Junior forward Idara Udo contributed 18 points, eight rebounds and four blocks as UTSA beat Memphis to split two games in the season series. – Photo by Joe Alexander
By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay
The UTSA Roadrunners executed four straight plays on the offensive end in the final minutes, scoring nine points in a row on those possessions, to down the Memphis Tigers 67-55 on Sunday afternoon in American Conference women’s basketball.
Having clinched a berth in the American’s postseason tournament on Saturday night when Tulsa beat Wichita State, UTSA (13-14, 8-8) still wanted to win on Senior Day and make amends for an earlier loss to Memphis.
After recognition in a pre-game ceremony on Senior Day, Cheyenne Rowe had 16 points and nine rebounds against the Memphis Tigers. – Photo by Joe Alexander
They also wanted to snap a three-game losing streak.
The Roadrunners succeeded on all fronts by building an early lead and then holding off the Tigers (9-20, 3-13) at the end with a late push led by Cheyenne Rowe, Idara Udo and Ereauna Hardaway.
Rowe and Hardaway were two of the UTSA seniors recognized in a pre-game ceremony.
“It was good to get back home and get on the winning side of the game,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said. “Just a fantastic effort, I thought, on our part to see seniors go out in a winning fashion.
“But, really, just our team getting back to winning ways. I’m super proud of the way we followed the game plan and stayed composed throughout the game.”
Udo led the Roadrunners with 18 points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots.
Rowe, a 6-2 senior from Ontario, Canada, contributed 16 points and nine boards. Hardaway, a 5-8 guard from Jonesboro, Ark., delivered 11 points, eight rebounds and four assists.
Guard Daejah Richmond paced the Tigers with 17 points and four assists.
Amauri Williams scored 11. With the loss, Memphis was eliminated from contention for the conference tournament.
UTSA switched up personnel in the starting lineup and then pulled out to an 18-10 lead after the first quarter.
Inserted as a starter, freshman Adriana Robles added speed to the lineup. She also produced nine points and five assists against only one turnover.
Robles also pulled down six rebounds on a day when UTSA dominated on the boards, 48-28.
Records
Memphis 9-20, 3-13
UTSA 13-14, 8-8
Senior Ereauna Hardaway contributed 11 points, eight rebounds and four assists as UTSA avenged an earlier loss to Memphis. – Photo by Joe Alexander
Coming up
Tulsa at UTSA, Wednesday, 6:30 p.m.
UTSA at Rice, Saturday, March 7, 2 p.m.
Notable
The Roadrunners sit in sixth place in the American Conference standings leading into their last two games of the regular season. At 8-8, the Roadrunners are two games behind 10-6 and fifth-place Tulsa and one ahead of 7-9 Temple and Charlotte.
A seeding of fifth or sixth would be advantageous for UTSA in that it would give the team a first-round bye in the tournament. Falling to seventh or lower would be perilous, in that the No. 7 through 10 seeds don’t get a bye.
In other words, finishing seventh would mean UTSA would need to win five games in five days to win the postseason title and qualify for the NCAA tournament. Finishing fifth or sixth means that the team would need four wins in four days.
UTSA’s two remaining conference games will be challenging. The Roadrunners host Tulsa (18-10, 10-6) on Wednesday. They will finish on the road against regular-season champion Rice (26-3, 16-0) on Saturday afternoon.
Third quarter
The Roadrunners opened the second half on 12-3 run, expanding their lead to 42-28.
Undaunted, the Tigers started pressing after their own field goal makes and speeding up the action. At the end of the period, UTSA led 51-44.
Udo scored nine points in the quarter for UTSA, and Williams had 11 for Memphis.
First half
The Roadrunners rode an 18-point first quarter to a 30-25 halftime lead on the Tigers.
The half ended on a bizarre note, with a foul called to prompt a stop in the action with 13.2 seconds left.
Richmond responded by flipping the ball up to hit Hardaway. Hardaway retaliated by tossing the ball back at Richmond, drawing whistles from the referees.
Both players were hit with technical fouls.
The story of the half for the Roadrunners centered on their first-quarter scoring.
Limited to 13 points or less in their last five first quarters, they shot 41 percent to take an 18-10 lead on the Tigers.
Freshman Adriana Robles started at guard for the Roadrunners along with the other regular starters, including Hardaway, Mia Hammonds, Idara Udo and Cheyenne Rowe.
Damara Allen came off the bench.