Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Saturday, February 5
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
5:00 PM
Middle Tennessee
-164,82 CUSA
75
vs
55
UAB
-127,53 CUSA
1
2
3
4
F
UAB
15
8
16
16
55
Middle Tenn.
18
14
20
23
75
Team Stats
UAB
MTSU
FG%
.353
.431
3FG%
.167
.429
FT%
.895
.842
RB
40
26
TO
21
7
STL
3
9
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
16
FGM
6
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
C
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: Emily Cole/MT Athletic Communications
Stalwart defensive effort bolts Lady Raiders past Blazers
2/5/2022 8:17:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MT forces 21 turnovers in victory
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — The Middle Tennessee women's basketball team never let UAB find a rhythm on Saturday night, forcing the Blazers into 21 turnovers and holding them to just two three-pointers en route to a dominant 75-55 win at the Murphy Center.
The Blue Raiders (16-4, 8-2 C-USA) scored 24 points off of turnovers, shooting over 50 percent from the field in the second half while limiting themselves to just seven turnovers throughout the entire game. The Blazers (12-7, 5-3 C-USA) were held to just 18-of-51 from the field, and just 12-of-40 outside of the third quarter.
"I thought we did as good a job executing as I've had a team do," head coach Rick Insell said. "We played good perimeter defense, we played pretty good interior defense. We were just denying them the ball and making them cut backdoor and giving help with our post players. You've got two different concepts going there. And it worked. We got some steals, and they threw the ball away on some backdoor cuts at some crucial cuts. So I was pretty happy."
Four different Lady Raiders finished the night with at least 10 points, led by 17 from Dor Saar. The Ma'anit, Israel native connected on seven shots from the field, including a trifecta of triples, while also dishing out a team high six assists. Courtney Whitson trailed close behind with 16 points, 11 of them coming in a second quarter where she did not miss any of her four shots from the floor. She finished the game shooting 66.7 percent from both the floor and beyond the arc.
"My mom on the way to tournaments used to make my little brother pester me and pester me and pester me," Whitson said of the physical play she and the Lady Raiders faced from UAB. "I'd take so much and then it'd be like 'ok, it's go time.' So that was just kind of a switch, I needed to get the team on my back and let's go get a big win."
Anastasiia Boldyreva continued her impressive growth during conference play, scoring 15 points and blocking three Blazer shots while enduring the lion's share of UAB attention's when the ball was thrown into the post. The Russian international shot 50 percent from the field to go along with three made free throws.
"I just got more confident," Boldyreva said. "Most of their post players are tough, so I was preparing to go through them by driving by them."
Insell was effusive in his praise of Boldyreva post-game, particularly after she stopped settling for the jump shot.
"I can honestly tell you this young lady is absolutely getting better every day in practice," Insell said of his freshman center. "We need to add four or five more rebounds, but 15 points, 6-for-12, 3-for-5 at the free throw line, we'll take that every game."
Despite out rebounding MT by 14 (40-26), UAB never led during the contest, only being able to tie the game briefly at 18-18 early in the second quarter while allowing the Lady Raiders to go on scoring runs as high as 16-0.
The game started tight, with MT holding a 18-15 advantage after a quarter of play. The Lady Raiders scored the first nine points of the evening, five from Saar and four from Boldryeva, while UAB closed the first quarter on a 7-0 run. The teams also combined to go a perfect 11-for-11 from the free throw line in the opening 10 minutes.
Whitson dominated the second quarter, scoring 11 of MT's 14 points in the frame to power the Lady Raiders to a 32-23 lead at the half. The Kingsport, Tenn. native was a perfect 4-for-4 from the field in the quarter, including three three-pointers. The Lady Raiders held the Blazers to just eight points in the frame thanks to forcing seven UAB turnovers in the quarter, four off of MT steals.
The Lady Raiders expanded their advantage in the third quarter, ending the quarter on a 7-0 run capped off with a Saar three to take a 52-39 lead. Anastasiia Boldyreva was dominant in the post late, nailing three of her four third quarter attempts, making UAB regret giving her plenty of post opportunities.
