Huskies prevail on senior day in overtime
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Wayne State (16-7,12-6 GLIAC) | 17 | 16 | 13 | 17 | 6 | 69 |
|
Michigan Tech (15-9,10-6 GLIAC) | 18 | 10 | 23 | 12 | 9 | 72 |
HOUGHTON, Mich. - Michigan Tech women's basketball went wire to wire with Wayne State Saturday afternoon and came out on top in overtime 72-69 at SDC Gymnasium. Ellie Mackay got hot in the second half and scored a team-high 20 points, while Sara Dax contributed 19 points off the bench. Mackay also grabbed 10 defensive rebounds for her second double-double this season.
"I think ultimately it came down to willpower and heart," said head coach Sam Clayton. "Both teams were pretty tired by the time we made it to overtime but we just needed to bear down and get some stops on defense. That was an area of our games I thought we were pretty sharp throughout the game. We made them make some tough shots and got 17 turnovers so that was a big key."
The Huskies scored the first seven points of the game, then commanded a 14-4 edge before back-to-back layups by the Warriors cut the margin back to six. Grace George helped Wayne State assemble a 7-0 run. The Warriors went in front 33-28 at halftime but the Huskies came out shooting after the break. Tech outscored Wayne State 23-13 in the third quarter.
"In the first half we got some good looks but just didn't make many," Clayton said. "We talked at halftime about staying with the plan and just trusting that they would eventually fall. On defense, we were able to limit (Sam) Cherney to five points, which was a point of emphasis before the game. Our urgency on defense was really important."
The Warriors made a layup with 16 seconds left in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 63-63, pushing the game to an extra session for the third time this winter.
Neither team scored for nearly the first two minutes of the overtime before Dax downed a 3-pointer for Michigan Tech. Mackay stretched the lead to five with a basket but WSU's Fugate and George made it to free throw line to get the Warriors back to within two, 68-66. Two free throws by Mackay put the Huskies back up by four. Then George connected on a 3-pointer with four seconds left. An inbound pass came to Alex Rondorf, who was promptly fouled. Rondorf made free throws to seal the Huskies first overtime win of the season.
The Huskies shot 40-percent overall, including 38-percent from long range with 38 rebounds, 12 assists, and 11 steals. Michigan Tech (15-9, 10-6 GLIAC) began the weekend in sixth place in the GLIAC point standings. The team heads to Saginaw Valley State Tuesday to play a make-up game from January before ending the regular season on the road next weekend. Wayne State fell to 16-7 (12-6 GLIAC). MTU swept the season series with WSU 2-0.
Senior Jordan Ludescher was honored for her distinguished Husky career at the conclusion of the game. Ludescher was inserted into the starting lineup and was on the floor for tip-off before Dax came off the bench for Tech.
