By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Thursday's game against Western Illinois just became a lot bigger for the Tennessee Tech women's basketball team. With Lindenwood's 75-70 loss in Macomb on Tuesday night, the Golden Eagles now have the opportunity to claim at least a share of the Ohio Valley Conference regular-season title with a victory over Western Illinois on Thursday.
If Tech (22-5, 16-2 OVC) takes care of business Thursday and Saturday, the Golden Eagles can claim the OVC regular-season title outright when Lindenwood comes to down for the regular-season finale on Saturday.
However, it's still one game at a time for the Tech women and what matters is the task at hand Thursday night as the Leathernecks (14-14, 8-11 OVC) come to the Eblen Center.
Thursday's game is scheduled for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff. Dylan Vazzano and Steve Smith will have the call on ESPN+ (subscription required) while Roger Ealey will narrate the action on 106.1 The Eagle.
To put it simply, Tennessee Tech currently holds a half-game lead over Lindenwood in the OVC standings. A victory Thursday over Western Illinois will make it a full-game lead and give the Golden Eagles a share of the OVC championship with Lindenwood only able to tie Tech with a win on Saturday.
If Tech beats WIU on Thursday and falls to the Lions on Saturday, Lindenwood would be the conference tournament's No. 1-seed by tiebreaker but both Tech and Lindenwood would share the regular-season title.
If the Golden Eagles win both games, Tech will win the OVC regular-season championship outright and be the top-seeded team next week in Evansville for the OVC Basketball Championships at the Ford Center.
On Tuesday night in Macomb, Lindenwood and Western Illinois battled neck and neck through the first quarter with the Lions leading 21-20 at the end of the opening stanza and leading by as many as six points. However, the Lions went cold in the second and third quarters, shooting 25 percent from the field before halftime and 23.1 percent after the break as the Leathernecks outscored them 36-24 in that span.
WIU led by 17 points with 4:21 left in the third quarter, but Lindenwood battled back to as few as three points with 32 seconds in the game. Foul trouble for Gracy Wernli limited her minutes even as she still scored 15 points in the contest – one fewer than team-best Brooke Coffey's 16. Ellie Brueggemann also had 15 points, while Mykayla Cunningham had 11.
The Leathernecks also saw its standout benched for foul troubles as Raegan McCowan fouled out toward the end of the game as the Lions started to surge back. She still finished the game with 19 points and 15 rebounds. Mia Nicastro scored 25 points to lead all scorers, shooting 10-for-15 from the field.
WIU shot at a relatively steady 43.3 percent clip through the game and took advantage of the offensive glass, scoring 13 second-chance points on 17 offensive rebounds. Lindenwood, meanwhile, converted 14 turnovers into 18 points.
In conference play, Western Illinois is averaging 69.8 points and 36.9 rebounds a game, shooting .425 from the field, .326 from 3-point range with an average of 5.8 treys made a game as well as .800 at the free-throw line with an average of 16.0 free throws made a night. The Leathernecks were 14-for-20 at the stripe Tuesday night, outpacing Lindenwood's 11-for-17.
WIU has seen its conference success at home this season, going 6-4 in its friendly confines. However, one of those four losses came at the hands of Tech back on Dec. 17 to open league play with the Golden Eagles winning 72-52. Nicastro led the Leathernecks with 18 points, while McCowan scored 14 and Addi Brownfield 12.
Instead, it was the Golden Eagles who saw a lot of time at the free-throw line in the game, shooting 16-for-20 at the stripe. Four Tech players scored in double figures in the game, including 15 points for Peyton Carter, 13 for Chloe Larry, as well as 12 each for Keeley Carter and Taris Thornton. The Golden Eagles also held WIU to 22 second-half points, outscoring the Leathernecks 29-14 in the third and 13-8 in the fourth after the first half ended in a 30-30 draw.
On the road this season, however, WIU is 2-7 in conference play with wins at SIUE and Morehead State. Four of those seven losses were by four or fewer points, but they fell by 10 at Eastern Illinois, 14 at Southern Indiana and 20 at UT Martin.
Looking at the Golden Eagles in conference play, Tech is averaging 71.7 points and allowing 61.3, while shooting .430 from the field, .366 from 3-point range with an average of 7.9 3-pointers made, and .766 at the free-throw line with an average of 15.7 charity tosses made. Keeley Carter is averaging 13.7 points, Reghan Grimes 12.4, Larry 12.3 and Peyton Carter 11.9 points a game in league play.
The Golden Eagles look to continue their current 13-game winning streak and 16 straight at home. One more OVC victory out of the two regular-season contests remaining will give Tech its most OVC wins ever in a single season. With wins in both games, the Golden Eagles can tie the 2017-18 Belmont women's team for the most conference wins for an OVC team in a single season at 18.
Tickets for the final two games – as well as next week's OVC Basketball Championships – are on sale now. Call (931) 372-3940, visit the Hooper Eblen Center ticket office or order online at TTUsports.com.
Photo | Jim Dillon
