WBB: American Southwest Conference

[Riley Zayas]

Coaching change at UMHB:
Assistant coach Haven Neal has left for the high school ranks. She will be replaced by Kendra Foreman, formerly Kendra Wynn, who has been coaching at the University of Dallas. Foreman played at UMHB for two years and was the ASC's West Division Defensive POY in 2016-17.

https://truetothecru.com/2021/07/01/umhb-alum-kendra-foreman-added-to-womens-basketballs-coaching-staff/

[Riley Zayas]

UMHB women's basketball edged past Rhodes last night in the season opener for both teams. 73-72 the final in Belton. UMHB needs to find  more offensive rhythm, something HC Mark Morefield said will be improved if the Cru sticks with its gameplan rather than settling for too many outside shots. Arieona Rosborough played well in her collegiate debut, scoring 10 points. Our recap of the contest:

https://truetothecru.com/2021/11/07/umhb-womens-basketball-edges-rhodes-in-final-minute-of-season-opener-73-72/

[Riley Zayas]

 A couple of thoughts on tonight's win for UMHB women's basketball (1-0 ASC) over Ozarks (2-2 ASC)...Final score: UMHB, 72, Ozarks, 42

-54 bench points from the Cru! HC Mark Morefield has been talking about depth all year, but wow...UMHB's two leading scorers were Arieona Rosborough (17 pts) and Alexia Martin (12 pts), both of whom came off the bench...14 different players contributed to the scoring. Once they start playing more consistently, this depth will only continue to get better...and they have 3 players coming off injuries who should be ready for the Jan. 3 ASC game vs Concordia in Belton.

-The second quarter was the difference...UMHB outscored the Eagles 18-5, and held Ozarks scoreless for the final 8 minutes of the quarter while they mounted an 18-0 run

-Gainae Gaines was consistent for Ozarks off the bench in 16 minutes...13 points for her as well as 2 steals...only Ozarks player in double figures in scoring

Here's the full article: https://truetothecru.com/2021/12/03/umhb-womens-basketball-uses-54-bench-points-en-route-to-72-42-win-over-ozarks/

[Riley Zayas]

UMHB head coach Mark Morefield on this week's contests against McMurry and Hardin-Simmons, when asked what it means to be back in Abilene after getting the huge ASC Tournament win in March there over HSU:

"We want to respect and enjoy the past, but we've had that moment. Now we're about,'This is another conference opponent tomorrow night in McMurry. What can we do to come up victorious?' Then we prepare for Hardin-Simmons on Saturday. We're never going to look ahead, we're never going to look back. We're going to look at the task at hand." 

Read the full article: https://truetothecru.com/2021/12/08/umhb-mens-and-womens-basketball-prepare-for-asc-road-openers-in-abilene/

[Riley Zayas]

UMHB women's basketball earned its second straight 30-point win, defeating McMurry 82-52:

Takeaways from the win...
-Ashley Faux shot really well from the field, 10-for-16, tallying 25 points...incredible performance from the sophomore...definitely a reliable scorer for the Cru moving forwards

-The defensive intensity was outstanding...held McMurry to a 31 percent shooting percentage and really pressured the War Hawks in the backcourt.

-I continued to be amazed as to how HC Mark Morefield can play 14-18 players per game and yet still get the looks he wants on offense and keep the momentum rolling defensively. Depth is undoubtedly the Cru's biggest strength this season.

That'll be tested on Saturday against Hardin-Simmons. Fans, if you're looking for a good WBB game to watch, tune into this one! No. 14 HSU battles UMHB, both teams are perfect in ASC play.

https://truetothecru.com/2021/12/09/behind-25-points-from-faux-umhb-womens-basketball-defeats-mcmurry-82-52/

[Riley Zayas]

UMHB is definitely a team to keep an eye on...saw them play in a scrimmage in October, and where they are now, they look like a completely different team. Back-to-back Top 25 wins for the unranked Crusaders with last night's 11-point win over UT-Dallas:

https://truetothecru.com/2021/12/17/umhb-womens-hoops-wins-second-straight-game-over-top-25-team-in-overtime-thriller-vs-ut-dallas/

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

We are now into the holiday break period for Division III. Some programs are playing occasional games or in tournaments/classic, others are taking extended breaks as they prepare for the conference grind starting in January. So time to take the temperature of the season so far.

On Sunday's Hoopsville, Dave McHugh chatted with a couple of teams garnering headlines around DIII. He also got the perspective of the season so far from those who follow it the closest.

And we take the time to celebrate the life of Mike Freilich, an assistant coach who died unexpectedly on Friday and has left many saddened throughout Division III.

You can watch the show LIVE (or on demand) here: https://www.d3hoops.com/hoopsville/archives/2021-22/dec19 or http://www.d3hoops.com/x/lvmbp

Guests include (order subject to change):
- Polly Thomason, No. 18 Texas-Dallas women's coach
- Gordon Mann, D3hoops.com Senior Editor
- Gabe Leifer, No. 1 Yeshiva graduate student
- Ryan Scott, D3hoops.com columnist

Hoopsville is hosted by Dave McHugh from the the NABC Studio. It is presented by D3hoops.com and thanks to our partner WBCA. All guests are featured on the BlueFrame Technology Hoopsville Hotline.

If you have questions, ideas, or want to interact with the show, feel free to send them to hoopsville@d3sports.com or use any of the social media options available.

If you enjoy the show via the podcasts, choose your favorite avenue to listen and/or subscribe via the the following four avenues (click on the images when necessary):
SoundCloud: www.soundcloud.com/hoopsville


 
   
We also have the podcast now on Tune-In and others coming. We will update them once we have better abilities to do so.

