NCAA DIVISION II SOUTH CENTRAL REGION - QUARTERFINALS
TARLETON STATE (20-11, 12-8, No.8 Seed)
at No.2 LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (28-1, 14-0, No.1 Seed)
Friday, March 9, 2018 - 6:00 p.m.
Rip Griffin Center (Lubbock, Texas)
Radio: Online Only
All-Time Series: TSU Leads 20-4
Tweet #LCUvsTSU
 
SECOND TIME AROUND
For a second time ever and for the second time in a three-year span, Lubbock Christian University is serving host to the NCAA Division II Women Basketball South Central Region Tournament at Rip Griffin Center.  LCU, winners of the Heartland Conference Tournament, claims the No.1-seed with a 28-1 record on the season.  This season's eight-team field includes two Heartland Conference members (Arkansas-Fort Smith) for the first time since 2013-14 (three teams). LCU opens with No.8-seed Tarleton State University Friday at 6 p.m. The tournament is a single-elimination format, with the winning team of the tournament advancing to the Elite Eight in Sioux Falls, S.D.
 
THE "IF's"
IF LCU WINS: If the Lady Chaps defeat TSU, they will improve to 29-1 on the season and will move to 4-0 all-time in the South Central Region Tournament. A LCU victory would place them into a quarterfinals match-up at 7:30 p.m. against the winner of Angelo State vs. Black Hills.
 
IF LCU LOSES: If the Lady Chaps fall to the TexAnns, they will be eliminated from the tournament and will have their season end at 28-2.
 
LOOK AT THEIR LAST GAME
Olivia Robertson matched a career high with 22 points and Delaney Gaddis posted a career high 19 points, and the 41 combined points helped No.2 Lubbock Christian University overcome an 11-point deficit on 10-for-10 shooting in the final frame for a 69-61 win over Arkansas – Fort Smith to claim their second Heartland Conference Tournament title in program history.
 
The win provided LCU an automatic berth to the NCAA Division II South Central Region Tournament. Sunday night, the NCAA officially announced LCU as the host of the South Central Region Tournament.  They will open play Friday at 6 p.m. hosting No.8-seed Tarleton State.
 
With 9:12 remaining in the fourth quarter, LCU trailed UAFS 55-44. Kailin Davis nailed a jumper and to begin the first of 10 straight LCU points and it eventually turned into a 20-2 run. Gaddis and Robertson combined for 18 points in the fourth quarter, with Gaddis tallying 11 points in the quarter. LCU was 10-for-10 in the fourth quarter and outscored UAFS 25-8 in the quarter.
 
LCU had only trailed after the first quarter, halftime and the third quarter once this season and the occasion had come during their only loss of the season. UAFS had led for 24:52 of Sunday's game (62.2%).  Despite seven points from Tess Bruffey and six points from Robertson in the first quarter, UAFS led 17-15. The Lady Lions went on a 9-0 run in the second quarter behind four straight made field goals and led 26-17 with 7:39 left in the first half. Ellie Lehne had seven points in the second quarter and UAFS led 36-29 at the half. UAFS went the opening half of the third quarter without a field goal and LCU opened the second half on an 8-1 run to tie the game at 37-37, but they were unable to take the lead. The Lady Lions outscored LCU 14-5 to close the third quarter.
 
Along with Robertson and Gaddis offensive performances, the Lady Chaps also received 17 points from Tess Bruffey, who eclipsed 800 career rebounds with six Sunday (803 in her career). Bruffey also had three blocks to match Kellyn Schneider (2014-15) for the highest single season blocks record in program and Heartland Conference history.
 
Gaddis was 8-of-10 from the field and matched a season high with seven assists. LCU was 16-of-23 (69.6%) from the field in the second half, going 12-of-14 (85.7%) inside the arc. They finished the game 57.8% (26/45) from the field.
 
