Leatherneck Nation

The Women start tournament play at Noon today vs IUPUI. ESPN3 will be picking up the Midco Sports telecast.

Be sure to look for the Western cheerleaders, dance line, pep band, and Rocky. They should be positioned on the left side of the screen.

Massey Ratings is showing Western as a three point favorite:
http://www.masseyratings.com/game.php?gid=583617256

Very slow start for Western. Down by 19 in the first half at one point. Battled back in the last few minutes to narrow the gap at the break.

IUPUI up by 9 at the half: 34-25.

Western's comeback falls short. IUPUI wins 66-59.

Ashley Luke finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds. The rest of the team combined to shoot 13-of-51 from the floor, including 9-of-31 from three.

Michelle Maher had 12 points.

IUPUI put up 16 fewer shots than Western, but it was efficient shooting 48% from the floor, including 83.3% (5-of-6) from three. IUPUI also outscored Western by five at the free throw line.

Western shot 31% from the floor. Western shot 20% (6 for 30) in the first half.

IUPUI led for 36:19. Western led for 1:33. The game was tied for 2:02.

Western now awaits to see if it has been selected for a post-season tournament. Western is eligible for both the WNIT and WBI. Both tournaments unveil their brackets on Monday, March 16th.

Attendance at the Sunday Women's Quarter-finals was 2,594.

Jackrabbits displayed that Duke mentality today. Once they get you down, they turn up the defensive l pressure.

Women's Semi-finals:
South Dakota beat IUPUI 69-58.
South Dakota State beat Oral Roberts 59-48.

Attendance was 6,704.

The championship game will be Tuesday at 1PM on ESPNU.

South Dakota State (24-8) beat South Dakota (25-7) by a score of 72-57 in today's championship game.
Attendance was 6,926.

The women's Summit League championship game was the most attended women's basketball title game this year, with 6,926 fans in attendance.

The Atlantic Coast Conference (6,874), American Conference (6,499), and Southeastern Conference (5,819) round out the top four.

wiu712 wrote:The women's Summit League championship game was the most attended women's basketball title game this year, with 6,926 fans in attendance.

The Atlantic Coast Conference (6,874), American Conference (6,499), and Southeastern Conference (5,819) conferences round out the top four.

I know numbers are skewed with it being two South Dakota schools playing in South Dakota, but still, that's really impressive.

It is impressive, but the entire tournament was similar to this game. You would need to be there once to realize the tournament atmosphere. The TV version is normally much quieter than the on floor experience. Overall it is great that the Summit is showing the level of play and the fan response for the women.