The University of Texas at the Tyler women's basketball event made history Tuesday night as they secured their first postseason victory as a full Division II member with a 55-38 victory over Midwestern State.
The Patriots' defense proved suffocating overnight as they restricted the Mustangs to 20.6% below the floor and just 9.1% from beyond the arc.
The Patriots scored their first bucket of the game after Tina Machalova dropped a three-pointer and they never looked back. Lia Davis and Destiny Whitehead's layup helped them hold a 7-1 lead after just three minutes of play. A jumper from Machalova, another layup from Davis, and a pair of Montesse Gutierrez free throws took the score to 13-8 to end the quarter. The Patriots' defense showed up early, not allowing a Mustangs field goal for the final 3:45 of the quarter and allowing only three totals for the full ten minutes.
Midwestern State's Frances King knocked in a three-pointer of her own to start the second quarter, but it was answered by a big one from Machlova and another layup from Whitehead. A turnover and fastbreak layup from Gutierrez extended the lead to nine after a quick 7–0 run.
That quick offense set the tone on the defense for UT Tyler as he did not allow any goals in the field beyond 5:57 in this period. Only two points for Midwestern State came from free throw stripes during the drought. It took a pair of Frances King jumpers to pull them out of the slump as both teams were five in the locker room with UT Tyler.
As both teams came out of the locker room in the second half, it was UT Tyler who picked up the pace early and never gave up. 11-5 runs at 4:53 in the first half of the second half extended their lead to 11 points. Four different Patriots contributed to the run as they held the Mustangs for just two scored field goals.
With the lead up to 13 after the first three quarters, Lovisa Hevinder dropped a jumper in the paint to extend the only 1:06 lead to 15 points in the fourth period. That strong Patriots defense kept the Mustangs scoreless for the first 3:47, and it allowed the Patriots to extend the lead to 18. Both teams traded buckets over the next four minutes and this allowed the Patriots to advance the game and run down the clock to win.
The Patriots took a 7-2 lead in the fast break points, and 8-4 in the point-offs of the turnover. The real damage was done in points in the paint, as UT Tyler held a 32-12 advantage over the Mustangs.
Three different Patriots reached double digits in the evening, and Destiny Whitehead led with 17. Machalova added 16 of her own and stole three.
Leah Davis proved to be a force in the paint, collecting her sixth double-double of the season as she had 10 points and 14 rebounds.
Next up for UT Tyler is a trip to the LSC Quarterfinals where they will take on Texas Women for the third time this season. The Pioneers are the number two seeds in the LSC tournament and will take place at 2:30 pm. Inside the Comerica Center in Frisco, Texas on Friday.