn't be classified as one of them.
Unless you're a Blue Raiders fan.
After leading by a single point in the third quarter, the Lady Raiders (12-4, 3-0) used an impressive run to cruise by their Conference USA rival Lady Eagles (8-8, 0-3) 66-49.
"They got back in it, and we just toughed it out," MT Head Coach Rick Insell said. "They're 0-3 in the conference but have a very good basketball team. I'm glad we're through with them for right now."
Few teams get circled on Middle Tennessee's schedule like Southern Miss, in large part because of the Lady Eagles' ability to seemingly have the Lady Raiders' number in every matchup. Southern Miss went into the game 8-3 in the series all-time and had won three in a row.
The visitors had been struggling going in, however, losing three consecutive games and averaging just 46.3 points per game during the skid.
Middle Tennessee's C-USA third-ranked scoring defense made things tough on the struggling Lady Eagles from the start, forcing six turnovers that led to 13 points in the first quarter as the home team finished the last five minutes of the frame on a 19-2 run. It led 24-10 at the first stoppage.
Senior Jess Louro guided the ship offensively in the quarter, hitting three 3-pointers and four from the charity stripe to grab 13 early points.
"I guess I was just feeling it tonight," she said. "When I'm in rhythm like that early, it keeps me in rhythm throughout the game."
Southern Miss came out on a mission to get back into the ballgame in the second quarter, starting on a 17-6 run in the first 6 ½ minutes to cut the lead to as little as three before the Lady Raiders stretched it to 38-31 at halftime.
The run continued to start the second half, and the Lady Eagles got as close as 45-44 with just over five minutes left in the third quarter.
That's when the Lady Raiders tightened down their defense.
They held Southern Miss scoreless over the rest of the quarter, using a 13-0 run to push the lead to 14 going to the fourth. Sophomore Taylor Sutton led the way, scoring the last seven in the stretch including a buzzer-beating steal and layup.
"We played pretty good defense again and held another team in the 40s," Insell said. "Anytime you do that, you're supposed to win. I was pretty proud of our little bunch."
Middle Tennessee's defense continued to dominate in the fourth quarter, allowing the Lady Eagles to make just a single shot and three free throws. Southern Miss ended with 17 turnovers and shot 6-for-20 in the second half, 1-for-11 in the fourth quarter.
The defensive effort was exciting to see for Insell, who missed the previous two games at FIU and Florida Atlantic while recovering from an illness.
"It was very different [without Insell]," Johnson said. "I think it meant that much more to bring back those two wins without him with us."
Four players ended in double-figure scoring for MT, Johnson and Louro leading the way with 16, Sutton with 15 and senior A'Queen Hayes with 12. Sophomore Anna Jones had a team-high seven rebounds, while Johnson had five and Hayes had five rebounds and six assists. Louro was 4-for-5 from the field, all coming from 3-point range.
The Lady Raiders will get one day of rest before taking on LA Tech at the Murphy Center on Saturday. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.
"Tomorrow is more of a mental day than a physical day at practice," Louro said. "We have to come in mentally ready to prepare for LA Tech."
Josh Vardaman is the staff writer for goblueraiders.com. Follow him on Twitter @J_Vardaman and also follow @MTAthletics for more on the Blue Raiders.
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