WBB: CBU Knocks off GCU, Epic Comebacks, and More

Both the race for a regular season champion and for eighth place gained a little more clarity this weekend

With three weeks remaining in regular season play, there is still a lot to play for from the regular season title to that final bid to WAC Vegas.

However, Saturday showed us there is a lot of chaos on the horizon as we wind down the 2023-24 regular season.

Epic comebacks, wire-to-wire wins, a battle at the top and the bottom of the WAC standings. Overtime wins. Road wins. It is all chaotic as we begin the final stretch of WAC play.

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Now, let’s get back to the recap of a busy week.

Race for the Regular Season Title

Early on Saturday afternoon, the SFA Ladyjacks, trailing GCU by three games in the loss column, looked to find themselves trailing GCU in the standings by four games when the day was done.

ACU was controlling the tempo, the game, and the scoreboard, leading by double figures heading into the fourth quarter.

However, Kyla Deck said ‘hold my beer’ and helped the Ladyjacks outscore ACU 34-15 in the fourth quarter to win 89-83 at Moody Coliseum to keep their regular season title hopes alive.

Kyla Deck had 34 points, a new career-high, to lead the Ladyjacks in their comeback win.

Marquee Game

Then, in the marquee game of the day, CBU defended home floor in a 71-65 wire-to-wire win over GCU to break even after Thursday’s overtime loss at Lockhart Arena to Utah Valley.

The Lancers started on a 10-0 run and led by as many as 14 points before GCU tied the game on a pair of Olivia Lane free throws with just under two minutes left.

A 7-0 run by CBU, culminated by Filipa Barros’ three-point play, gave the Lancers a 41-34 lead at half.

Syd Palma’s third quarter 3-pointer with 6:51 left was the games final tie and GCU spent the next 13 minutes trying to pull even before falling.

Nae Nae Calhoun led the way for CBU with 17 points, nine rebounds, five steals, and three assists. Anaiyah Tu’ua, Barros, Kinsley Barrington, and Chloe Webb were also in double-digit scoring for the Lancers.

Olivia Lane nearly had a double-double with 22 points and nine rebounds while Naudia Evans and Trinity San Antonio combined for another 22 points.

Saturday marked San Antonio and Palma’s first game against CBU since transferring to Phoenix.

CBU and GCU are both home this week against Abilene Christian and Tarleton.

Currently, GCU is 13-2 in WAC play while CBU is 12-2. The two teams will meet again on March 9 in the regular season finale at GCU Arena.

Race for Eighth

Four teams in Southern Utah, Tarleton, Utah Valley, and UTRGV have between four and five wins in conference play as the fight continues for that final WAC tournament spot. Seattle is lurking with three wins in WAC play.

The Thunderbirds, after a 67-66 double overtime win at Lockhart Arena, earned their fifth conference win. Samantha Johnston hit five shots from beyond the arc for the fourth time in seven games and finished with 20 points to lead Southern Utah. Tahlia White had 15 points and nine rebounds for Utah Valley.

SUU owns the tiebreaker over Utah Valley with a season sweep. Utah Valley goes to UTRGV on Thursday in what is a big game for both the Wolverines and Vaqueros.

Utah Valley also hosts Tarleton next week.

UTRGV split the season series with Tarleton but as of right now, Utah Valley and SUU own the tiebreaker of the Vaqueros.

SUU goes to UTRGV in the regular season finale. As of right now, Tarleton owns the tiebreaker over SUU but the Texans and T-Birds play on March 2 in Stephenville.

So, the race for the final spot at WAC Vegas is still very much up for grabs.

Bracketology

In Thursday’s most recent Bracketology update from Her Hoop Stats, GCU stays as a 14-seed but is projected to play UConn, one of the sport’s most storied programs, in what would essentially be a road game for the Lopes.

ESPN’s Charlie Creme still has the Lopes in Los Angeles, playing USC. Creme projects former SFA coach Mark Kellogg’s West Virginia team to also come to Los Angeles and play Tennessee.

Weekly Awards

Kyla Deck earned her second Player of the Week award as Stephen F. Austin rallied from a fourth quarter deficit to defeat ACU in Moody Coliseum in their lone game of the week.

Meanwhile, Gia Adams is on a roll at UT Arlington and has played herself into the Newcomer of the Year race after winning a third straight selection this week.

WAC Resume Seeding Update:

With three weeks left in regular season play, GCU and CBU are also fighting for the number one seed in WAC the resume seeding system.

Starting this week, with the Lopes and Lancers both playing Tarleton and ACU, GCU’s lead is down to .02 after they lost on Saturday in Riverside.

Both teams have .44 points at stake this week (ACU is worth .28 with a win and Tarleton .16).

Seventh and eighth place Utah Valley and Southern Utah are separated by .71 points.