Historic season for women’s basketball comes to an end
March 20, 2018
The Nicholls State University women’s basketball team earned its first conference tournament championship in program history, but lost 95-50 in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship to the Mississippi State University Bulldogs.
GAME RECAP
Junior guard Cassidy Barrios made the first points of the game to give the No. 16 seed Colonels a 2-0 lead over the No. 1 seeded Bulldogs, but it proved to be their only lead of the game.
After leading the first quarter 21-13, the Bulldogs scored 33 points in the second quarter to seize control of the game.
Sophomore guard Tykeria Williams scored 16 points, Barrios added 14 points, senior guard Tia Charles had six points and three steals and redshirt senior center Marina Lilly grabbed nine rebounds and had six points.
The Bulldogs held the Colonels to just under 28 percent from the floor and 24 percent from behind the arc. They also outrebounded the Colonels 51-29 for the game.
A SUCCESSFUL SEASON
Despite the opening round loss, the Colonels had a successful 2017-2018 season.
They tied a school record with 19 wins, matching the 2012-2013 season, and won their first conference tournament championship in program history.
Nicholls loses Charles and Lilly, but will return eight letter-winners in 2019, including the 2017-2018 Southland Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Year, Cassidy Barrios.