Walker, Scherr Lead Kentucky Past Alabama in SEC Tourney
Jada Walker picked a fantastic time to have the best game of her young career. The sophomore guard scored a career-high 24 points and dished out six assists as the 14th-seeded Kentucky women’s basketball team topped sixth-seeded Alabama 71-58 on Thursday night in the second round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament. Kentucky (12-18) won for the second consecutive day after suffering a seven-game losing streak to end the season. UK has now won six consecutive games in the tournament after winning the title in 2022. Walker had 22 of her points through three quarters but it was Maddie Scherr who took over late. The junior from Florence, Kentucky, scored 14 of her 19 points in the second half as the Cats took the lead, then pulled away. Kentucky also got a huge boost from Eniya Russell, who came off the bench to score 12 points, all after halftime.
#4 Seed Cardinals to Face #12 Seed Wake Forest in the ACC Quarterfinals
The No. 4 seed Louisville women’s basketball team is set to begin its journey at the 2023 Ally ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament Friday afternoon and they now know who they will be going up against. The Cardinals will face off with the No. 12 seed Wake Forest Demon Deacons, after they defeated Florida State in the second round on Thursday. It will be the Demon Deacons third game in three days as they defeated Virginia in the first round on Wednesday. Louisville and Wake Forest will be the first of four quarterfinal matchups on Friday and it will begin at 11 a.m. ET.
Lady Toppers Claim Two Seed in C-USA Tournament with Win vs. UTEP
WKU women’s basketball clinched the No. 2 seed in the Conference USA Championship on Thursday night with a thrilling 62-59 win against UTEP. The two teams came into the game tied for second place. WKU was led in scoring by a pair of freshmen in Acacia Hayes and Karris Allen who each put up 14 points on the night. Allen set a career high in points and steals (5) and tied her career high in rebounds (8). Hayes was 4-of-6 from beyond the arc and notched her fifth double-digit performance in the last six games and 15th total on the season. With Allen tying for the lead in scoring, WKU has now had 10 different leading scorers this season. Mya Meredith added 11 points along with six rebounds. Alexis Mead filled out the stat sheet with six rebounds, five points and five assists. The point guard is averaging 3.8 assists per game over the last 10 contests. The Lady Toppers broke the WKU single season 3-point record with 12 made threes on the night, bringing the season total to 249 which beats the 2016-17 team’s previous record of 242. WKU was picked to finish sixth in the C-USA Preseason Poll by the league’s coaches. With the second place finish guaranteed, WKU has met or exceeded expectations in four of Collins’ five seasons as head coach at WKU.
Stellar Shooting Leads Hilltoppers to Road Win
A gritty win on the road on Thursday night, beating UTEP 73-68. WKU shot nearly 60% from the floor and outrebounded UTEP 32-27. WKU shot 59.2% from the field, a season-best against Division I teams, while shooting 33.3% from long range. The Hilltoppers are now 15-0 this season when leading with five minutes to play. WKU was led in scoring by Dayvion McKnight who had 24 points and paired it with seven boards. He shot 10 of 16 from the floor and a perfect 4 for 4 mark from the charity stripe. Rawls scored 15 points and pulled down three boards. Jamarion Sharp blocked six shots, scored 10 points and logged nine rebounds. UTEP had three scorers in double-digits: Calvin Solomon (16), Tae Hardy (17) and Shamar Givance (15). WKU is slated for its regular season finale at North Texas on Saturday afternoon. The 2 p.m. CT game has Conference USA Tournament standings implications.
Racers Blitz Valparaiso in Arch Madness Debut
The Murray State Racers made their debut at State Farm Arch Madness with a 78-50 win over the Valparaiso Beacons at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri. The rookie Racers who went 11-9 in their first season in the Missouri Valley Conference got the job done in their first postseason game in The Valley. Murray State advances to a 6 p.m. Friday game against the No. 2 seeded Drake Bulldogs in the quarterfinals. MSU is the No. 7 seed. JaCobi Wood had his third double-double of the season with 13 points and 11 assists to lead the Racers to four double-figure scorers. Jamari Smith and Quincy Anderson each had their MSU career-best games with 19 and 18 points, while Rob Perry added 15 points. The Racers had a season-high 24 assists.
Racers Take Care of Valpo on the Road
The Murray State women’s basketball team posted a convincing 77-64 win over Valparaiso Thursday at the Athletics-Recreation Center in Valparaiso, Indiana. With a win Saturday at UIC, the Racers can enter next week’s Hoops in the Heartland tournament as high as the sixth seed. Macey Turley broke another school record in Thursday’s game, hitting three 3-pointers to pass Mariah Robinson for the most career triples in school history. Turley has now hit 265 total 3-pointers in her career as a Racer. Turley led four players in double digits at Valparaiso with 19 points, while Katelyn Young followed at 15. Hannah McKay added 12 points, while Bria Sanders-Woods led the Racer bench with 11. Valparaiso turned the ball over 16 times Thursday and the Racers took full advantage by scoring 19 points off of the Beacons’ miscues.
>>College Basketball Roundup
(Undated) — Memphis crushed SMU 81-62 in college basketball action. The Tigers are now 23-and-7 and will finish the regular season against top-ranked Houston on Sunday. Several other schools close out the season tomorrow. Number-14 Tennessee will play Auburn on the road. Kentucky hits the road to play Arkansas. The Commodores are 17-and-13 and will host Mississippi State. Louisville is at Number-12 Virginia.