Micayla Haynes scored 16 points to lead UAFS. Ellie Lehne (14 points) and Taya Taylor (13 points) also supplied the UAFS offense with points.
 
ALL-CONFERENCE MEMBERS
Head Coach Steve Gomez claimed his fourth Coach of the Year honor and his second in the Heartland Conference. Here is a look at the Lady Chaps that claimed All-Conference:
Tess Bruffey: First Team
Maddi Chitsey: Second Team
Caitlyn Cunyus: Second Team
Delaney Gaddis: Honorable Mention
Conference Player of the Year: Tess Bruffey
Conference Defensive Player of the Year: Tess Bruffey
 
ALL-TOURNAMENT (CONFERENCE)
Tess Bruffey claimed Heartland Conference Tournament MVP honors with a tournament average of 15.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.7 blocks and 3.0 assists per game in the tournament. Olivia Robertson also claimed All-Tournament honors with an average of 14.0 points and 6.3 rebounds.  Delaney Gaddis did not claim any individual honors, but did average 10.7 points and shot .700 (14-of-20) from the field (13-of-15, 86.7%, inside the arc).
 
TITLE TALK
LCU claimed the Heartland Conference regular season title this season. The title is LCU's fifth conference title in program history and the third in the Heartland Conference. LCU has claimed first place for a fourth time since joining the Heartland Conference (LCU was unable to claim the regular season title in 2014-15 due to transitioning to NCAA Division II membership status). Sunday, LCU claimed the Heartland Conference Tournament title, marking their second tournament title in program history (third conference tournament title, if you include their era in the Sooner Athletic Conference). LCU has claimed two Heartland Conference Tournament titles out of their three seasons eligible for Heartland and NCAA postseason.
 
REGIONAL REVIEW
LCU appeared and hosted the South Central Region Tournament in 2016, which was their first NCAA postseason appearance and it was their first year eligible for postseson play. Tess Bruffey claimed Most Outstanding Tournament honors at the South Central Region Tournament averaging 17.3 points a game. She had a LCU season game high 26 points in the title game against West Texas A&M. She was 69.2% from the field and 5-of-10 from three-point range. Haley Fowler and Nicole Hampton also received All-Tournament Team honors. Fowler averaged 17 points shooting 69% from the field and Hampton averaged 16 points, 8.7 assists, 8 rebounds and 3.7 steals per game. LCU is 3-0 all-time in tournament play. The Lady Chaps are 5-0 this season against this season's field and they are 2-0 in all-time region play against teams in this season's field.
 
HEY JUNIOR
Junior Olivia Robertson has turned up her game the last 10 games.  Robertson is averaging 11.8 points and 4.4 rebound over the prior 10 games, which both rank second on the squad over the span. She is also shooting 94.4% (26-of-38) over the span from the free-throw line.
 
HOMELAND SECURITY
Regional games inside Rip Griffin Center count as home contests for LCU, who is 13-0 at home this season. LCU became the 12th team in NCAA Division II women's basketball history to win 47 consecutive home games with their win over Newman Feb. 15 (it actively leads NCAA Div. II).  If LCU extends the streak to 49 (currently at 47), they will become the 10th team to notch 49 straight home wins in NCAA Div. II history.  The record is 87 consecutive home victories by Nebraska-Kearney, who completed the task from Jan. 31, 1995 - Nov. 24, 2001. LCU's last home loss came on Jan. 1, 2015 against Oklahoma City University. LCU has also won 49 consecutive home conference games, with their last conference home loss occurring Jan. 10, 2013 (against Oklahoma City). They are 43-0 all-time in Heartland Conference home games.
 
ON THE HOMEFRONT           
LCU is led at home by Tess Bruffey, who averages 13.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and 4.9 blocks at home this season. Maddi Chitsey is not far behind in point production, averaging 13.4 points at home off 53.6% (67-of-125) shooting. LCU is shooting .494 from the field inside Rip Griffin Center, with a mark of .442 from long range. Bobbi Chitsey is 8-of-10 (80%) from three-point range at home.
 
