Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Saturday, February 15
Birmingham, AL
2:00 PM
Middle Tennessee
17-8
62
at
52
UAB (ESPN+)
16-9
1
2
3
4
F
Middle Tennessee
21
15
15
11
62
UAB
18
8
19
7
52
Team Stats
MT
UABWBB
FG%
.383
.327
3FG%
.231
.241
FT%
.556
.650
RB
45
31
TO
11
13
STL
7
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
17
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
6
Pts
13
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballTeam defense sparks Lady Raider road win
2/15/2020 5:09:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MT secures 62-52 victory vs. UAB
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Defensive intensity was the highlight of the game as Middle Tennessee flexed its muscle to secure an impressive 62-52 road win against UAB here Saturday afternoon.
The Lady Raiders (17-8, 9-4) put on a clinic in regard to team defense in holding Conference USA's highest-scoring team to 23 points below its season scoring average of 75 points per game and the 52 points were the second-fewest of the season for the Blazers, and the fewest scored in a loss.
"We have really put an emphasis on our team defense and our help-side," Lady Raider Head Coach Rick Insell said today. "I'm so pleased with the manner in which our players bought into this scout and took personal pride in their defense. It was the difference in the game against a very good and well-coached UAB team."
While the defense was sterling the offense was good enough to get the road win. Anastasia Hayes filled the stat sheet once again with a game-high 17 points, six rebounds, three steals and two assists. Charity Savage was a beast inside with her 10th double-double, scoring 13 points and ripping down 15 rebounds to add to her conference-leading total.
The fabulous freshman duo of Aislynn Hayes and Courtney Whitson proved to be a potent inside-out tandem. Aislynn Hayes tallied 12 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two steals. Whitson just missed what would have been her first career double-double, finishing with 11 points (on 5-of-8 shooting) and nine rebounds. Taylor Sutton netted nine points to go with two assists. Sutton connected for three 3-pointers, marking the 13th time this season she has hit three or more treys. Her long-distance shot with 1:27 remaining that put the Lady Raiders ahead by 10 and proved to be the dagger.
"I thought our offense was very efficient and that we did a good job driving the ball, sharing the ball and getting high-percentage shots," Insell said. "Charity and Courtney combined for 25 points so they provided a strong post presence, and our three guards, Anastasia, Aislynn and Taylor, really did a great job offensively and defensively. That's how you get a big road win."
It marked just the second home loss for UAB at Bartow Arena.
With Savage and Whitson manning the paint, Middle Tennessee won the rebounding battle 45-31. Aislynn Hayes (7) and Anastasia Hayes (6) combined for 13 rebounds as the Lady Raiders also received strong rebounding from the guard positions.
Middle Tennessee led 36-26 at halftime but the Blazers (16-9, 8-5) narrowed the deficit to six, 51-45, entering the final stanza. That's when the Lady Raiders put forth their most impressive defensive stretch as they held UAB to just 13.3 percent shooting in the decisive frame. The Blazers were 2-of-15 from the field in the fourth quarter. They came into the game leading C-USA in 3-point shooting percentage at a 40-percent clip, but Middle Tennessee held them to 24 percent (7-of-29).
The Lady Raiders came out strong offensively and put up 21 first-quarter points on the strength of 53 percent shooting (9-of-17) to establish an 21-18 lead. Balanced scoring highlighted the opening frame as Anastasia Hayes and Courtney Whitson each tallied six points, followed by Aislynn Hayes with five.
Middle Tennessee turned to staunch defense in the second quarter to build a double-digit lead. The Lady Raiders held UAB scoreless 6:40 stretch when it pushed the lead to 12, 33-21, on the strength of a 8-0 run.
Aislynn Hayes started the run with a driving layup to give Middle Tennessee a 28-21 advantage with 7:09 remaining before halftime. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Anastasia Hayes and Sutton during a 33-second stretch gave the Lady Raiders their largest lead of the game, 33-21 with 3:00 remaining before halftime. Middle Tennessee outscored UAB, 15-8, in the second quarter on the way to a 36-26 halftime lead.
