24th-ranked UMHB women’s basketball defeats Millsaps, 68-65, improving to 11-1 overall

Photo by Neil Faux

NEW YORK CITY–Both Mary Hardin-Baylor and Millsaps entered Wednesday’s non-conference duel having won their last 10 games. But only the Crusaders will leave the Big Apple with their winning streak still alive.

Against an athletic and physical Millsaps squad, the UMHB women’s basketball team fought from behind for the vast majority of the first three quarters. With 3:49 left in the third, the Majors led by 13, 49-36, and appeared to be on pace for a victory.

But then came a 14-0 scoring run in the span of just over three minutes, highlighted by eight points from Alexis Carmosino, as UMHB tied the score at 50 apiece. A strong defensive effort down the stretch kept The Cru in front, holding Millsaps to just two points over the game’s final four minutes. Millsaps missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer with under three seconds left, and UMHB emerged with a 68-65 victory. 

The Crusaders, ranked No. 24 in the nation in Tuesday’s WBCA Poll, are now 11-1 overall. Millsaps dropped to 10-2. 

“We needed to match their physicality and hustle,” UMHB head coach Katie Novak-Lenoir said postgame. “That’s what the second half was about. It still wasn’t our prettiest game on offense but I thought we battled a little harder and made them work more for their shots in the second half.”

The Crusaders did just that, limiting Millsaps to 27 points over the final two quarters, after allowing 38 in the first half. After opening the game shooting 3-of-6 from 3-point range, the Majors finished the contest by converting on just one of their last six attempts from beyond the arc. 

And much like in Tuesday’s win over Berry College, turnovers came into play. UMHB forced 25 Millsaps turnovers, 15 of which came in the second half, and The Cru cashed in on those defensive stops, scoring 24 points off turnovers. 

In fact, at the tail end of the 14-0 run that closed the third quarter, the Majors turned the ball over on three straight possessions, taking away scoring opportunities from Millsaps while putting the ball back in UMHB’s possession. Midway through the fourth quarter, Kaitlyn Kollmorgen forced a Millsaps turnover, coming up with a steal as UMHB moved into the frontcourt. Arieona Rosborough then sent a pass to Jaycie Brisco, who promptly scored on a jumper that cut Millsaps’ lead to 63-59. It was the beginning of a four-minute scoring drought for the Majors. 

In that span, UMHB tied the score at 63 on a pair of free throws from Rosborough, and with 56 seconds left, Remi Adeleke made a free throw that put the Crusaders back in the lead. Rosborough made four more free throws in the final 25 seconds, as The Cru sealed its narrow victory. 

When it came to matching Millsaps’ “physicality and hustle”, as Novak-Lenoir referenced postgame, UMHB especially did so in the rebounding category. The Majors had outrebounded nine of their previous 11 opponents, but the Crusaders came out of halftime strong on the boards, and ended up out-rebounding Millsaps, 47-41. But the contrast in offensive rebounds was even more one-sided, with UMHB pulling down 22 offensive rebounds, including eight in the third quarter, compared to just 10 for Millsaps. Those 22 rebounds led to 19 second-chance points for The Cru. 

Kollmorgen led the way in the rebounding battle, with 10 on the day, and five on the offensive end. Carmosino and Adeleke each added seven total rebounds in addition to double-digit scoring efforts. Carmosino finished with 12 points, while Adeleke had 11. 

Rosborough, the leading scorer in the American Southwest Conference, led UMHB with 18 points in the win, going 11-of-12 at the free throw line. Haley Franklin was Millsaps’ high-scorer, as she also scored 18 points. 

UMHB resumes its schedule in two weeks, hosting Ozarks in ASC play on Jan. 4 in Belton. Ozarks is 2-7 overall, and 0-3 against league opponents.