‘Cats Fall in SoCon Final; Murray Sets Scoring Record

Monday, March 10

Asheville, N.C.

5:00 pm

Davidson College Athletics

16-16

No. 1 Chattanooga (ESPN3)

29-3

Team	1	2	F
Davidson	22	23	45
Chattanooga	35	36	71

Senior Laura Murray had her 97th career double-digit scoring game with a team-high 17 points.

Photo by: SoConPhotos.com

‘Cats Fall in SoCon Final; Murray Sets Scoring Record

3/10/2014 8:41:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Gavin McFarlin - Assistant SID

Box Score (html)
Murray Record-Setting Bucket
Photo Gallery
Postgame Interview
Game Highlights

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Chattanooga used a lengthy run in each half to pull away from Davidson in taking a 71-45 decision over the Wildcats in the championship game of the Southern Conference Women's Basketball Tournament Monday afternoon in the U.S. Cellular Center.

Senior shooting guard Laura Murray capped off her amazing career by breaking the program's all-time points record, finishing with a team-high 17 points to give her 1,880 for her career. She surpassed former teammate Sophia Aleksandravicius, who set the record last year at 1,878 points, with a driving layup on the right baseline with 1:03 left in the game.

"She's been amazing," said head coach Michele Savage. "We certainly wouldn't be here talking to you right now without her. She is the Superwoman for our team. She means everything to the team. She rebounds, brings the ball up the floor, shoots and scores. She defends and she does everything for our team. She's done a great job in her four years at Davidson."

The senior also set the single-season record for points this year with 617 and her 19.3 scoring average was second-best in the program's single season.

Murray made the SoCon All-Tournament First Team for the third year in a row after averaging 22.7 points and shooting 57.9 percent from three-land (11-19) over the weekend. Dakota Dukes joined her on the team, becoming the seventh Wildcat to earn all-tournament first team honors. Dukes poured in over 15 points a game and pulled down an average of seven rebounds, while shooting 53.3 percent in Davidson's three games.

In a rematch of last year's championship game, where Davidson lost a heartbreaker to the Mocs, the Wildcats were looking to earn their first tournament title. But, they were never able to get going offensively, shooting just 26.7 percent in the first half and finishing the game at 32.7 percent after hitting at a 40 percent clip in the second half.

"We got shots off, but they weren't falling for us," said Savage. "I thought they contested a lot of the shots and we had a hard time making them with a hand in their face."

UTC (29-3) used a 26-10 run in the first half to lead by 13 at the break and then used a 23-8 spurt in a nine-minute stretch in the second half to turned a 43-32 lead into a 66-40 advantage with 3:19 remaining in the game.

Chattanooga's Alex Black finished with 22 points to pace four players in double digits. The Tournament Most Outstanding Player Taylor Hall had 12 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while Ka'Vonne Towns and Faith Dupree added 10 apiece off the bench.

The Mocs shot 48.3 percent for the game, hitting 54.2 percent of their shots in the second half when they broke the game open with their big run.

The game started out in the Wildcats' (16-16) favor with a Dukes' free throw and a deep Murray shot from downtown for a 4-0 lead. Davidson then saw the Mocs run off their 26-10 rally over the next 12 minutes to grab a 26-14 advantage. They hit 12 of their first 21 shots during the run.

A quick three points from Dukes though got the 'Cats within nine at 29-20 with 3:18 on the clock, before Chattanooga scored six of the last eight points of the half for a 35-22 halftime edge.

"We played a tough game," said Savage. "We fought hard, but the ball didn't bounce our way today. We struggled on the defensive end, but we stayed in it. We really competed and I'm proud of the team."

Davidson hauled in 12 of its 36 rebounds on the offensive end, but it was only able to score four points on their second chances.

Chattanooga won its 25th straight game and earned the SoCon automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament for the 12th time.

GAME NOTES: Davidson fell to 0-3 all-time in the SoCon final … overall, the Wildcats finished their run in the SoCon tournament with a 16-21 all-time record as they move to the Atlantic 10 next year … Murray scored in double digits in 31 of the 'Cats' 32 games this year, pushing her career total to 98 … the senior guard also holds the program's all-time made three-point record with 222 for her career … Dukes set the Wildcats' single-season for free throws, going 147-for-193.

SoCon All-Tournament Teams
First Team
Taylor Hall, Chattanooga
Alex Black, Chattanooga
Dakota Dukes, Davidson
Laura Murray, Davidson
Justin Taylor, Western Carolina

Second Team
Ashlen Dewart, Chattanooga
Kelsey Harris, Elon
Sarah Durdaller, Furman
Anna Claire Knight, Georgia Southern
Rena Wakama, Western Carolina

Most Outstanding Player
Taylor Hall, Chattanooga