BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — Kelsey Nelson picked an opportune time to play the game of her life. The Kansas State junior, seldom used off the 16th-ranked Wildcats’ bench, was the difference-maker in her team’s 69-59 win over the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on Sunday.
Forced into a prominent role in the first round of the NCAA tournament because of injuries to teammates Kimberly Dietz and Danielle Zanotti, Nelson came in off the bench and scored a game-high 20 points in 27 minutes.
“I don’t know if I could be much happier,” said Nelson, who averaged just 1.8 points and 5.9 minutes a game heading into the tournament. “I just kept showing up to practice and working hard, and when it came time I was prepared when my chance came.”
Lady Mocs coach Wes Moore had a thorough scouting report prepared on the fifth-seeded Wildcats, but like the rest of the folks inside the Arena at Harbor Yard, he didn’t see Nelson’s big game coming.
“I had seen that she could shoot the ball OK, but obviously we didn’t anticipate this at all,” Moore said. “Nelson, I guess, was waiting for her opportunity and took advantage of it.”
Nelson hit a couple of tough fall-away jumpers and also attacked, drawing several fouls and going 7-for-7 from the free-throw line. She scored 13 of her points in the second half, including, appropriately enough, the final two points from the line with 25 seconds left.
Moore said he considered going to a zone defense to try and contain Nelson, but he was worried that it would open up the perimeter too much for Kansas State’s outside shooters.
“We ended up switching defenders there in the second half, but I kind of kick myself, though, I probably should have tried a zone, maybe,” Moore said. “They’ve got some kids that can shoot the 3, so we were hesitant to try that. (In) hindsight, we should have given them a different look.”
John Frierson is in his fifth year at the Times Free Press and fifth year covering University of Tennessee at Chattanooga athletics. The bulk of his time is spent covering Mocs football, but he also writes about women’s basketball and the big-picture issues and news involving the athletic department. A native of Athens, Ga., John grew up a few hundred yards from the University of Georgia campus. Instead of becoming a Bulldog he attended Ole ...