MARGINS
LCU leads the Heartland Conference and they rank eighth nationally in scoring margin (average a win margin of 19.9 points per game), and they lead the conference in rebounding margin (30th nationally), with an average of 6.2 more rebounds per game over their opposition.
 
NOT THE USUAL
Sunday's Heartland Conference Tournament Championship Game won by LCU was completed in unconventional fashion for Lady Chaps.  In all of LCU's 27 prior wins this season, LCU had not trailed at the end of any quarter. Sunday, they trailed at the end of each quarter, except they came back and won the game in the fourth quarter. In LCU's prior 27 wins, they faced deficits in 15 of them and their largest deficits in all 15 occasions occurred in the first quarter. Sunday, LCU overcame an 11-point deficit with 9:12 remaining. The 11-point deficit was their largest deficit to overcome this season.
 
THAT'S FOUL
LCU ranks 11th nationally in fouls per game with a low of 14.2 fouls per contest (they have the 19th fewest personal fouls overall). The fouls have led to LCU having a 14.6 - 9.6 scoring advantage over their opponents from the free-throw line (14.9 - 8.1 advantage in conference games). Tess Bruffey leads LCU averaging 3.6 points per game from the free-throw line.
 
MILESTONES
Another milestone approaches for LCU's Tess Bruffey, who needs one block to solely own the LCU and Heartland Conference single season record for blocks, which belongs to Kellyn Schneider from the 2014-15 season. Sunday, Bruffey became the fourth Lady Chaps member ever to eclipse 800 career rebounds. She has 385 career blocks, which has her eight away from moving into the seventh most in NCAA Division II history.
 
NATIONALLY KNOWN
Updated national rankings came out Tuesday afternoon, and the Lady Chaparrals remained at No.2 in both the D2SIDA and WBCA NCAA Div. II Women's Basketball Top-25 Poll for a seventh consecutive week. The only team they are behind is No.1 Ashland, who is the only team to defeat LCU this season. The No.2 ranking matches their best ranking this season in each poll. The polls were the final polls of the regular season.
 
PLAYING THE PERCENTAGES
LCU leads the Heartland Conference and ranks third nationally in field goal percentage, shooting 47.6% from the field. They have shot at least 50% 13 times this season. Their allowance of 52.1 points per game leads in the nation.
 
SENIOR SALUTE
This postseason serves as the final postseason games for LCU's Tess Bruffey, Caitlyn Buttram and Delaney Gaddis. Bruffey and Buttram have spent all four of their seasons as part of the Lady Chaps and Gaddis is in her second season. For Bruffey and Buttram, the two have been part of a 52-2 (96.3%) record in home games and a Heartland Conference record of 59-7 (89.4%) since they joined the Lady Chaps.
 
BLOCKING IT OUT
Tess Bruffey, who ranked second nationally last season in blocks per game (3.9), ranks third in the nation with 113 blocks on the season. Her 113 blocks (ties for the highest single-season mark in program history) come at a rate of 3.9 per game (fourth nationally). The Lady Chaps, as a team, rank fourth in the nation with 179 blocks. In her career, Bruffey has a program and conference record 385 blocks, marking her as the NCAA Div. II's active career leader (second among all levels) and its the eighth highest rate all-time in NCAA Div. II history (eight away from moving into seventh). She also ranks on the NCAA Div. II's active career leader charts in points (1,671, 14th), field goals (608, 11th) and double-doubles (23, 25th). Bruffey is one of five active players with at least 1,650 points and 800 rebounds.   
 
