Women's Basketball earns third ranked win of the season in an instant classic on Saturday
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
College of Southern Idaho (7-1, 0-0) | 13 | 14 | 18 | 15 | 60 |
|
Mesa Community College (4-1, 0-0) | 21 | 17 | 11 | 14 | 63 |
College of Southern Idaho
| Game Statistics | College of Southern Idaho | Mesa Community College |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (20-57) | (24-58) |
| Field Goal % | 35.1% | 41.4% |
| Rebounds | 36 | 35 |
| Assists | 9 | 15 |
| Turnovers | 17 | 18 |
Monday November 20, 2023 - 11:25 a.m. | Dylan DeVlieger
No. 6 MCC Women's Basketball got a big win on Saturday over No. 3 DI opponent, College of Southern Idaho on Saturday, 60-63.
The Lady T-Birds came out in the opening half and had their best first half shooting performance of the season as they went 14/27 from the field (51.9%). On the season CSI on average had given up just 28.1 points in the first half to opponents, Mesa put up 38 points.
Efficient scoring wasn't the only thing that made the first half successful for MCC as they held the Golden Eagles to just 27 points, the lowest scoring half for CSI on the season, The Golden Eagles shot just 1-10 behind the arc in the opening half. MCC took a 38-27 advantage into the halftime locker room.
Mesa started the third quarter off right where they left off as they came out and added their lead, growing it to 16 points early in the quarter. The Golden Eagles would use the third period as their moment to try to begin to swing momentum back in their favor and they did so by getting MCC into foul trouble and getting to the free throw often as Mesa picked up their fifth team foul with nearly six minutes left in the quarter, allowing CSI to head to the free throw line at each additional foul. The Golden Eagles would outscore MCC 18-11 in the third quarter, cutting their deficit to just 4 as the quarter would end 45-49 in favor of the Lady T-Birds.
The contest was shaping up as an instant classic in the fourth quarter as both teams would trade blows back and forth, CSI would take their one and only lead of the game with 7:37 left in the game as they led 50-49. Down the stretch it was a tight game, MCC held a four point lead with under 30 seconds left until CSI made a big time three pointer to cut the lead to just one.
With four seconds left Brooklyn Scurry came to the line after being fouled to shoot two free throws and give her team the opportunity to put the game away. Scurry came up big as she hit both shots from the line giving her team a three point lead.
The Golden Eagles had to get down the court in a hurry to have a chance to get shot up, but their nearly halfcourt heave would clank off the backboard and cement Mesa's victory.
This is the first win MCC has earned over the College of Southern Idaho in their four game history. This is MCC's third ranked victory of the season, and their second win over a DI opponent.
This victory was a true team effort as typical leading scorers Ashiian Hunter and Jadia Brooks did not have their typical scoring day at the office. Hunter and Brooks shot a combined 7-32 from the field for 21 points. With their off game the rest of the team stepped up in a big way to carry the scoring load helping them capture the victory.
Mesa will take a week off during the holiday and will be back in action kicking off conference play on No. 28 as they host Eastern Arizona College.
Breakout Thunderbirds:
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Brooklyn Scurry came off the bench and provided big minutes for MCC as she played nearly 20 minutes, leading the team in scoring with 15 points, grabbing seven total rebounds (five offensive), recording two steals, and hitting clutch free throws down the stretch.
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Kamiyah Hurd shot 7-8 from the field for 12 points while leading the team on the boards with eight (five offensive).
