Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Thursday, January 5
Murfreesboro, TN
6 p.m.
Middle Tennessee
-112,40 CUSA
80
vs
41
UTSA
-39,12 CUSA
1
2
3
4
F
UTSA
16
6
11
8
41
Middle Tenn.
19
23
19
19
80
Team Stats
UTSA
MTSU
FG%
.254
.444
3FG%
.200
.429
FT%
.636
.652
RB
45
43
TO
20
7
STL
4
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
6
Pts
16
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
14
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
Photo by: Kaitlyn Hungerford/MT Athletic Communications
Lady Raiders Run Over Roadrunners to Start 2023
1/5/2023 9:31:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MTSU had six players score at least 10 points on Thursday night
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee women's basketball dominated in every phase on Thursday night, getting contributions from a plethora of Lady Raiders on their way to an 80-41 win over UTSA at the Murphy Center.
The Lady Raiders (11-2, 4-0 C-USA) took control of the game in the second quarter, starting the quarter on a 13-0 run to power their way to a 42-22 advantage at halftime. UTSA (3-9, 1-2 C-USA) managed just one field goal in the quarter, turning the ball over six times as MTSU's press and defense off of screens have the Roadrunners nothing to attack. Courtney Blakely ended the first half with seven assists and no turnovers, three of those assists finding Jalynn Gregory for three.
Attacking UTSA both inside (38 points in the paint) and outside (9-for-21 from three) of offense, MTSU held the Roadrunners to just 25.4 percent shooting from the field on defense, with an aggressive press and stout work on ball screens denying UTSA open looks all night.
Six Lady Raiders finished the game with at least 10 points, led by 18 points off the bench from Kseniya Malashka. Blakely just missed out on a triple-double, scoring 11 points to go with 11 assists and eight rebounds. Anastasiia Boldyreva scored 16 points, hauled in nine rebounds and recorded a team-high four blocks.
By the Numbers
27-4: Points of Turnovers for MTSU and UTSA, respectively. The Lady Raiders stole the ball five times and forced 20 Roadrunner turnovers, while only committing seven turnovers of their own all night.
+31: Ta'Mia Scott's plus/minus margin off the bench, second best on the team behind a three-way tie for first (Courtney Whitson, Blakely, Gregory all finished with +39). Scott was key in pulling away late in the game with her slashing ability on the perimeter, scoring 10 points (all on layups) to go with seven rebounds.
9: Total Blocks for MTSU. Three players finished the game with multiple blocks (Boldyreva: four, Malashka & Scott: two), while the Lady Raiders were only blocked twice by the Roadrunners.
Lady Raider Notes
Thoughts from Head Coach Rick Insell
"Very proud of our basketball team. UTSA is not that bad a team. We came out and played pretty good defense the whole game. The first quarter, (UTSA) hit some shots, but I'm very proud of what (MTSU) did.
"I thought CAB (Courtney Blakely) had an extremely good game. Jalynn Gregory hit some timely shots. Anastasiia did some things tonight we've been looking for. More than anything, she hustled and got her hands up, and that's what we needed for her."
Player's Perspective – Courtney Blakely
"The whole season, (Rick Insell) has been telling me that 'You not only need to look for you, but you need to make sure your team is straight.' Tonight, I just went out with that mentality and I was able to do it."
"It's just more minutes. I get tired at times, but I've got to push through. Matt (Insell) said 'Great players don't get tired.' So, I've got that in my mind while I'm playing."
Up Next
It's a quick turnaround on the road for MTSU, as the Lady Raiders travel to Denton, Texas to take on North Texas on Saturday. Tipoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on YouTube and the Blue Raider Radio Network.
Follow the Lady Raiders
Follow Middle Tennessee Women's Basketball on social media on Facebook (/MTSUWBB), Twitter (@MT_WBB) and Instagram (@mt_wbb).
