GAME THREAD: women's basketball vs. Tulane (AAC)

[PonyPride]

Tulane hit 1 three-pointer in the first half

Has hit seven so far in the second

Tulane 65, SMU 53
3:54 to go

[PonyPride]

Another 3, this time from Whittington

68-53 — Tulane

3:16 to go

[PonyPride]

Tulane has outscored SMU 45-22 in the second half

[PonyPride]

Donavia Hall layup makes it 63-53
53 seconds left

[PonyPride]

Bradley tied with former guard Brittany Gilliam for fourth in SMU history for assists

[PonyPride]

Young layup stretches SMU run to 7 points, closes it to 68-60 (Tulane) with 23 seconds left

[PonyPride]

Perry converts feed from Chandler
68-62

[PonyPride]

Final

Tulane 68
SMU 62

[PonyPride]

Notes from head coach Toyelle Wilson's post-game interview:

ΓÇó "They hit shots, they hit 3s — they hit shots in the second half and we didn't"
ΓÇó On season: up and down, thought did OK in conference, Amirah had a good year — can't have just two people show up
ΓÇó (Recruiting) starts immediately, once you lose a game, that starts immediately. We've got to get players that can play both sides of the ball going into ACC

[Silk]

2021-22: 14-15
2022-23: 17-13
2023-24: 14-16

[Hop Sing]

I don’t watch or follow women’s basketball, but I want all SMU teams to be winners. The ladies are obviously trending in the wrong direction, and I doubt the current team could have beat any ACC team this year. Next year is going to be brutal.

[PonyPride]

From SMUMustangs.com:

No. 11 SMU Falls To No. 14 Tulane

FORT WORTH, Texas (SMU)- The SMU women's basketball team lost 68–62 to No. 14 Tulane in the first round of the 2024 American Athletic Conference Tournament on Saturday night in Dickies Arena. The loss dropped the Mustangs to 14-16 (8-10 American Athletic Conference) on the year.

SMU opened the game strong, going on an 11-2 run in the first four minutes, forcing Tulane to take a timeout. Hot shooting played a key role in the quick start, with the Mustangs going 5-for-6 from the field. SMU wrapped up the opening 10 minutes up 15-10.

In the second quarter, the Mustangs continued to separate from the Green Wave, outscoring them 17-13 to take a nine-point lead into the half, 32-23.

SMU's defense set the tone in the first half, holding Tulane to 11-for-32 shooting, while Tiara Young led the way on offense with 11 points on an efficient 5-for-7 shooting.

Tulane connected on a couple 3s to make it a two-possession game at 40-36 at the under-5 media in the third. The Green Wave got its first lead of the night at 41-40 after a pair of made free throws. Tulane pushed the lead to five by the end of the quarter.

Reagan Bradley kept the Mustangs in this with timely 3s, cutting the Green Wave advantage to seven at 60-53 at the 6:02 mark left in regulation. But Tulane was able to handle the pressure and went on the secure the six-point victory.

MILESTONE ALERT
Reagan Bradley moved into a tie for fourth on SMU's all-time assists list with two against Tulane

SMU's All-Time Assist List
489 Suzanne McAnally 1989-92
481 Kendall Shead 2003-06
462 Karen Blair 1995-99
435 Reagan Bradley 2019-24
435 Brittany Gilliam 2006-10

Tiara Young grabbed her 500th career rebound.

NOTES
Starters vs. Tulane: #13 Reagan Bradley, #1 Tiara Young, #10 Maya Chandler, #33 Chantae Embry, #23 Amirah Abdur-Rahim; 10th game with this starting lineup; 5-5 record
SMU outrebounded its opponent for the 13th time this season
SMU passed out 15 plus assists for the 17th time this season
SMU outshot its opponent from the field for the 19th time this season. Entered the night shooting 43.3% from the field (2nd AAC).
SMU score more points in the paint than its opponent for the 20th time this season. SMU is 12-8 when scoring more points in the pain than its foes
SMU tallied more bench points than its opponent for the ninth time this season
SMU is 12-3 when leading after the first quarter
SMU is 12-4 when leading at halftime

ADDITIONAL INDIVIDUAL NOTES

Amirah Abdur-Rahim (#23, Sr., F)
14 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks
Scored double-digit points for the 20th time this season
Chantae Embry (#33, Jr., F)
7 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists
Tiara Young (#1 Gr., G)
17 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists
Scored double-digit points for the 26th time. Entered the night averaging 17.2 points per game (5th AAC)
Reagan Bradley (#13, Gr., G)
13 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
Made her 115th start at SMU
Scored double-digit points for the 17th time this season
Maya Chandler (#10, Sr., G)
2 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists
TK Pitts (#2, So., G)
3 points, 4 rebounds, # assists, steal
Jiya Perry (#4, So. G)
4 points, 5 rebounds, assist, block
Third time in five games with five plus rebounds
Donavia Hall (#24, So., G/F)
2 points, 2 rebounds

[PonyPride]

Post-game press conference:

[ALEX LIFESON]

2021-22: 14-15
2022-23: 17-13
2023-24: 14-16

Plus, top area recruits aren't giving us the time of day. I was very optimistic about this hire, three years later, very disappointed. With the ACC not taking the bottom feeders in Conference tournaments, BOTH of our programs, won't be seeing any post season play for the foreseeable future.

[ritarivas89]

I doubt the current team could have beat any ACC team this year. Next year is going to be brutal.

This year was marred by injury for the women. It began with them losing a starter in the preseason. They were playing without 2 starters for most of the season and a high use rotation player as well. The Colorado game was a 2 possession game for 3 quarters.i think they could’ve beaten 4 of the bottom tier ACC teams with the roster of players in month 1 of the season. Then injuries hit them.

As for our ACC prospects, no women’s program has made that jump in Conference successfully. UCF and Cincinnati both were at the bottom of the Big 12 this year. Recruiting doesn’t work like that in basketball.