Sophomore guard Raenett Hughes shoots against the University of Mary-Hardin Baylor in the second round of the NCAA championships. Photo by Aasav Sureja | Mercury Staff.
Both men’s and women’s basketball endured losses at the National Collegiate
Athletic Association Division III national championships after they won their
respective regional American Southwest Conference tournaments.
The No. 18-ranked women’s team, led by head coach Polly Thomason since
2005, has been to the NCAA championships for the last three seasons.
“The consistency is due to the players work ethic, that’s the biggest
thing,” Thomason said. “These student athletes have an incredible mindset just
to come in every day and improve their skill set.”
The women’s team’s first loss of the season was against Mary-Hardin
Baylor, who Thomason said is the team’s toughest competitor. The last game of
the season for UTD was also against Mary-Hardin in the second round of the NCAA
championships. The Comets lost 66-57.
“Our shooting percentages were a little inconsistent,” Thomason said. “I
think that’s what we could have worked on, but I am really proud of the team
and how far they’ve come.”
In the first 10 minutes of the NCAA game, Mary-Hardin was able to build a
double-digit lead while the Comets missed 13 shots from the field. Mary Hardin
led 33-16 by halftime. However, junior guard Victoria Peña kept the score
close, and she was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.
“I feel really honored to get that title, I think there were other girls
that could have gotten it,” Peña said. “Every single one of them pushed me to
get better every day and helped me stay motivated through the whole season.”
The men’s
basketball team also started strong back in November, defeating Hendrix College
104-60. Junior guards Curtis Allen and Dimitrius Underwood were the game
leaders and have remained strong players throughout the season. The men’s team
defeated Hardin-Simmons on Feb. 23, making them the ASC champions.
Head coach Terry Butterfield has trained the team since 2000. He has led
the team to the NCAA DIII championships six times during his time at UTD.
“I think our boys really rose to the occasion,” Butterfield said in his
post-ASC championship game interview. “This all has to do with our boys’
preparation and them being ready to go when the ball is thrown up.”
Dimitrius
Underwood was later named Most Valuable Player of the ASC Tournament.
“The team just being
mentally focused during the game makes my job a whole lot easier,” Underwood
said. “We have so many weapons, the defense couldn’t just focus on me. We had a
lot of other players knocking down shots, too, which made it easier on me.”
The men’s team lost to
Pomona-Pitzer in the first round of the NCAA championships on March 1. The No.
11 Pomona-Pitzer team beat the Comets 58-37, advancing to the next round.
Pomona-Pitzer led the game 30-16 by halftime. UTD was able to shrink the
difference to 13 points twice during the game, but once the score reached 50-37
with three minutes left in the game, the Comets did not successfully shoot
again, ending the game with a shooting percentage of 21.2.
The men’s team ended its season with
an overall record of 24-5, while the women’s team finished with a record of
25-5. Both teams scored over 2,000 points and steadily increased their points
per game as the season progressed.