MOLINE, Ill. — Missouri State captured its 10th Missouri Valley Conference Tournament championship and earned a bid to its 14th NCAA Tournament Sunday afternoon with a 71-58 victory over top-seeded UNI at the iWireless Center.
The Lady Bears (24-9) trailed for only 55 seconds in their seventh straight win, as Tyonna Snow finished with 17 points and a career-high 15 rebounds to earn tournament MVP honors, and Liza Fruendt scored 16 off the bench for an all-tournament spot. UNI fell to 22-10 after its 10-game winning streak ended.
The Lady Bears jumped ahead 8-2 in the first four minutes before surrendering a 7-0 run that resulted in the only deficit for MSU in the game. Hillary Chvatal hit two free throws with 2:23 left in the first quarter to get back a lead that Missouri State would not relinquish.
Fruendt scored eight early points in the second period, including a layup for a 27-18 lead with 5:47 left. Lexie Hughes buried one of her three triples 25 seconds later for a 30-20 advantage, and Kenzie Williamsconverted a 3-point play for a 35-22 lead with 2:51 before half as the Lady Bears shot 8-for-11 in the second quarter.
UNI closed the first half on a 6-0 run and closed to 35-30 early in the third quarter as MSU failed to score for nearly six minutes. The Panthers twice cut the gap to four points before the Lady Bears rattled off an 11-0 run to lead 55-40 on a Williams trey with 9:14 to play in the game.
Missouri State led by double figures for the remainder of the contest, and the seniors combined for 17 of the team’s 20 points in the fourth period.
The Lady Bears shot 49 percent in the game compared to a .386 figure for UNI that included a 3-for-19 showing from beyond the arc. MSU held a 29-11 advantage in bench points and 40-22 margin on the glass.
MSU will learn its tournament destination at 6 p.m. Monday as the NCAA Selection Show airs on ESPN. A watch party will be held at the Prime Overtime Club in JQH Arena.
