The 2015 ASC Women's Basketball Championship Tournament Tips Off Thursday
2/24/2015 4:57:39 PM
ASC Championship Bracket | History | Records
The 2015 American Southwest Conference Championship Tournament is the 17th postseason event in league history dating back to 1999. The winner of the Championship earns an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship.
The tournament will tip off at Noon on Thursday, February 26, as No. 3 Louisiana College takes on No. 6 Mary Hardin-Baylor, followed by No. 2 Texas Dallas facing No. 7 Concordia Texas at 2:30 p.m. In the evening, No. 4 Howard Payne will face No. 5 Hardin-Simmons at 5:00 p.m. and No. 1 Texas-Tyler will play the late game at 7:30 p.m. against No. 8 Ozarks.
The ASC Championship semifinals will be played Friday, February 27. Game five will tip at 5:00 p.m. and game six is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. start time. The championship game will start at 4:00 p.m. Saturday, February 28.
Six of the teams in the 2015 ASC Championship have won tournament titles. Texas-Tyler (2014), Texas Dallas (2013), Concordia Texas (2012), Howard Payne (2011) and Louisiana College (2010) have each hoisted the trophy since 2010. Hardin-Simmons last tournament crown came in 2004. Four teams have won the tournament on their home court with the most recent coming in 2014 when Texas-Tyler won its first ASC Championship.
The entire eight-team, single elimination event is available for fans to watch online for free. All tournament links for live stats, broadcasts, box scores, game recaps, bracket, photos and post-game interviews can be found on the ASC Tournament Central page and the Texas-Tyler athletic website.
Admission prices each day will be $5 for adults, $3 for college students (with current college ID), children and senior citizens. Tournament passes will not be available. Souvenir tournament T-shirts are $15, while official game programs are $2. Tickets are available on game days at the Herrington Patriot Center main entrance or to purchase tournament tickets in advance call the Texas-Tyler ticket office 903-566-7105.
The NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship Selection Show unveiling the 64-team championship field airs live on Monday, March 2 at 11:30 a.m. CT. Go to NCAA.com, Select Video > Live Events and scroll to Monday, March 2 for the live video link.
The 2015 ASC Championship Tournament Teams
No. 1 Texas-Tyler (19-1) – Defending ASC Tournament champion Texas-Tyler will host its second straight Championship and third overall. Senior Brittany King, the 2014 Championship Most Valuable Player, returns to lead the Patriots run for their second ASC Tournament crown. Texas-Tyler holds a 4-3 record in tournament play and makes its third consecutive tournament appearance and fifth overall. The Patriots enter the tournament ranked No. 10 by D3Hoops.com. Texas-Tyler is currently riding a team-record 19 game win streak and for the first time in team history the Patriots recorded their second consecutive season with 20 or more overall wins. The Patriots enter the tournament as one of the highest scoring teams in NCAA Division III. Texas-Tyler ranks seventh in total points (2,003), eighth in points per game (80.1) and scoring margin (+22.5).
No. 2 Texas Dallas (17-3) – Texas Dallas enters the Championship on a five-game win streak matching a school-record 21 overall wins. The Comets won the Championship in 2013, have nine tournament appearances all coming in the last nine seasons and have advanced to the semifinal round in the last four tournaments. Texas Dallas was the only team to defeat Texas-Tyler in the regular season and ranks in the top three in six league categories. The Comets lead the ASC in scoring defense (55.9) and field goal percentage defense (.347). UTD ranks second in scoring margin (+11.4), field goal percentage (.407) and is third in three-point field goal percentage (.329) and assists (14.7). Senior guard Madi Hess leads the UTD offense as the Division III top-ranked three-point shooter with a .479 mark from behind the arc.
No. 3 Louisiana College (13-7) – Louisiana College makes its eighth consecutive tournament appearance and ninth overall. First year head coach Patrece Carter-Spivey, a former LC player, returns to lead her alma mater's pursuit of their first Championship since 2010. The Wildcats are 10-7 in tournament play with wins in each of the last five tournaments and finished as the runner-up in 2011, 2012 and 2013. LC ranks third in Division III in scoring offense (75.0). Senior guard Neka Jones and senior center Danisha Allison lead the Wildcats’ with top-10 scoring marks. Jones ranks sixth in the ASC in scoring (13.7) and Allison ranks eighth (13.3). Jones has been one of the league’s top outside shooters ranking third in three-point field goal percentage (.278) and is one of three conference players with more than 50 made three-pointers this season (52). In addition to her scoring average, Allison leads the ASC in free throw percentage (.848), ranks third in rebounds (9.0) and fifth in blocks (1.4).
