SMU women’s basketball fell to Tulane on Saturday evening in the first round of the American Conference Tournament. Tulane was the lowest-seed team in the AAC.
The Green Wave’s Kyren Whittington led the scoring with 28 points, 17 of which came in the 3rd quarter. Amira Mabry’s 16 points also helped Tulane win the game.
SMU’s effort was led by Tiara Young’s 17 points and Amirah Abdur-Rahim’s 14 points and seven rebounds.
This was a game of two halves. The Mustangs took the first half by storm, gaining a nine-point lead against Tulane and shooting lights out, making 53.6% of their shots en route to a 32-23 scoreline. At this point in the matchup, Tulane’s 34.4% shooting paled in comparison- the Green Wave made their first 3-point-shot in 13 attempts just two minutes before the half.
The 3rd quarter, however, was all Tulane. The Green Wave scored 28 points in 10 minutes, making 75% of their shots and 5 of 7 from deep. This advantage, coupled with a low-scoring, 13-point quarter from SMU, led to the Mustang’s demise.
“We had a great first half and I think they responded and had a big third quarter,” SMU Head Coach Toyelle Wilson said at the post-game press conference. “They [Tulane] hit threes. We weren’t hitting a lot of shots. But credit to them, Tulane, hitting shots and being able to pull it [the win] out.”
Wilson isn’t alone in recognizing Tulane’s skilled 3-point shooting that contributed to the Green Wave’s scoring success. Tulane Head Coach Lisa Stockton commented on how that led to a confidence boost that affected the entire team.
“I think some things are contagious,” Coach Stockton said. “You start getting on a roll and you make some shots and then everybody loosens up a little bit and someone else makes a shot. But we’ve been a good three-point shooting team all year and I think that’s part of our game.”
Top scorer Whittington didn’t take any credit for her scoring prowess but rather focused on her team’s second-half adjustments.
“I can only give credit to my teammates,” Whittington said. “The first half was pretty rough. We just went in the locker room, talked about adjustments, came out, rotated the ball, swung it, people made plays, made cuts, made reads, and it worked out for us. I’m just proud of them. We played different today.”
SMU simply couldn’t keep up on the scoreboard. Despite the Mustang’s lackluster third quarter, Abdur-Rahim confirmed that the team gave it their all on Saturday.
“We fought our hardest to stay in it, and I just think it was their big shots that got them the win,” Abdur-Rahim said.
Though this loss marks the last game in the SMU women’s basketball season, it did not end without positive notes. Coach Wilson commended her team after the game, mentioning their competitiveness against Baylor and Colorado earlier this season, Reagan Bradley’s leadership as the only point guard and SMU’s top defender, Young’s stellar scoring, and Abdur-Rahim’s growth into a go-to post role.