Middle Tennessee iced the game with a strong fourth quarter, nailing nine of their 10 free throws in the final ten minutes to stretch their lead as high as 26 points. Kseniya Malashka scored eight of her 10 points in the fourth quarter, getting easy buckets by driving past defenders she pulled out of the post at the top of the key.
After a perfect three-game homestand, Middle Tennessee will now hit the road for two C-USA games against East division contenders Old Dominion and Charlotte. Their first game of the trip will be in Norfolk, Va. against the Monarchs on Thursday, Feb. 10. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. central.
The Blue Raiders (16-4, 8-2 C-USA) scored 24 points off of turnovers, shooting over 50 percent from the field in the second half while limiting themselves to just seven turnovers throughout the entire game. The Blazers (12-7, 5-3 C-USA) were held to just 18-of-51 from the field, and just 12-of-40 outside of the third quarter.
"I thought we did as good a job executing as I've had a team do," head coach Rick Insell said. "We played good perimeter defense, we played pretty good interior defense. We were just denying them the ball and making them cut backdoor and giving help with our post players. You've got two different concepts going there. And it worked. We got some steals, and they threw the ball away on some backdoor cuts at some crucial cuts. So I was pretty happy."
Four different Lady Raiders finished the night with at least 10 points, led by 17 from Dor Saar. The Ma'anit, Israel native connected on seven shots from the field, including a trifecta of triples, while also dishing out a team high six assists. Courtney Whitson trailed close behind with 16 points, 11 of them coming in a second quarter where she did not miss any of her four shots from the floor. She finished the game shooting 66.7 percent from both the floor and beyond the arc.
"My mom on the way to tournaments used to make my little brother pester me and pester me and pester me," Whitson said of the physical play she and the Lady Raiders faced from UAB. "I'd take so much and then it'd be like 'ok, it's go time.' So that was just kind of a switch, I needed to get the team on my back and let's go get a big win."
Anastasiia Boldyreva continued her impressive growth during conference play, scoring 15 points and blocking three Blazer shots while enduring the lion's share of UAB attention's when the ball was thrown into the post. The Russian international shot 50 percent from the field to go along with three made free throws.
"I just got more confident," Boldyreva said. "Most of their post players are tough, so I was preparing to go through them by driving by them."
Insell was effusive in his praise of Boldyreva post-game, particularly after she stopped settling for the jump shot.
"I can honestly tell you this young lady is absolutely getting better every day in practice," Insell said of his freshman center. "We need to add four or five more rebounds, but 15 points, 6-for-12, 3-for-5 at the free throw line, we'll take that every game."
Despite out rebounding MT by 14 (40-26), UAB never led during the contest, only being able to tie the game briefly at 18-18 early in the second quarter while allowing the Lady Raiders to go on scoring runs as high as 16-0.
The game started tight, with MT holding a 18-15 advantage after a quarter of play. The Lady Raiders scored the first nine points of the evening, five from Saar and four from Boldryeva, while UAB closed the first quarter on a 7-0 run. The teams also combined to go a perfect 11-for-11 from the free throw line in the opening 10 minutes.
Whitson dominated the second quarter, scoring 11 of MT's 14 points in the frame to power the Lady Raiders to a 32-23 lead at the half. The Kingsport, Tenn. native was a perfect 4-for-4 from the field in the quarter, including three three-pointers. The Lady Raiders held the Blazers to just eight points in the frame thanks to forcing seven UAB turnovers in the quarter, four off of MT steals.
The Lady Raiders expanded their advantage in the third quarter, ending the quarter on a 7-0 run capped off with a Saar three to take a 52-39 lead. Anastasiia Boldyreva was dominant in the post late, nailing three of her four third quarter attempts, making UAB regret giving her plenty of post opportunities.
Middle Tennessee iced the game with a strong fourth quarter, nailing nine of their 10 free throws in the final ten minutes to stretch their lead as high as 26 points. Kseniya Malashka scored eight of her 10 points in the fourth quarter, getting easy buckets by driving past defenders she pulled out of the post at the top of the key.
After a perfect three-game homestand, Middle Tennessee will now hit the road for two C-USA games against East division contenders Old Dominion and Charlotte. Their first game of the trip will be in Norfolk, Va. against the Monarchs on Thursday, Feb. 10. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. central.
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
