The Pioneer women’s basketball team won two playoff games in the Sun Belt Conference tournament before falling in the semifinals Monday to Middle Tennessee 76-50. Their efforts looked like a repeat of the team’s 2003-04 season when DU lost to the MTU in the semifinals 64-61.
The No. 4 seeded Pioneers had an easy win in their home game against Florida Atlantic 62-41 Feb. 28. Their win March 3 against University of Arkansas-Little Rock in Lafayette, La. came after a struggle, but the Pioneers just couldn’t hold a lead against Middle Tennessee two days later.
Florida Atlantic scored first in the game Feb. 28, but their lead stopped at that. The Pioneers led No. 13 Florida Atlantic the entire game, by as many as 26 points in the second half. The Pioneers led 36-19 going into the half, with eight points coming from Alisha Godette.
DU came into the second half with less momentum, though, giving up the ball three times, allowing FAU to cut Denver’s lead by 12. A three-pointer by junior Jenna Cole soon after increased Denver’s lead by 17.
A steal by FAU under their basket shrunk Denver’s lead once again, but three buckets by Godette extended the lead to 17.
Sophomore Nnenna Akotaobi hit a three from the corner to push the lead to 20.
“I think we had a big, big help from [junior guard] Brooke Meyer when Ty kind of got tired,” said head coach Pam Tanner. Meyer scored seven points and nabbed five rebounds.
Lowery, who had five points and six assists said advancing in the conference was important to her as a senior.
“It means a lot,” Lowery said. “I think this year we’re doing the best we’ve ever done. We have so many good players and we can play all 14 people, so I’m really excited about what we’ve done this season.”
Their game against No. 5 seed UALR was a bit more of a challenge, with the Pioneers trailing most of the first half.
The score was tied 8-8 eight minutes into the first half, but UALR quickly secured a lead after scoring seven points while Denver remained unresponsive. A 3-pointer by Brooke Meyer with 8:45 left in the half looked like the Pioneers would stay close with UALR. But within minutes, UALR had a ten point lead and was leading 29-17 at the half.
Denver still trailed by as many as 15 in the second half, but a switch to zone defense by the Pioneers began to halt UALR’s scoring and resulted in three consecutive steals by DU. A steal by Lowery halfway into the second half led to an easy score that gave her 87 steals for the season, and broke a Pioneer season steal record.
The Pioneers chipped away at UALR’s lead with help from Lowery and Godette.
Meyer tied the game with a three-pointer with 38 seconds left in the game. Then with three seconds to go, Lowery hit a jump shot to secure a two-point lead over the No. 5 seed UALR, resulting in a 62-60 win.
The Pioneers’ drive just didn’t continue into their matchup with No. 17 Middle Tennessee.
Sophomore Nnenna Akotaobi hit a 3-pointer two minutes into the game, but the Pioneers slowed down immediately after that while the Blue Raiders’ Chrissy Givens responded with eight points within five minutes creating a 11-3 lead.
Four turnovers by Denver and numerous missed shots left Denver at a standstill, giving the Blue Raiders a 20 point lead with 7:20 left in the first half.
More help from Givens and Middle Tennessee’s Amber Holt left Denver in a slump at halftime, trailing 17-43.
The Pioneers didn’t get any better going into the second half. Middle Tennessee went on a 9-0 run, extending its lead to 25 points in the beginning of the half, until junior Jenna Cole hit a 3-pointer three minutes into the half.
Denver outscored Middle Tennessee in the last 10 minutes of the second half, but it wasn’t nearly enough to make a dent in the Blue Raider’s lead.
The women’s basketball season may not have ended. With earning 20 wins on the season, the Pioneers are now eligible to gain a bid into the National Invitational Tournament.
