BETHANY, Okla. - The Crimson Storm returned to the Sawyer Center to host the NCAA Central Region Tournament. Southern Nazarene earned the No. 1 seed setting them up for a rematch with the No. 8 seeded Henderson State Reddies. The Storm got their revenge as they claimed the 70-61 victory over the Reddies.

The Crimson Storm (29-2, 21-1 GAC) and the Reddies (20-12, 13-9 GAC) have met three times before their Central Region Tournament matchup. The Storm claimed the series sweep over Henderson State during the regular season. The Reddies and the Storm also met in the Great American Conference semifinals where HSU knocked off Southern Nazarene just a week ago. The Storm looked to get revenge and did just that to advance into the Central Region semifinals.

The Reddies claimed the first bucket of the contest, but Lauryn Reither dropped a three to get the Sawyer Center on their feet early. The two squads traded points from there until Reither sunk another long ball to spark an 8-0 run. The Storm took over from there to lead 15-8 with 1:44 left to play in the first quarter. The Reddies dropped in one final bucket before the buzzer sounded to trail Southern Nazarene 15-11 after quarter one.

Henderson opened up the second quarter tacking on two free throws to cut the SNU lead to two. The Storm was unphased as Georgia Adams drained a three to grab back the momentum and stretch the lead. The Reddies continued to hang around, but a fast break layup from Emily Monaghan sparked a 6-0 run extending the SNU lead to 11. 

Back to back trips to the charity stripe allowed HSU to chip away at the lead. Adams got the Storm back in the groove knocking down her second long ball of the evening with a minute and a half left to go in the second quarter. Reither laid in one final shot at the buzzer to give SNU the 33-25 lead at the break.

Hanah Giddey got to work in the paint to open up the second half. The two squads went back and forth from there as SNU maintained their lead. Henderson continued to knock down shots, but the Storm had a response for every one of them. A handful of free throws from Monaghan kept the Storm lead at 11 with just under two minutes remaining in the third quarter. The Reddies also headed to the foul line knocking down their shots before Monaghan and Reither buried threes to lead 54-41 going into the final quarter. 

The Reddies were not backing down as JJ Eddens hit a three to cut the deficit to 10. Giddey and Monaghan then teamed up at the foul line to extend the Storm lead once again. SNU continued to work in the paint as well as from beyond the arc as Reither hit yet another three to push the lead to 63-50. A few more free throws pushed the Storm lead to 18 with just under four minutes left to play. Both squads knocked down a few more shots, but the Storm remained in control to claim a 70-61 victory over HSU. 

Next Up

Southern Nazarene will now look to take on No. 5 seeded Harding in the NCAA Central Regional semifinals Saturday March 16 at 7:30 p.m.. The two squads have already met twice in the regular season both claiming a win and a loss. The two look to earn a spot in the Central Region finals Monday March 18.