Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Middle Tennessee
11-4,1-0CUSA
LA Tech
7-10,1-1CUSA
Lady Raiders outlast Lady Techsters in overtime 64-61
1/10/2024 9:11:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Middle Tennessee opens Conference USA play with a hard fought road win
RUSTON, La. – In its Conference USA opener, Middle Tennessee defeated LA Tech in overtime 64-61 on Wednesday evening at the Thomas Assembly Center.
The Lady Raiders (11-4, 1-0 CUSA) opened the game up, attacking the paint, and quickly jumped out to a 13-4 lead over the Lady Techsters (7-10, 1-1 CUSA) at the first media break, however, LA Tech finished the opening frame on an 8-2 run, and MTSU took a five-point lead into the second period. Midway through the second, the Lady Techsters knotted things up at 21 apiece, but the Lady Raiders would go on to take a 27-26 lead into the half.
Coming out of the locker room Middle Tennessee immediately built an eight-point advantage, forcing a LA Tech timeout. The Lady Raiders' lead narrowed to just four entering the final period. The Lady Techsters cut the Lady Raiders' lead to just one, with four minutes remaining. A trio of buckets by Anastasiia Boldyreva helped MTSU build back a four-point edge with just under two minutes remaining, however, LA Tech's Anna Larr Roberson made the final two baskets of regulation, including the game-tying jumper with 10 seconds remaining.
In overtime, a pair of layups by Boldyreva and clutch free throw shooting by league-leading free throw shooter Jalynn Gregory and graduate Courtney Whitson helped propel the Lady Raiders to a 64-61 win on the road.
Boldyreva led all scorers with a career-high 32 points and 12 rebounds. She was followed by Ta'Mia Scott who tallied 20 points and a career-high 14 boards.
By the Numbers
.100: The Lady Raiders went 1-of-10 from beyond the arc on the evening compared to the Lady Techsters 8-of-29. This marked the 452nd consecutive game that MTSU has logged a three-point field goal.
50-18: Right out of the gate, Middle Tennessee emphasized attacking the paint. On the night, the Lady Raiders outscored LA Tech 50-18 in the paint.
42-32: MTSU outrebounded LA Tech 42-32. The Lady Raiders are 9-1 this season when they win the battle of the boards.
Lady Raider Notes
• Double-Doubles: Boldyreva logged her fifth career double-double - fourth of the season. Scott tallied her second career double-double - second of the season. The last time that two Lady Raiders posted a double-double in the same game was Jan. 9, 2021, at FIU (Courtney Whitson 20 pts, 15 reb; Alexis Whittington 12 pts, 11 reb).
• Double-Digits: Boldyreva logged her 29th career double-figure scoring performance - first 30-point outing, while Scott tallied her 10th - third 20-point night.
• The Lady Raiders are 164-87 overall on the road under Insell, including 63-20 on the road in CUSA play, and 121-31 in conference road games overall (CUSA & Sun Belt).
Head Coach Rick Insell
"We had two young ladies… Ta'Mia Scott, she had a double-double. 20 points and 14 rebounds, and then you had Anastasiia (Boldyreva) with 32 points and 12 rebounds. She finished when we got her the ball… We had way too many mistakes. We had 10 turnovers and we had them when it counted most. We just didn't make good decisions. It was not a good decision ball game all the way around, but we won the ball game on the road. As Coach (Jimmy) Earle said, 'Any time you get a win on the road, you better be happy with it,' and we are very happy right now that we are leaving with a win."
Player Perspective - Anastasiia Boldyreva
On opening Conference USA play with a win…
"It feels great. We have a history with this team. They are a very strong team. We respect them very much. Most of our games with them are one, two-point games. We knew it wasn't going to be easy tonight. No game is going to be an easy game, especially in conference play. It's tough."
Up Next
The Lady Raiders travel to Huntsville, Texas to take on the Sam Houston Bearkats on Saturday, Jan. 13. Tipoff is slated for 2 p.m. CT and the game will broadcast on ESPN+.
Follow the Lady Raiders
Follow Middle Tennessee Women's Basketball on social media on Facebook (/MTSUWBB), X (Formerly known as Twitter) (@MT_WBB) and Instagram (@mt_wbb).
