UAB Blazers vs Western Kentucky Lady Toppers
W Kentucky women head back to NCAA, top UAB 72-57
FRISCO, Texas -- Tashia Brown scored seven of her 25 points in less than two minutes and Western Kentucky went on to claim its 20th NCAA Tournament berth with a 72-57 win over UAB in the Conference USA title game on Saturday.
With a one-point lead, Brown made two free throws, a 3-point play and added two free throws with 46 seconds left in the third quarter to give the second-seeded Lady Toppers a 55-47 lead. The top-seeded Blazers had run off nine straight, a 3 by Lea Kerstein, a 3-point play by Katelynn Thomas and Angela Vendrell's trey.
WKU (24-8) iced its second-straight NCAA berth and third in four years when Tashia Brown and Ivy Brown made back-to-back layups, Tashia Brown had two free throws and a jumper by Whitney Creech made it 67-50 with three minutes left.
Creech finished with 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting. Ivy Brown had 11 points and 12 rebounds and Raneem Elgedawy also had 11 points.
Rachael Childress led UAB (26-6) with 16 points and Thomas had 13. The Blazers were in the first title game since 2010 and haven't won a conference tournament since capturing the Great Midwest crown in 1994.
Game Information
Frisco, TX
Referee:Mark Zentz
Referee:Carla Fountain
Referee:Gina Cross
2025-26 Standings
| Conference USAConference USA | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Louisiana Tech | 17-1 | - | 26-7 |
| Florida International | 12-6 | 5 | 21-12 |
| Missouri State | 11-7 | 6 | 23-13 |
| Liberty | 11-7 | 6 | 18-13 |
| Sam Houston | 11-7 | 6 | 18-13 |
| Middle Tennessee | 11-7 | 6 | 17-16 |
| Jacksonville State | 9-9 | 8 | 16-16 |
| Kennesaw State | 6-12 | 11 | 13-17 |
| Delaware | 6-12 | 11 | 13-19 |
| UTEP | 5-13 | 12 | 13-17 |
| New Mexico State | 5-13 | 12 | 9-21 |
| Western Kentucky | 4-14 | 13 | 8-21 |
| American ConferenceAmerican Conference | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rice | 17-1 | - | 29-6 |
| East Carolina | 14-4 | 3 | 22-10 |
| South Florida | 13-5 | 4 | 20-12 |
| Tulsa | 11-7 | 6 | 19-12 |
| North Texas | 11-7 | 6 | 19-14 |
| UTSA | 9-9 | 8 | 18-16 |
| Temple | 8-10 | 9 | 15-17 |
| Charlotte | 8-10 | 9 | 14-18 |
| Florida Atlantic | 7-11 | 10 | 14-18 |
| Tulane | 6-12 | 11 | 11-20 |
| Wichita State | 5-13 | 12 | 8-23 |
| UAB | 4-14 | 13 | 11-19 |
| Memphis | 4-14 | 13 | 10-21 |
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