The Lady Raiders (11-2, 4-0 C-USA) took control of the game in the second quarter, starting the quarter on a 13-0 run to power their way to a 42-22 advantage at halftime. UTSA (3-9, 1-2 C-USA) managed just one field goal in the quarter, turning the ball over six times as MTSU's press and defense off of screens have the Roadrunners nothing to attack. Courtney Blakely ended the first half with seven assists and no turnovers, three of those assists finding Jalynn Gregory for three.
Attacking UTSA both inside (38 points in the paint) and outside (9-for-21 from three) of offense, MTSU held the Roadrunners to just 25.4 percent shooting from the field on defense, with an aggressive press and stout work on ball screens denying UTSA open looks all night.
Six Lady Raiders finished the game with at least 10 points, led by 18 points off the bench from Kseniya Malashka. Blakely just missed out on a triple-double, scoring 11 points to go with 11 assists and eight rebounds. Anastasiia Boldyreva scored 16 points, hauled in nine rebounds and recorded a team-high four blocks.
By the Numbers
27-4: Points of Turnovers for MTSU and UTSA, respectively. The Lady Raiders stole the ball five times and forced 20 Roadrunner turnovers, while only committing seven turnovers of their own all night.
+31: Ta'Mia Scott's plus/minus margin off the bench, second best on the team behind a three-way tie for first (Courtney Whitson, Blakely, Gregory all finished with +39). Scott was key in pulling away late in the game with her slashing ability on the perimeter, scoring 10 points (all on layups) to go with seven rebounds.
9: Total Blocks for MTSU. Three players finished the game with multiple blocks (Boldyreva: four, Malashka & Scott: two), while the Lady Raiders were only blocked twice by the Roadrunners.
Lady Raider Notes
- Blakely set new career highs in rebounds (seven), minutes (40) and assists (11) while tying her season high in points in her first career double-double.
- Ta'Mia Scott had her best game as a Lady Raider so far with 10 points, seven rebounds and two blocks in 27 minutes.
- Malashka turned in her fifth straight game with over 18 points.
- Anastasiia Boldyreva reached new season highs in points (16), blocks (four) and rebounds (nine).
- The Lady Raiders stay undefeated vs. the Roadrunners in the all-time series with a 9-0 record.
- Nine straight wins ties for the most since MTSU's streak from Jan. 21 to Feb. 21, 2016
- Tonight marks the eighth straight game the Lady Raiders have gone on a scoring run of at least 10 unanswered points (13-0 run to start the second quarter, 10-0 run in the fourth quarter).
- Middle Tennessee extends its home winning streak to six and its home court conference winning streak to 12.
- Most blocks in a game (nine) by the Lady Raiders since recording nine vs. UTEP March 12, 2021.
Thoughts from Head Coach Rick Insell
"Very proud of our basketball team. UTSA is not that bad a team. We came out and played pretty good defense the whole game. The first quarter, (UTSA) hit some shots, but I'm very proud of what (MTSU) did.
"I thought CAB (Courtney Blakely) had an extremely good game. Jalynn Gregory hit some timely shots. Anastasiia did some things tonight we've been looking for. More than anything, she hustled and got her hands up, and that's what we needed for her."
Player's Perspective – Courtney Blakely
"The whole season, (Rick Insell) has been telling me that 'You not only need to look for you, but you need to make sure your team is straight.' Tonight, I just went out with that mentality and I was able to do it."
"It's just more minutes. I get tired at times, but I've got to push through. Matt (Insell) said 'Great players don't get tired.' So, I've got that in my mind while I'm playing."
Up Next
It's a quick turnaround on the road for MTSU, as the Lady Raiders travel to Denton, Texas to take on North Texas on Saturday. Tipoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on YouTube and the Blue Raider Radio Network.
Follow the Lady Raiders
Follow Middle Tennessee Women's Basketball on social media on Facebook (/MTSUWBB), Twitter (@MT_WBB) and Instagram (@mt_wbb).
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