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT TSU
• Tarleton State is coming off a 16-14 season, which included a 12-8 Lone Star Conference record and a 4-9 road mark. This season they are 20-11 overall and completed a LSC schedule with a 12-8 mark. They are 6-6 on the road.
• TSU finished tied for fourth in the LSC this season (12-8). The LSC preseason picked the TexAnns third in the conference.
• Mackenzie Hailey, LSC Preseason Player of the Year, claimed First Team All-Conference honors and made the All-Defensive Team. She is averaging 14.5 points and 7.2 rebounds per game this season. Katie Webster and McKinley Bostad were named to the All-LSC Second Team.
• The TexAnns rank ninth nationally with 506 free-throws made this season McKinley Bostad ranks 28th nationally with 134 free-throws made.
• TSU faced Baylor in an exhibition game and fell 122-44 to the No.3 Bears.
 
THE SERIES AGAINST TSU
The TexAnns have dominated the all-time series 20-4, but LCU has won the prior two meetings, including an 80-60 win Nov. 21, 2017 in Lubbock. LCU is 2-10 all-time at home against Tarleton. The two teams have never met in a postseason contest.
 
PREVIOUS RECAP VS. TSU
Nov. 21, 2017 (Lubbock, Texas) - LCU: 80 - TSU:60
No.6/8 Lubbock Christian University shot 62.7% from the field, with Tess Bruffey providing 25 points, eight rebounds and seven blocks, to lead the Lady Chaparrals to 6-0 with an 80-60 win over Tarleton State University Tuesday night inside Rip Griffin Center. The win was LCU's second ever win in Lubbock over TSU (2-7) and it was their first at home since Jan. 19, 1989.
 
TSU was the team with the hot shooting start, as Katie Webster hit the opening two TexAnn shots and took a 5-2 lead, matching LCU's largest deficit of the season. The TexAnns had an opportunity to add to it, as LCU was 1-for-3 from the field to start the game, but they were unable to connect on their next two possessions. The window of opportunity to add to the lead was quickly closed, as LCU made their next six shot attempts and 12 of their next 15 shot attempts. The Lady Chaps, sparked by five points each, in the quarter, by Caitlyn Cunyus and Olivia Robertson, went on a 9-3 run in the quarter to break a 7-7 tie and led 16-10. Shooting 8-of-13 (61.5%) in the quarter, LCU led 18-12 at the end of the quarter.
 
LCU used a 12-0 scoring advantage in the paint in the second quarter to build on the lead. Six of LCU's 11 field goals in the second quarter were in the paint, with Bruffey going 4-of-5 from the field for nine points in the quarter. LCU opened the second quarter on a 12-1 run to lead 30-13 and did not allow a field goal until Mackenzie Hailey connected on a three-pointer with 5:22 left in the quarter. The Lady Chaps led as much as 22 points in the second quarter (41-19) before taking a 41-22 lead into the locker room for the half. LCU's 68.8% (11/16) shooting in the second quarter provided them a 65.5% shooting mark for the half.
 
Tarleton State capped a 7-0 run with the opening four points of the second half to cut LCU's lead to 41-26. LCU responded with back-to-back successful three-pointers from Bruffey and LCU used a 12-2 run to build the lead to 53-28 with 5:06 left in the third quarter. Bruffey finished the quarter with eight points and LCU's 54.5% (6/11) shooting in the quarter placed LCU with a 59-35 lead to start the final quarter.
 
The Lady Chaps went to their bench most of the fourth quarter, but not before Maddi Chitsey converted a layup to put LCU up 68-42 for their largest lead of the game. Tarleton State out-scored LCU 9-2 in points off turnovers in the quarter, as they forced LCU into seven turnovers in the frame. TSU was unable to cut LCU's lead to less than a 20-point margin over the final 8:19 of the game.
 
Bruffey was 9-of-15 (60%) from the field for her 25 points, including a mark of 6-of-8 inside the arc to help fuel a 30-12 advantage in scoring in the paint. LCU was 27-of-36 (75%)  as a team inside the perimeter. TSU was led by 19 points from Hailey and 11 points from Webster. TSU was held to shoot 35.7% from the field (20/56) with a mark of 34.3% (12/35) inside the arc.