The 4-seeded Drake women’s basketball team’s hopes of an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament were crushed on Saturday as the Bulldogs lost in an MVC Tournament semifinal to top-seeded Murray State, 96-90.
Despite the loss, Drake senior Katie Dinnebier led all scorers with 45 points in what may have been her final college basketball game. She went 17-for-33 from the field and played all 40 minutes of the game.
The Bulldogs (22-11) fell behind early and faced a 59-43 hole at halftime. That deficit got bigger by the end of the third quarter as the Racers held an 81-64 lead heading into the final 10 minutes of action. But Drake refused to quit, outscoring Murray State 26-15 in the final frame. Dinnebier scored 15 of her 45 points in the fourth to make things competitive down the stretch, but Drake couldn’t close the gap entirely.
In addition to Dinnebier’s huge performance, the Bulldogs got double-digit scoring out of Abbie Aalsma, who finished with 12 points. Courtney Becker led the team with nine rebounds and Dinnebier had a team-high five assists.
Without the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament that comes with winning the league’s tournament, the Bulldogs will have to wait and see if they are picked for the Big Dance during Sunday’s selection show, which begins at 7 p.m. CT on ESPN.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Drake women’s basketball drops MVC semifinal game to Murray State
