Lady Cats Meet Life Monday in Opening Round of MSC Tournament

Posted: Feb 20, 2022

MID-SOUTH CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT BRACKET RELEASED

MSC Women's Basketball Tournament Bracket

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Mid-South Conference officials have released the 2022 MSC Women's Basketball Tournament bracket following the conclusion of the conference's regular season.

The 2022 tournament features opening-round games at on-campus sites with the winners of those games joining the top-four seeds in Bowling Green for the remainder of the tournament.

Opening-round games are slated for Monday, Feb. 21 at the higher-seeded team in the matchup. The quarterfinals are scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 24 and Friday, Feb. 25, the semifinals are slated for Sunday, Feb. 27, with the championship game on Monday, Feb. 28, all at Bowling Green Arena.

Thomas More (Ky.) is the tournament's top seed after winning the regular season with a 19-2 conference record. As the MSC's regular-season champion, the Saints earn one of the conference's two automatic bids into the NAIA National Tournament in March.

Campbellsville (Ky.) (18-4 in the MSC) is the second seed, Cumberlands (Ky.) (13-9) is the third seed, and Georgetown (Ky.) (13-9) is the fourth seed.

Cumberlands received the higher seed based on the conference's second tiebreaker. After the two teams split during the regular season -- with head-to-head competition being the first tiebreaker -- Cumberlands defeated the higher seeded team in the tournament. The Patriots beat Thomas More during the regular season while Georgetown suffered two losses to the Saints.

Fifth-seeded Bethel (Tenn.) (12-10) hosts No. 12-seed Life (Ga.) (2-20) in McKenzie, Tennessee in the first of four opening-round games. Sixth-seeded Pikeville (Ky.) (11-11) hosts No. 11-seed Shawnee State (Ohio) (3-17) while No. 7-seed Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) (11-11) hosts No. 10-seed Cumberland (Tenn.) (8-13).

Eighth-seeded Tennessee Southern (10-12) hosts No. 9-seed Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) (9-11) in the final opening-round game.

Like Cumberlands and Georgetown, Freed-Hardeman and Pikeville tied for sixth in the MSC standings. Pikeville earned the sixth seed based on winning both games with the Lions this season.

The four opening-round winners advance to the quarterfinals played over two days later next week.

The tournament champion receives one of the conference's two automatic bids into the NAIA National Tournament. If Thomas More wins the tournament, the tournament's runner-up receives the second automatic bid.

Bethel is 13-4 at home on the season and 144- 25 all-time in Crisp Arena. The Cats finished the regular season with an 18-12 overall mark.

Bethel's Millie Bryant enters the tournament with 1,384 career points and 634 career rebounds. She is 8^th in program history in scoring and 9^th in career rebounds. Earlier this season she became just the 10^th Lady Cat to score 1,000 points or more and collect 500 rebounds or more.

Bethel's Mickey Head enters the tournament with 894 career rebounds and 278 career blocks. She has 1, 277 career points with 794 of those as a Lady Wildcat.

Trends & Numbers:

Bethel is 17-1 when they outshoot their opponents.

The Cats are 16-4 when they hit more three-pointers.

The Lady Cats are 15-0 when they outrebound their opponents.

Bethel is 14-1 when leading at the half.

The Cats are 10-8 when they have less turnovers.

Bethel is 9 -2 when they score 70 or more points in a game.

Bethel beat Life in both regular season matchups. The Cats won 62-36 in McKenzie and 67-47 in Marietta.

Official Game Day Program:

https:// bethelathletics.com/sports/ wbkb/2021-22/2021-22_Women-s_ Basketball_Game_Notes_-_Feb._ 21.pdf

Live Radio: The Countdown to Tip-off Show begins at 5:30 p.m. on WEIO, 100.9 and at www.thefarmradio.com.

Tip-off is slated for at 6 p.m.