Chattanooga women defeat Wofford 63-53 for SoCon title

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Raven Thompson scored 19 points, Yaz Wazeerud-Din added 16 points, and second-seeded Chattanooga defeated No. 1 seed Wofford 63-53 on Sunday to win the Southern Conference Tournament for the 19th time.

The Mocs will be making their 16th appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

Chattanooga trailed 17-9 after one quarter but dominated the next two periods to defeat Wofford for the first time in three matchups this season. Addie Porter scored nine points in the second quarter as Chattanooga roared back to take a 31-29 lead at halftime. Wazeerud-Din hit for nine points in the third and the Mocs rolled into the final period with a 49-36 lead.

Wofford's Rachael Rose hit a jumper to get the Terriers within 56-49 with 3:12 left in the game but the Mocs responded with a 7-0 run to put the game out of reach. Wofford managed just one field goal and two free throws in the final three minutes. Wofford also struggled at the end of the third quarter when the Mocs went on a 9-0 run over the final four minutes to build their double-digit lead.

Porter made 4 of 7 3-pointers for Chattanooga (20-12) and finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Thompson and Abbey Cornelius both had nine rebounds and the Mocs had a 36-24 advantage on the boards.

Helen Matthews had 25 points to lead Wofford (22-9). Rose finished with 13 points, six rebounds and two assists. Wofford shot 34% and had only six assists on 19 made baskets.

Wofford won the regular-season title for the first time and made its second appearance in the past three years in the tournament championship game, finishing as the runner-up both times. The Terriers have never played in the NCAA Tournament.

___ AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25