Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Middle Tennessee
19-4,9-0CUSA
FIU
16-7,7-2CUSA
Lady Raiders complete season sweep of Panthers with dominant defense
2/10/2024 4:26:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MTSU held FIU to just over 30 percent shooting from the floor to roll past the Panthers
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee women's basketball needed to grind out some tough minutes on Saturday but found a way to turn defense into offense to pull away, rolling past FIU 73-54 in the Murphy Center.
The Lady Raiders (19-4, 9-0 CUSA) battled early, ending the first quarter on a 6-0 run that served as the margin for most of the rest of the first half, as the teams combined to shoot just 8-for-31 in the second quarter. The Panthers (16-7, 7-2 CUSA) were one point better in the frame thanks to a pair of three-pointers, while MTSU failed to make any of their six second quarter attempts, allowing MTSU to head into the locker room up 33-28.
FIU had a 5-0 run to start the third quarter to tie the game, but the Lady Raiders countered with an 11-0 run of their own, highlighted by six points coming from drives from Savannah Wheeler, to wrest back control of the proceedings. Wheeler would play the hero once more at the end of the frame, receiving a tipped-out pass following a Courtney Whitson rebound to drill a corner three with the foul, knocking down the free throw to stretch MTSU's lead to 10 points heading into the fourth. The Lady Raiders held the Panthers to just 3-for-11 from the field in the final frame to pull away, shooting 8-for-17 from the field themselves in the final 10 minutes.
Wheeler picked up a double-double with a team-high 31 points and 11 assists on Saturday, adding three rebounds to her 12 made field goals on the afternoon. Courtney Whitson was the next closest on the team with 14 points, grabbing five rebounds and dishing out a pair of assists while recording a team-high three steals. Whitson recorded her 1,000th career rebound with a defensive rebound at the 4:16 mark of the third quarter, becoming just the second Lady Raider to hit that mark in her career.
By the Numbers
1,003: Career rebounds for Courtney Whitson, who became the second Lady Raider record1,000 career rebounds when she hauled in her second rebound of the afternoon on Saturday. She joins Ebony Rowe as the only Lady Raiders to be members of both the 1,000-point club and the 1,000-rebound club.
22: Points of turnovers for the Lady Raiders, who outscored the Panthers 22-8 in that category on Saturday. MTSU turned FIU over 15 times as team, with just six of those turnovers coming on Lady Raider steals.
57: Points for Savannah Wheeler against FIU this season after scoring 31 points on Saturday. The graduate guard scored a team-high 26 points on the road in Miami earlier this season. Across her 10 games against the Panthers, split between her time at MTSU and her time at Marshall, Wheeler is averaging 20.4 points per game against FIU in her career.
Lady Raider Notes
• Savannah Wheeler logged her third 30-point performance of the season today. She also tallied a career-high 11 assists. This marked her third career double-double - all three have come this season.
• This marks the first time that the Lady Raiders have lost the battle of the boards since the Belmont game.
• Middle Tennessee moves to 143-18 all-time under Coach Insell when they make 10 or more three-point field goals.
• MTSU now leads the all-time series 37-10 over FIU.
Thoughts from Head Coach Rick Insell
"We held them to 54 points and they're averaging seventy-something. I thought overall, our defense was pretty good all day long. Pretty pleased with our kids. I thought we got some good minutes out of Sifa Ineza. I thought that when we put Jada Grannum in, she gave us some good minutes. Two rebounds there early on and then a score. Like I've always said, she ain't going to do anything to hurt you. She's going to give you some size inside and she's going to rebound the ball and she finished.
"This week was a big week for us. Last Saturday, we were playing Western. And then we go right in and play Liberty and then we come right in and play Florida International. It's been tough three games in a row. I don't know if anybody in our league has to play those three people right in a row like we did."
Player's Perspective – Courtney Whitson
On joining Ebony Rowe in the 1,000-rebound club...
"To even have my name beside Ebony Rowe is mind blowing. Since I've been here, Coach has been telling me about Ebony Rowe, Ebony Rowe, Ebony Rowe, her work ethic. So, I'm a woman of faith and I give all the honor to my God. It's just one of those things, like we talked about last time, I pride myself on being able to get those opportunities for my teammates."
Up Next
MTSU will head to the Mountain time zone for a two-game swing in CUSA play, taking on New Mexico State on Thursday, February 15 to kick off the road trip. Tipoff against the Aggies is set for 7 p.m. CT on ESPN+ and the Blue Raider Radio Network.
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).