No. 4 Howard Payne (12-8) – Howard Payne is a five-time ASC Champion and leads the league with 19 tournament wins and has the longest current streak with 12 consecutive tournament appearances. HPU set the record for the most wins in conference (21-0) and overall wins (33-0) in 2008 when they won the NCAA Division III Championship. Junior guard Danyel Bradley is having a stellar season and is the leading scorer in Division III (22.4). Bradley recorded one of the best performances in ASC history in an HPU win earlier this year with 45 points and 18 made field goals. Her 45 points ranks tied for second in the league and is the first 40-point output since 2009. Her 18 made field goals tied the ASC record for the most in a single game (18) and is one of three ASC players to make 18 shots from the perimeter and the first since 2004. Senior center Kalin Hanna is one of the league’s leading defenders. Hanna ranks seventh in Division III with 3.4 blocks per game and leads the ASC with 85 blocks on the year. Hanna is on the verge of breaking her own record set in 2014 with 89 blocks and a 3.4 game average. Coach Meia Daniels, a former HPU player, was recently inducted into the American Southwest Conference Hall of Honor. A two-time ASC Champion Most Valuable Player (2007, 2008), Daniels led the Yellow Jackets to the national title in 2008.
No. 5 Hardin-Simmons (10-10) – Hardin-Simmons returns to the Championship after a one-year absence. The Cowgirls lead the ASC with six Tournament titles all coming in consecutive seasons (1999-2004). HSU is 18-9 in tournament play and has competed in 16 out of 17 postseason events. Senior center Taylor Klement leads the HSU offense with 12.2 points per game and ranks 11th in the ASC. Klement is also the team’s leading rebounder with 7.6 boards per game ranking eighth in the league. Junior center Sara Vargas gives HSU an additional low post presence. Vargas ranks sixth in the ASC in blocks (1.4) and 14th in scoring (11.8) and rebounds (6.8). Senior guard Joanna Daniel runs point for the HSU offense and ranks second in the league in assists (4.6) and is tied for ninth in three-point field goals made per game (1.8). Daniel currently has 116 assists on the year, which is the fourth-best in school history.
No. 6 Mary Hardin-Baylor (9-11) – Mary Hardin-Baylor makes its third consecutive Tournament appearance and 11th overall. The Championship runner-up in 2014, the Cru holds an 8-10 tournament record and has finished as the runner-up three times (2001, 2006, 2014). UMHB is ranked in the top 20 in NCAA Division III at 10th in rebound margin (+10.5), 15th in total points (1,884) and 17th in scoring offense (75.4). Seniors Alyssa Dean and Taylor Tucker lead the Cru offense with top-10 league scoring marks at fourth (14.8) and 10th (13.2), respectively. Dean is also the top UMHB shooter ranked fifth in the conference in field goal percentage (.407) and is one of just five ASC players to shoot over .400 for the season. Tucker is at the forefront of the team’s league-leading 1,235 rebounds. Tucker ranks fourth with 8.4 boards per game and is one of four conference players with more than 200 rebounds on the year (210).
No. 7 Concordia Texas (8-12) – Concordia Texas makes its fourth straight Tournament appearance and fifth overall. The Tornados won the ASC Championship in 2012. Concordia is 3-3 in tournament play with its last win coming in the 2012 Tournament. The Tornados lead the ASC in steals (10.0) led by senior guard Nadine Fadelle who ranks sixth (2.2) and is one of six league players with more than 50 swipes on the year (52). Junior forward Isis Johnson leads Concordia in scoring (13.3) and field goal percentage (.480), both ranking in the league’s top 10.
No. 8 Ozarks (7-13) – Ozarks makes its second consecutive tournament appearance and eighth overall. The Eagles are 1-7 in tournament play with their only win coming in the 2002 Tournament in the semifinals over Howard Payne. Ozarks ranks third in the league in blocks (107) and is one just three teams with more than 100 blocks on the year. Sophomore forward Bryanna Moltz leads the Eagles offense with 14.4 points per game ranking fifth in the conference. Moltz holds four top-10 league marks in addition to scoring at second in blocks (59), fifth in rebounds (8.1), and seventh in field goal percentage (.377). Junior guard Ashley Hipps leads Ozarks from the perimeter with 49 three-pointers on the year ranking fourth in the ASC. Hipps also ranks fourth in assists (101) and is one just five league players to hand out more than 100 assists on the year.
East Texas Baptist (6-14, 10-15) – East Texas Baptist finished just short of reaching the ASC Championship Tournament for the second consecutive season. The Tigers ranked fifth in the league in scoring offense (69.4) led by senior guard Amanda Rucker who finished her final season ranked second in the conference in total points (496) and points per game (19.8). Senior center Amber Carver led the ASC in rebounds pulling down 233 overall for a 9.7 game average. Carver also ranked second in field goal percentage (.480).
LeTourneau (6-14, 8-17) – LeTourneau missed making a return trip to the ASC Championship Tournament finishing in a tie for ninth in the conference standings. Senior guard Rebecca Stewart led the team in scoring with (11.7), rebounds (7.0) and steals (2.0), all ranking in the top 20 in the conference.
McMurry (4-20) – The McMurry women’s basketball team is currently 4-20 on the year and have one more game remaining against Tarleton State (Feb. 25). McMurry is in its first year as an NCAA Division III reclassifying member.
Sul Ross State (3-17, 4-21) – Sul Ross State’s overall record (4-21) and conference record (3-17) are the best totals since they won seven games, including six in conference play, during the 2007-08 season. SRSU lost five games by seven or fewer points including dropping their final two home games by a total of 10 points. Ivette Trujillo finished as the leading scorer, averaging 10.6 points per game, while Desare Allen was second at 9.6.