Women’s Basketball Takes League Title Over Loyola

Saturday, March 12

West Point, N.Y.

6 PM

Army West Point

29-2

Loyola (Championship)

16-16

Loyola

Army West Point

Women’s Basketball Takes League Title Over Loyola

March 12, 2016 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

WEST POINT, N.Y. – The top-seeded Army West Point women's basketball team won its third Patriot League title with a 69-51 victory over No. 3 Loyola on Saturday evening at Christl Arena. Army secures the Patriot League's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament and will make its third appearance in the dance, following trips in 2006 and 2014.

Army extends its winning streak to 19 games and improves to 29-2. The Black Knights' 29 wins tie the 2009-10 Lehigh squad for the most total wins in Patriot League history. Loyola finishes the year 16-16 after the setback.

Senior Kelsey Minato earned Patriot League Tournament MVP honors for the second time in her career after scoring 25 points and shooting 4-of-8 from beyond the arc. Classmate Aimee Oertner and sophomore Janae McNeal joined Minato on the league's all-tournament team, as Oertner posted a 14-point, 11-rebound double-double, to go along with four blocks, and McNeal totaled 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting.

Sophomore Destinee Morris netted eight points off the bench, while classmate Aliyah Murray and freshman Madison Hovren each contributed four points.

Diana Logan led Loyola with 15 points, while Colleen Marshall and Bri Betz-White also scored in double figures, with 12 points and 11 points, respectively.

Minato knocked in a three-pointer 2:28 into the contest to give Army a 5-2 advantage before sinking all three free-throws after being fouled on a long-range attempt with 5:03 to play in the first quarter. Her three foul shots made the score 10-4.

Oertner registered three blocks in the first 2:19 of the evening to limit Loyola's offense early, as the Greyhounds were held to nine points in the opening frame.

McNeal converted lay-ups on consecutive possessions to cap a 9-0 Army run and extend the margin to 10 points, 14-4, with 3:41 remaining in the first period. The Black Knights went on to outscore the Greyhounds, 13-5, over the final 6:48 of the opening frame, as the hosts led, 20-9, at the end of one.

Logan scored the first seven points of the second quarter to begin a 9-0 run that brought Loyola back to within two, 20-18, with 6:45 left until halftime. Logan buried her second triple of the half to extend the scoring run to 12-0 and give the Greyhounds their first lead of the game, 21-20, with 6:12 remaining in the second period.

Army answered back with 10 straight points of its own, including three-pointers from Minato and Morris, to build the advantage to nine points, 30-21, by the 2:39 mark. Morris drained her second three-pointer of the quarter with 19 seconds remaining in the half to make the score 33-23 heading into the break.

The Black Knights maintained a 10-point advantage until building the lead to 14 after a pair of free-throws from Minato and a bucket from Oertner that came with 4:04 on the clock in the third quarter.

McNeal added lay-ins 22 seconds apart to build the hosts' lead to 17, 47-30, before seven unanswered points from Loyola brought the Greyhounds back to within 10, 47-37, entering the fourth period.

Oertner netted four quick points to begin the fourth quarter and Minato hit a triple at the 7:59 mark to bring the score to 54-41. Loyola didn't come any closer than 11 for the last 7:59 of the contest.

"This team has never ceased to amaze me this year," said head coach Dave Magarity. "It's mind blowing that we are 29-2 and the way we got here, the teams we beat and we thought we put together a pretty tough schedule with Albany, the conference champion in the America East, Quinnipiac won the MAAC regular season and they were huge wins for us and put us in position to get the one-seed as things worked out for us with the tiebreaker over a great Bucknell team.

"This group of young ladies has just accomplished so much with 99 wins over four years at this level is incredible and they just continue to do what it takes. You don't want it to turn into a cliché with being a team of destiny, but we put together the right pieces. Janae McNeal and the junior class with Aliyah Murray and the Morris twins, as well, and I consider my coaching staff the best in America. It's the best coaching staff I've ever had and I've had some pretty good coaches."

Army will await its placement in the NCAA Tournament during the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship Selection Show, which will be televised on Monday at 7 p.m. on ESPN.

GAME NOTES: Army wins its third Patriot League Championship, after previously doing so in 2006 and 2014 … the Black Knights tie Lehigh's 2009-10 team for the most single-season wins in Patriot League history (29 wins) … Kelsey Minato was selected as Patriot League Tournament MVP for the second time in her career (previously doing so in 2014) and Aimee Oertner and Janae McNeal were also voted to the all-tournament team … Minato extended her double-digit scoring streak to 111 games and raised her career point total to 2,546.