Photo by Luke Zayas/True To The Cru
BELTON, Texas–Holding an 11-game win streak as American Southwest Conference play resumes, the Mary Hardin-Baylor women’s basketball program enters 2024 ranked in both major national Top 25 Polls. It marks the first time UMHB has done so since Jan. 24, 2023.
The Crusaders (11-1) slid up two spots in the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Top 25 Poll on Tuesday, going from No. 24 to No. 22. UMHB edged No. 23 Trine by a single point, garnering 51 total points from the voting panel of 10 coaches.
Late on Tuesday evening, UMHB also saw its name in the D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll, as The Cru makes its season debut in the ranking. The Crusaders edged 24th-ranked Washington & Lee by a single vote in this case as well, and earned the No. 23 spot after being unranked in the previous three polls.
Both UMHB and fellow ASC rival Hardin-Simmons are included in both polls, with HSU currently ranked No. 10 by the WBCA and No. 16 by D3hoops.com.
On tap for The Cru in Belton is a pair of conference matchups against Ozarks and UT-Dallas, set for Thursday and Saturday, respectively. UMHB is one of just two teams undefeated in league play, and boasts the No. 1 winning percentage in the conference, at .917.
A look at Ozarks
Ozarks enters Thursday’s 5:30 p.m. contest with an 0-3 mark in ASC play, and a 3-8 overall record, aiming at just its second road win of the season. The Eagles, who are 1-7 in road games, last won away from home in the Nov. 8 season-opener at Hendrix College, 62-50. After starting the season 2-0, Ozarks dropped eight straight games before getting back in the win column against Hendrix on Dec. 30, in an 81-60 victory.
The Eagles are led by a pair of stellar forwards in Amanda Turpin and Naomi Smith, who each average over 27 minutes per game. Turpin, a native of Cypress, Texas, averages a team-best 12.4 points per game, as she scores inside but is also shooting 43.6 percent from 3-point range. On the defensive end, Turpin has 23 blocks; a number that ranks No. 2 in the ASC. Smith, who hails from Lawton, Oklahoma, leads the Eagles with 9.0 rebounds per game, while also dishing out a team-best 24 assists and averaging 11.8 points per game.
A look at UT-Dallas
UT-Dallas is the ASC’s No. 1 defensive team, having allowed a season-low 55.7 points per game this season. Under second-year head coach Joe Shotland, the Comets are off to an 8-3 start, but sub-.500 in league play, at 1-2. Do not be fooled, however, as those two conference losses came on the road in Abilene against Hardin-Simmons and McMurry, two of the league’s top contenders.
The reigning ASC Tournament champions, UTD utilizes a balanced offensive attack, with no player averaging double figures in points, but six who average above 7.0 points per game. Addy Self, who played at UMHB last season before transferring to UTD, has emerged as a go-to threat in the post, with 8.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Trystan Clark leads the team with 9.6 points per game, along with a team-high 26 steals.
Eight different players have started at least two games this season for the Comets, who match up similarly with UMHB in several different ways. Interestingly, within the ASC, both teams rank in the top two of scoring defense, and top three in fewest opponent rebounds allowed, turnover margin, assist-to-turnover ratio, and assists.
A look at The Cru
UMHB is No. 2 in the league in both scoring offense and scoring defense, meaning The Cru has put plenty of points on the board, but does not allow points easily. Arieona Rosborough’s 18.8 points per game leads the league, while Jaycie Brisco’s 2.4 steals per game ranks No. 2. Getting to the free throw line is a strength for UMHB on the offensive end, as The Cru shoots a league-high 76.7 percent from the charity stripe.
Also look for the Crusaders’ aggressiveness on the boards, as UMHB averages 19.9 offensive rebounds per game.That number ranks fourth in NCAA D-III, and often results in plenty of second-chance scoring opportunities for the Crusader offense.
Rosborough, a junior, enters this week with 968 points in her UMHB career, and needs just 32 points to eclipse the 1,000-point mark. That is a significant accomplishment for any player, and to accomplish that midway through a player’s third-year makes it all the more notable. Rosborough has 226 points this season and seven games of 20-plus points.
Both Thursday and Saturday’s games can be seen live on cruathletics.com, with Jordan Cox and Carey Leech on the broadcast. Admission to both contests is also free.
