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Scots in Familiar Position at Midwest Conference Championships

by Dan Nolan

Monmouth, IL (02/26/2020) — Making its second straight appearance at the Midwest Conference women's basketball championships, Monmouth College will be in familiar surroundings when it tips off against Cornell Friday at 7 p.m. in the day's last semifinal game.

For the second consecutive season, coach Kyle Wilson's Fighting Scots (19-6) will enter as the second seed behind regular season champion and top-seeded Ripon (19-6). The Scots will face No. 3 Cornell (15-9) after the Red Hawks face fourth-seeded Knox (16-9) in Friday's semifinals. The winners are set to meet Saturday at 3 p.m. for the tournament title and the automatic NCAA berth that goes with it.

It appears to be an evenly matched field as the Fighting Scots, making their seventh MWC appearance, have swept the Red Hawks, but split with the Rams and Prairie Fire. Ripon, the three-time defending regular season champion, has swept the latter two teams and will be making its 16th appearance in the tournament. Cornell, the 2018 tournament champion, returns to the field after missing last year's tournament action. Knox will make its sixth appearance in the postseason.

"No team is coming into the tournament after dominating the rest of the field," warned Wilson, now in his fifth season leading the Scots. "Both of Friday night's games should be tough contests. The Ripon-Knox game should really be interesting since they just played last weekend. I think the championship on Saturday, regardless of who's in it, will come down to who makes the fewest mistakes."

Monmouth enters the tournament with the MWC's highest scoring offense, averaging more than 72 points a game, and the Scots are the only tournament team with two players averaging double figures in seniors Becca Gallis (16.9) and Carley Turnbull (15.6). Knox, led by Kyra Huffman's 12.2 point per game average, isn't far behind in third with a 69-point average. Ripon's main threat is Alison Leslie, a 5-8 freshman guard who averages 14.6 points per game. Cornell is the only team that doesn't have a double-digit scorer, but senior Anne Visser comes close with a 9.9 average.

Defense has been the name of the game for Cornell and Ripon, who are 1-2 in the league's defensive standings. The Rams have held opponents to 55 points per game, two fewer than No. 2 Ripon's defensive average. Knox and Monmouth are 4-5 in the league with 61.2 and 61.9 defensive averages, respectively.

The statistics aren't that much different than last season, when Ripon and Monmouth battled in the tournament finale, won by Ripon 55-48. Wilson sees the familiar surroundings as a benefit, but he'd like to change the final outcome.

"It's a very similar situation to last year," said Wilson of the late game on Friday and a potential championship matchup on Saturday. "The fact that we've been through this schedule before with a quick turnaround and it's a very familiar setting should help our kids feel a little more comfortable."

But is the coach comfortable?

"Our women being consistent would make me somewhat comfortable," was Wilson's short answer. "I'd feel OK if we played defense the way we're capable for two straight games. We've been a very good second half team in a lot of games. We just haven't done it for 40 minutes. I want to be that team that plays well, plays together and executes for 40 minutes."

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