The two teams meet again when UAB visits the Monte Hale/Jimmy Earle Arena Thursday. Tipoff is 6:30 p.m.
The Lady Raiders (17-8, 9-4) put on a clinic in regard to team defense in holding Conference USA's highest-scoring team to 23 points below its season scoring average of 75 points per game and the 52 points were the second-fewest of the season for the Blazers, and the fewest scored in a loss.
"We have really put an emphasis on our team defense and our help-side," Lady Raider Head Coach Rick Insell said today. "I'm so pleased with the manner in which our players bought into this scout and took personal pride in their defense. It was the difference in the game against a very good and well-coached UAB team."
While the defense was sterling the offense was good enough to get the road win. Anastasia Hayes filled the stat sheet once again with a game-high 17 points, six rebounds, three steals and two assists. Charity Savage was a beast inside with her 10th double-double, scoring 13 points and ripping down 15 rebounds to add to her conference-leading total.
The fabulous freshman duo of Aislynn Hayes and Courtney Whitson proved to be a potent inside-out tandem. Aislynn Hayes tallied 12 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two steals. Whitson just missed what would have been her first career double-double, finishing with 11 points (on 5-of-8 shooting) and nine rebounds. Taylor Sutton netted nine points to go with two assists. Sutton connected for three 3-pointers, marking the 13th time this season she has hit three or more treys. Her long-distance shot with 1:27 remaining that put the Lady Raiders ahead by 10 and proved to be the dagger.
"I thought our offense was very efficient and that we did a good job driving the ball, sharing the ball and getting high-percentage shots," Insell said. "Charity and Courtney combined for 25 points so they provided a strong post presence, and our three guards, Anastasia, Aislynn and Taylor, really did a great job offensively and defensively. That's how you get a big road win."
It marked just the second home loss for UAB at Bartow Arena.
With Savage and Whitson manning the paint, Middle Tennessee won the rebounding battle 45-31. Aislynn Hayes (7) and Anastasia Hayes (6) combined for 13 rebounds as the Lady Raiders also received strong rebounding from the guard positions.
Middle Tennessee led 36-26 at halftime but the Blazers (16-9, 8-5) narrowed the deficit to six, 51-45, entering the final stanza. That's when the Lady Raiders put forth their most impressive defensive stretch as they held UAB to just 13.3 percent shooting in the decisive frame. The Blazers were 2-of-15 from the field in the fourth quarter. They came into the game leading C-USA in 3-point shooting percentage at a 40-percent clip, but Middle Tennessee held them to 24 percent (7-of-29).
The Lady Raiders came out strong offensively and put up 21 first-quarter points on the strength of 53 percent shooting (9-of-17) to establish an 21-18 lead. Balanced scoring highlighted the opening frame as Anastasia Hayes and Courtney Whitson each tallied six points, followed by Aislynn Hayes with five.
Middle Tennessee turned to staunch defense in the second quarter to build a double-digit lead. The Lady Raiders held UAB scoreless 6:40 stretch when it pushed the lead to 12, 33-21, on the strength of a 8-0 run.
Aislynn Hayes started the run with a driving layup to give Middle Tennessee a 28-21 advantage with 7:09 remaining before halftime. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Anastasia Hayes and Sutton during a 33-second stretch gave the Lady Raiders their largest lead of the game, 33-21 with 3:00 remaining before halftime. Middle Tennessee outscored UAB, 15-8, in the second quarter on the way to a 36-26 halftime lead.
The two teams meet again when UAB visits the Monte Hale/Jimmy Earle Arena Thursday. Tipoff is 6:30 p.m.
Facility tour – Stephen and Denise Smith Student-Athlete Performance Center
Wednesday, July 30
Rick Insell Conference USA Hall of Fame Announcement
Wednesday, July 09
2025 Blue Raider Blitz Media Panel
Thursday, July 03
MTSU Women's Basketball Coach Rick Insell interview at 2025 Blue Raider Blitz
Monday, June 30
