It took two overtime periods, but the TCU Women’s Basketball team pulled off an 87-73 victory against rival SMU, as Emily Carter set a new school record for most points scored in a game.
Carter ended the night with 43 points and added nine rebounds. The previous mark for most points in a game was set by Amy Sutton in 1999, who scored 39 points against Air Force.
Carter said she didn’t know how many points she had during the game, and didn’t know she broke the record.
“I wasn’t aware of the points or the record,” Carter said. “I just was feeling it the whole night. It’s an intense basketball game and I did not want to lose. I wanted the ball in my hands.”
The double overtime game was action packed the entire night and the score remained close until the second overtime. There were 14 lead changes and six ties in the 50 minutes of play.
SMU scored four points in the final minute of regulation to tie the score at 62 and send the game into overtime.
The Mustangs drew first blood in extra time, but TCU stayed in the game thanks to a clutch three-point shot from Carter. The first overtime period ended with the score tied at 68.
The second overtime period was all TCU. Lady Frogs won the tip, Starr Crawford hit a layup on the first possession, and the Lady Frogs never looked back. TCU scored 19 points in the five-minute period, and ended the game with a 14-point win.
Head basketball coach Jeff Mittie said the Lady Frogs didn’t play very well overall, but fought through the adversity and came out with a win.
“I don’t know if there is any other reason we win this game other than we just battled like crazy all night long,” Mittie said.
Turnovers and fouls plagued the Lady Frogs early on, but the team improved greatly in the second half. TCU ended the first half with 17 turnovers, but only committed five in the second half and overtime periods combined.
Crawford did her part to help the team, ending with 18 rebounds. The sophomore forward was also the second highest scorer for TCU with 13 points, despite shooting just 3-11 from the free throw line.
“Rebounding is kind of what I do,” Crawford said. “Because I couldn’t buy a shot at the free throw line, I just had to make sure I grabbed every rebound because that was the way I was going to help this team win.”
Carter and Crawford both said that the rivalry with SMU makes this game more intense every year.
“I’ve been thinking about this game right after Houston Baptist was over…It’s just a team you have to beat,” Carter said.
Crawford said the game was even more emotional for her because she committed to SMU first before deciding on TCU.
SMU started the game off hot and held a 16-7 lead just six minutes into the first half. Strong shooting from Carter put the Frogs back on top midway through the half, but the Mustangs refused to let up to the ranked team.
However an 11-2 run to end the half, including a last second jumper from Carter, put TCU back on top at halftime. SMU didn’t make a field goal in the final 7:19 of the first half. The score read 33-30 in favor of TCU at the break.
SMU stayed in the game in the second half mostly due to Samantha Mahnesmith. The junior guard led the Mustangs with 19 points and didn’t even start the game. Thirty-one of SMU’s points came from the bench.
Mittie moved his record to 4-3 at home against SMU with the win. The women’s basketball team is now 2-0 for the season.