Old Dominion (22-7, 12-5 C-USA) at Middle Tennessee (21-6, 13-4 C-USA)
Game Info – Saturday, March 5 at 3 p.m. ET
Location – Murphy Center (Murfreesboro, Tenn.)
Watch – CUSA.tv
Listen – Money Talk 1310 AM 100.9 FM and 97.3 HD2
Live Stats – Click Here
Game Notes – ODU
NORFOLK, Va. – The 30th and final game of the regular season carries tremendous weight as the Old Dominion women's basketball team travels to Middle Tennessee on Saturday looking to finish second in the Conference USA East Division and secure a double bye into the conference tournament quarterfinals. Saturday's finale tips at 3 p.m. ET and is streaming on CUSA.tv with the radio broadcast on Money Talk 1310 AM 100.9 FM and 97.3 HD2.
The Starting Five
The final game of the regular season is a true winner-take-all contest between the Monarchs and the Lady Raiders. Saturday's winner will receive a double-bye into the quarterfinals of the C-USA Tournament whereas the loser must play in the first round. Middle Tennessee can claim a share of the East Division title and the No. 1 seed with a win over ODU and a Charlotte loss on Saturday. The Monarchs can finish no better than second with a win and no worse than third with a loss.
ODU trailed 22-11 after the first quarter, led 32-28 at the half and were up 62-61 with 22 seconds to play before losing 65-62 to LA Tech on Wednesday. The Monarchs opened the second quarter on an 11-0 run to tie the score and built a six-point edge just after the halftime, but the Lady Techsters scored the last four points of the game to sneak away with the win. Iggy Allen scored 20 points in the loss and topped 1,000 points for her career in the process.
On Feb. 14, head coach DeLisha Milton-Jones was announced as a member of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2022. Milton-Jones boasts an accolade-filled career in the game. She received the Wade Trophy in 1997 as the best player in college basketball and won two Olympic gold medals and two WNBA titles. She is the seventh individual with ODU ties to reach the hall and is just the 13th active DI head coach in the WBHOF.
The Monarchs are one of the tightest defensive units in the country this year. ODU entered Friday ranked 20th nationally and first in C-USA in scoring defense (55.1). The Monarchs 37th in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.275). ODU is turning teams over 20.41 times per game (17th in DI, 1st in C-USA) while averaging the 25th-most steals per game (10.5) in the country. Additionally, ODU is second in the conference and 66th in DI with 4.1 blocks per game.
On Feb. 19, 2021 the Monarchs sat at 6-9 overall and 3-8 in Conference USA before ending the season with seven wins in their last nine games. The Monarchs are a combined 29-9 (.763) since that Feb. 19 loss to UAB. Those are the most wins by a C-USA team over that span, and no team in C-USA can match ODU's win percentage since Feb. 19, 2021.
Scouting Middle Tennessee
The Lady Raiders (21-6, 13-4) remain in the hunt for a share of the C-USA East Division title and can claim the No. 1 seed in the upcoming conference tournament with a win and a Charlotte loss on Saturday.
Middle Tennessee secured a potential tiebreaker over Charlotte with a 72-65 win on Wednesday to give the Lady Raiders the season sweep of the 49ers.
MTSU made seven 3-pointers in the win and held Charlotte to 4-of-21 (.190) shooting from deep. On the season, the Lady Raiders are first in the conference in 3-point shooting percentage (.329), 3-pointers made (257) and 3-pointers attempted (781) and are second-best at guarding the 3-point line (.260).
Kseniya Malashka came off the bench on Wednesday and scored 27 points with four treys. Malashka is the Lady Raiders' leading scorer this season at 13.0 points per game. She also averages 5.0 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.3 blocks.
Courtney Whitson averages 12.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. Dor Saar leads Middle Tennessee with 3.3 assists per game and 65 made 3-pointers.
The Series
Old Dominion can tie up the all-time series with Middle Tennessee on Saturday. The Monarchs are 6-7 against the Lady Raiders but have won four of the last five meetings, including a 58-56 result on Feb. 10.
ODU built a 10-point halftime lead and made a pair of defensive stops in the closing seconds of the game to hold off the charging Lady Raiders.
Allen led the Monarchs with 13 points and nine rebounds. She went 9-of-12 from the foul line and made a pair of foul shots with four seconds remaining to seal the win.
What's Next
The Monarchs head straight to Frisco, Texas for the Conference USA Tournament which runs March 8-12. Should the Monarchs receive the No. 2 seed in the East, they will play in the quarterfinals on Thursday at 3 p.m. If ODU is the No. 3 seed, it will play at 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The complete C-USA Tournament bracket will be released on Saturday night.
Women’s Basketball Goes to Middle Tennessee for High-Stakes Finale
