Completed Event: Women's Basketball at Eastern Kentucky on March 19, 2026 , Loss , 58, to, 72
Final Score
Women's Basketball
58
at Eastern Kentucky
72
The University of Utah Athletics
Utah Women's Basketball Notes - Game 31 - NCAA First Round
3/15/2006 12:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 15, 2006
Game #31
University of Utah (24-6) vs. Middle Tennessee State (20-10)
11:12 a.m. Saturday, March 18, 2006 - McKale Center (14,545)
Tucson, Ariz.
Radio: Hot Ticket 700 AM
TV: ESPN2
Audio Stream - www.UtahUtes.com
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Utah Meets Middle Tennessee State Saturday
The University of Utah women's basketball team makes its 14th appearance in the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship tournament Saturday. The Utes, coming off a Mountain West Conference Touranment championship, will be the No. 5 seed in the Albuquerque region.
Utah will face off with the No. 12-seeded Middle Tennessee State University Blue Raiders. MTSU is making its third consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Blue Raiders were the champions of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament.
MTSU defeated Western Kentucky by a tally of 84-73 in the title game of the Sun Belt Tournament. The Blue Raiders were paced in that game by Chrissy Givens, who tallied 24 points and 12 rebounds. Givens leads the team with an average of 21.4 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. She is also the Sun Belt Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and conference touranment MVP.
Utah and Middle Tennesse State have faced off on the hardwood once previously. That last matchup should have little bearing on this one, as it was more than 27 years ago. The Utes topped the Blue Raiders 82-74 on Dec. 14, 1978.
Utah Fast Breaks
? Utah is making its 14th appearance in the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship tournament.
? This is the Utes' second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament and their eighth in the past 12 seasons.
? Utah is 4-9 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
? The Utes have won their last three first-round games in the NCAA Tournament.
? Utah's No. 5 seed matches its highest seeding ever. The Utes were a No. 5 seed in 2001 and 1997.
The Best Offense ...
Utah is currently the No. 1 scoring team in the Mountain West Conference, averaging 69.0 points per game. The Utes have topped the 70-point mark in 10 of their last 17 outings. Utah is 15-0 this season when scoring 70 points or more.
Utah's scoring average of 69.0 points per game is 0.7 per game better than second-place TCU. Utah has never led the Mountain West Conference or the Western Athletic Conference in scoring, covering a span of 15 previous seasons.
The Utes rank No. 64 in the nation in scoring offense.
... Is a Good Defense
The Utes also boast the top scoring defense in the MWC. Utah has traditionally been one of the top defensive teams in the country. Through 30 games, Utah has allowed an average of just 54.8 points per game, which also ranks No. 12 in this week's NCAA statistical report.
The Utes led the nation in scoring defense in three of the past six seasons (1999-2000, 2000-01, 2002-03). They have ranked in the top 10 in five of the last six years. Last season, Utah ranked second in the Mountain West Conference and 27th in the nation in scoring defense, allowing 55.7 points per game.
Kim-Possible
Senior forward Kim Smith ranks in the top 15 in 10 of 12 statistical categories released by the Mountain West Conference. She is the only MWC player to rank in 10 categories. Smith leads the league in scoring (19.8 ppg) and is second in rebounding (7.9 rpg).
Smith's 29-point effort against Air Force on March 8 marked the 16th time this season she has scored more than 20 points. For her career, Smith has reached 20 points or more 39 times. She also tallied her seventh double-double of the season against Air Force at the MWC Tournament, grabbing 13 rebounds.
-UU-
Players Mentioned
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