Posted: Mar 17, 2023
By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – It had been 23 years since the Tennessee Tech women's basketball team had gone dancing in the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament. It had been 33 years since the Golden Eagles had won a game in the tournament.
As Thursday night turns into Friday morning, those clocks get reset.
Using a well-balanced effort across the lineup, the Tennessee Tech women win their fourth-ever NCAA Tournament game, topping Monmouth 79-69 at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Thursday night. By virtue of the victory, the Golden Eagles (23-9) advance into the Field of 64 and will take on No. 1-seed Indiana on Saturday morning.
The game will be played at 10:30 a.m. Central/11:30 a.m. Eastern and will be broadcast on ESPN2 with Brenda VanLengen and Holly Warlick on the call. Dylan Vazzano and Frank Harrell will also have the call on 106.1 The Eagle.
It is only the eighth victory for the Ohio Valley Conference in the NCAA Tournament. Tech has four of them including Thursday's contest to go along with wins over Southern Miss in 1987, South Carolina in 1989 and Richmond in 1990. Belmont won NCAA contests in 2021 over Gonzaga and Oregon in double overtime in 2022. Middle Tennessee defeated Jackson State in 1983 and South Carolina in 1986.
The Golden Eagles came out in force as Peyton Carter drained a 3-pointer, but Monmouth wasn't going away easily. Both teams ended up knotted at 17 at the end of the first quarter with Carter scoring 12 of those points as she went 4-for-4 from 3-point range to lead all scorers with 12 points as the first 10 minutes came to a close.
In the second quarter, it was Jordan Brock's turn as she led the Golden Eagles with 10 points, going 3-for-3 from 3-point land. Tech also went on a 10-0 run late in the quarter to take a 40-33 lead at the intermission.
Along the way, Maaliya Owens tied the Tech regular-season record for 3-pointers made in a season in the first half. Her three makes in the first two quarters tied her with Blair Bowens and Allison Clark with 86. Owens claimed possession of the record by herself in the third quarter with her 87th trey of the season and at least another 40 minutes to play.
After that run, it was just up to the Golden Eagles to stay on top. Tech extended its lead to 12 before the third quarter came to a close, outscoring the Hawks 14-11. Monmouth was able to get the game back within six in the final period, but the Golden Eagles extended its lead back out to 14 with 1:22 left to play. Fouls elongated the waning seconds, but Tech was able to stay up by double-digits and close out the game.
Jada Guinn scored 12 points in the fourth quarter, including 6-for-6 at the free throw line and 3-for-4 from the field to shut the door on Monmouth.
Guinn and Owens each ended the game with 18 points, while Brock finished with 16 and Carter 12. Anna Walker narrowly missed a double-double with nine points and eight rebounds, while Guinn also finished with six assists.
Ariana Vanderhoop led Monmouth (18-16) with 17 points, while Lucy Thomas scored 16 and Brianna Tinsley scored 11. Thomas had six rebounds and Tinsley had three assists.
Tech finished the game shooting 46.3 percent from the field, 46.2 percent from 3-point range as the Golden Eagles knocked down 12 3-pointers.
Photo | Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