Don't forget you can always interact with us:
Website: www.d3hoopsville.com
Video Portal (and archives): www.team1sports.com/Hoopsville
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[Riley Zayas]

Thoughts + Analysis on last night's 88-71 non-conference win for UMHB women's basketball over Schreiner:

-Both teams struggled to find their rhythm early in the first quarter, but all of a sudden, things began to click on the offensive end. A combined 21 points were scored in the final 6:40 of the first quarter.

-The second quarter was where UMHB took charge, as Kaitlyn Kollmorgen opened the quarter with three consecutive made shots. Kollmorgen is a sophomore who had four years of eligibility entering this year (Covid year last year) and is establishing herself as one of the ASC's better post players. 8.0 PPG, 8.4 RPG for the Houston native. There was a difference in Schreiner's ability to drive to the lane when she was on the floor, as compared to when she wasn't.

-Schreiner's ball movement to get the ball into the paint was extremely good throughout the game. 32 points in the paint for the Mountaineers. Individually, Aazayleah Pirtle was outstanding. She handled the ball when and made the most of her opportunities. She was 5-of-9 from the field, but also shot 12 free throws, nine of which she made, for a total of 19 points.

-Speaking of free throws...wow. 74 total free throws were shot, and in my opinion, that is way too high of a number. But either way, 27 of UMHB's points came at the line, as compared to 24 of Schreiner's.

-Next up for the Crusaders is an ASC duel with Concordia on Jan. 3 at 5:30 p.m. in Belton. SU hosts St. Thomas (TX) on Dec. 31 at 4:00 p.m. in Kerrville.

For more on the game, read our full game story: https://truetothecru.com/2021/12/21/umhb-womens-basketball-extends-win-streak-to-seven-in-88-71-win-over-schreiner/

[Riley Zayas]

Concordia and UMHB tip off at 5:30 tonight in Belton...Cru is the clear favorite, and has the advantage in the post. I expect Concordia to contend with UMHB for the first couple quarters, but I don't believe they'll be able to maintain the pace necessary to pull out the win. UMHB is showing it is the class of the field in the ASC right now (or at least before the break).

Game preview is up on the website: https://truetothecru.com/2022/01/03/womens-basketball-gameday-preview-concordia-tx-at-umhb/

[Ron Boerger]

[...]UMHB is showing it is the class of the field in the ASC right now (or at least before the break).

The Cru are 8-2 with losses at home to 8-2 Trinity and at 4-8 Colorado.  The (ETBU) Tigers are 9-2 with losses to 8-2 Rhodes (neutral site) and at 6-3 UT-Dallas.  UMHB beat UT-D at home but needed OT (and a buzzer beater in regulation) to do it, while ETBU beat Trinity at a neutral site but needed OT to do it.  MHB did beat Rhodes by 1 at home in the season opener.  Not sure those results conclusively support the claim that UMHB has shown it's the "class of the field in the ASC" but they'll have the chance to prove it when when they meet ETBU in Marshall next week. 

[Riley Zayas]

[...]UMHB is showing it is the class of the field in the ASC right now (or at least before the break).

The Cru are 8-2 with losses at home to 8-2 Trinity and at 4-8 Colorado.  The (ETBU) Tigers are 9-2 with losses to 8-2 Rhodes (neutral site) and at 6-3 UT-Dallas.  UMHB beat UT-D at home but needed OT (and a buzzer beater in regulation) to do it, while ETBU beat Trinity at a neutral site but needed OT to do it.  MHB did beat Rhodes by 1 at home in the season opener.  Not sure those results conclusively support the claim that UMHB has shown it's the "class of the field in the ASC" but they'll have the chance to prove it when when they meet ETBU in Marshall next week.

Yeah...the win that sticks out to me, though, is the win on the road at Hardin-Simmons on Dec. 11...ETBU, having seen them play in person, is not the same ETBU of last year, but the Tigers are still extremely competitive. Next week's contest will be key, and we should start to see some separation in the standings within the next couple of weeks. The thing is, UMHB led Trinity by 10 points in the second half of that game, and lost the lead in the fourth quarter...the Colorado College loss was at altitude and I was told that affected them more than you might expect with the fast-paced CC was playing at. It'll be interesting to see how the next few weeks play out. UMHB has had to play both HSU and ETBU on the road before they get the chance to do it at home. Wouldn't be surprised if the ASC is a two-bid conference against this year come tourney-time.

[Riley Zayas]

Sul Ross makes the trip to Belton to face UMHB tonight. Cru is rolling, 6-0 on the year in ASC play. UMHB has lost to SRSU just once in the last decade, with that loss coming last year in Alpine.

Preview: https://truetothecru.com/2022/01/06/womens-basketball-gameday-preview-sul-ross-state-at-umhb/

[Riley Zayas]

That's 9 straight for the Cru...

https://truetothecru.com/2022/01/07/umhb-womens-hoops-wins-seventh-asc-game-scores-season-high-in-points-in-win-over-sul-ross-state/

[Riley Zayas]

UMHB remains the only undefeated team in ASC play, after today's 77-53 win over Howard Payne:
https://truetothecru.com/2022/01/08/umhb-womens-basketball-answers-call-defensively-in-77-53-win-over-howard-payne/

[Riley Zayas]

Huge showdown in Marshall tomorrow night...No. 14 ETBU hosts UMHB, who is perfect in ASC play. "The Big Four" in the ASC right now is UMHB, ETBU, UTD, and HSU, in my opinion. UMHB has beaten two of those teams already, but hasn't faced ETBU yet this season. If you remember, it was UMHB who ruined ETBU's perfect season a year ago in the 2021 conference title game...should be interesting...

https://truetothecru.com/2022/01/12/asc-championship-rematch-on-tap-for-umhb-womens-basketball-thursday/