UTC Mocs logoWes Moore was smiling as he walked out of the media room at McKenzie Arena on Monday, about 40 minutes after his University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women’s basketball team clinched its 12th Southern Conference title in 14 seasons.
His parting words: “I’m going to go watch film. See y’all.”
Moore and the Lady Mocs haven’t had much time to relax this season. Yes, UTC is 25-3, with a 15-game win streak. Yes, the Lady Mocs are 18-1 in SoCon play heading into Saturday’s finale at Appalachian State.
All that makes it seem like UTC breezed through the SoCon schedule with little difficulty. That’s hardly the case. There were blowouts — a 43-point win over Furman, a 42-point rout of Western Carolina last Saturday, among them — but there were also plenty of games that required the Lady Mocs to make key plays in the closing minutes.
Of UTC’s 18 SoCon wins, 11 were by 15 points or less and six were by single-digit margins, including Monday’s 68-59 title-clinching win against second-place Davidson. UTC won at Davidson, 60-56, on Jan. 18.