Postseason WNIT | 4/3/2019 11:31:07 PM

ARIZONA 59, TCU 53

TUCSON, AZ -- In front of a program-record crowd of 10,135, Arizona held off a persistent effort from TCU, and the Wildcats earned a spot in the 2019 Postseason WNIT championship game.

Arizona (23-13) will host Northwestern in the title game; tipoff is set for 3 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 6, and the game will be televised on CBS Sports Network. 

Arizona led 40-33 after three quarters and extended the lead to double figures on shots from Tee Tee Starks and Aari McDonald. But TCU was prepared to make one more push, getting two 3-pointers from Amy Okonkwo and moving within 46-41 with 4:32 left in the final quarter. On a layup from Kianna Ray, TCU trailed just 46-43 with 4:25 left.

The Wildcats countered with two layups by McDonald and a short shot from Cate Reese, and that pushed the home team up, 52-45, with 1:53 left. Arizona got six free throws from Dominique McBryde in the final minute. McDonald ended up with 19 points and nine rebounds, and McBryde added 13 points and six rebounds. 

TCU (24-10) had a 50-33 edge in rebounding; Okonkwo had 22 points and 11 rebounds, and fellow senior Jordan Moore closed with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Ray added 10 points and seven rebounds.

TCU went almost six minutes without scoring in the first quarter, but a late 3-pointer from Dakota Vann pulled the Frogs within 12-9. Arizona rolled to another big scoring run in the second quarter, a 15-0 burst fueled by two 3-pointers from Sam Thomas and long-range shots from Starks, McDonald and McBryde. But the Frogs ended the quarter on an 11-2 run, with a layup by Moore at the :01 mark making it 29-23 at the break.