Blue Raiders land pair on all-tournament team

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Middle Tennessee placed two of its women’s basketball players on the six-member All-Lady Lion Classic Team it was announced following the conclusion of the tournament Sunday afternoon in University Park, Pa. Junior Kortni Jones and sophomore Ebony Rowe represent the Blue Raiders after leading the squad to a runner-up finish in the four-team event to No. 12/14 Penn State.

Jones’ honor is the first of her career and comes on the heels of leading Middle Tennessee in scoring with 19.0 points per game, including a game-high 25 in Friday’s 79-60 victory over UNC Wilmington. The Oak Ridge, Tenn., native hit all eight of her free throws to go along with a 40.7 field goal percentage (11-of-27) and 47.1 percentage from behind the 3-point arc by making 8-of-17.

She added six assists and two steals in playing a team-best 78 minutes during the two games of the Penn State-hosted tournament inside the Bryce Jordan Center. Defensively against the Lady Lions Sunday, she was mostly responsible for guarding Penn State’s Maggie Lucas, holding the reigning Big 10 Freshman of the Year without a 3-pointer during the first half.

Rowe joined Jones on the squad after posting back-to-back double-doubles and extending her consecutive game streak of netting double-figure points to 30. The Lexington, Ky., product poured in 22 points and hauled in a game-best 13 rebounds against the Seahawks to open the campaign and then added 12 points and 13 boards against the nationally-ranked Lady Lions.

Rowe’s accolade is the second of her career, as she also was picked to the 2010 UTSA Holiday Classic with Icelyn Elie. Rowe made 45.2 percent (14-of-31) from the floor and contributed five steals, four assists and a team-high tying three blocked shots in 74 minutes of action.

Each of the participating schools’ head coaches chose the six-member all-tournament team.

Jones and Elie and the rest of their Blue Raider teammates return to action at 7 p.m. Thursday when Middle Tennessee plays host to South Dakota State in the home opener inside the historic Murphy Center. Tickets for the contest are available by calling 1-888-YES-MTSU or by logging onto GoBlueRaiders.com.

2011 All-Lady Lion Classic Team:
Kortni Jones, Middle Tennessee
Ebony Rowe, Middle Tennessee
Maggie Lucas, Penn State (MVP)
Alex Bentley, Penn State
Zhaque Gray, Penn State
Carly Noyes, Washington State

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