Raiders win Horizon League title, clinching third trip to NCAA Tournament

For the second time in three years, the Wright State women’s basketball team is headed to the NCAA Tournament.

Sparked by a 14–0 run in the second half, the Raiders beat defending champs IUPUI 53–41 in the finals of the Horizon League Tournament on Tuesday, March 9, at the Indiana Farmer’s Coliseum.

The Raiders, who entered the tournament as the top seed after winning a share of the league’s regular season title, improved to 18-7.

Wright State will find out who they play in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Monday, March 15. The tournament will be played in a neutral-site format in San Antonio, Texas.

This is the team’s third trip the NCAA Tournament, after qualifying in 2014 and 2019.

Angel Baker led the Raiders with 23 points and was named MVP of the tournament. She was 10-for-16 from the field and 3-for-5 beyond the arc. Tyler Frierson scored nine points and grabbed eight rebounds. Destyne Jackson added seven and Jada Wright added a team-leading 12 rebounds.

Wright State used an early 6-0 run in the first quarter to force an IUPUI timeout with just under seven minutes to play. Following the timeout, IUPUI pulled within two points, 6-8, of the Raiders. Back-to-back free throws by the Jaguars gave them the advantage at the end of the first quarter.

The second quarter was a back-and-forth affair that saw both teams score 11 points as Jackson’s pull-up three with just over two minutes before the break pulled the Raiders within two yet again, 23-25 at halftime.

The second half was the difference, as Wright State held IUPUI to just 16 points over 20 minutes while recording 30 of their own. The Raiders allowed just five Jaguars points while holding them to 0-for-6 shooting from three-point range in the fourth quarter.

A Frierson bucket and back-to-back threes from Baker with just over two minutes in the third quarter started what would be a 14-0 Raider run. Jada Wright’s second chance layup with 1:14 to play in the fourth quarter put the Raiders up by 10 and ultimately the contest.

Wright State shot 41.5% from the floor, while IUPUI shot just 25%. The Raiders tallied 12 second-chance points to the Jaguars’ seven. Wright State’s bench outscored IUPUI’s 11–0.

Wright State won the battle on the boards for the 23rd consecutive time this season, out-rebounding IUPUI 37-34.

Wright State advanced to the tournament finals after defeating Northern Kentucky 74–56 and Cleveland State 73–62.