RSC Women's Basketball Weekly Report: Week 11 -- Feb. 16, 2017 #RSC #RSCWBB

2/17/2017 12:00:00 AM

FLORENCE, Ky. -- We've reached the final edition of the River States Conference Women's Basketball Weekly Report. We approach the final weekend of the regular season Feb. 17-18 and bring you an update in this weekly feature found at RiverStatesConference.com.

With eight conference games combined on Friday and Saturday, there is lots to be decided in terms of playoff qualifiers and the RSC Women's Basketball Tournament seedings. The final two days of the regular season feature two games on Friday night and six more on Saturday.

AT THE TOP
No. 20-ranked IU East (24-5, 15-1 RSC) has already locked up the RSC East Division title earlier this year. The Red Wolves are also guaranteed a bid to the NAIA Division II national tournament with the best conference record in the regular season. IU East finishes up Saturday at second-place Ohio Christian and will be the No. 1 seed in the RSC Tournament regardless.

OCU (20-8, 11-5 RSC) has also reached the 20-win plateau and has locked up the No. 2 playoff seed out of the RSC East. The Trailblazers will also play at home in the first round of the playoffs. OCU is 10-2 at home and is 11-2 overall since Jan. 1.

Midway (21-9, 12-6 RSC) and (RV) IU Kokomo (18-11, 11-6 RSC) are the top two teams in the RSC West Division, and they are vying for the division title. Midway has a half-game lead after Thursday night's win over Brescia, 66-57, and has completed is conference schedule. IU Kokomo finishes up at Alice Lloyd on Saturday. With a win there, the Cougars would set off the tiebreakers to determine the division winner with other results of the day playing into deciding things.

CLINCHED PLAYOFFS
Two other teams have already clinched playoff spots out of the RSC West Division, and those teams are IU Southeast (15-14, 10-7 RSC) and Asbury (14-14, 9-8 RSC). IU Southeast hosts Brescia, and Asbury hosts Cincinnati Christian in the final games for both teams on Saturday. The Grenadiers and Eagles will be playing for seeding on the final day of the regular season. IU Southeast could get as high as second place with a win and a loss by IU Kokomo.

THREE TEAMS, TWO SPOTS
The final two playoff spots in the RSC East Division have three teams vying to claim them. Point Park (8-7 RSC), Rio Grande (8-7 RSC) and WVU Tech (8-7 RSC) are tied for third place, but one team will be left home for the playoffs. All three teams play twice this weekend.

The RSC Women's Basketball Game of the Week will play a key factor with Point Park at Rio Grande on Friday night. Friday's other matchup has WVU Tech hosting Carlow. On Saturday, Point Park goes to WVU Tech, and Rio Grande welcomes Carlow.

A 2-0 weekend for any of tied teams would lock up a playoff spot In the case of Point Park, which already owns a 1-0 record versus Rio Grande and WVU Tech, one victory for the Pioneers would clinch playoffs for them.

FOLLOW THE ACTION
Stay close to RiverStatesConference.com to follow the action this weekend. Log on for links to live coverage, which includes video streaming for seven of the eight conference games this weekend. Five of those games will be streamed on Stretch Internet. Visit the RSC Game Central presented by Stretch Internet for brodcast listings: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/RSC

PLAYOFF OUTLOOK
The River States Conference Women's Basketball Tournament begins Feb. 22 at campus sites around the RSC. The eight-team, single-elimination tournament begins with the top two teams from each division hosting games Feb. 22. The third- and fourth-place teams go on the road for the first round with matchups crossing over the divisions.

Winners advance to the semifinals on Feb. 25, and the finals are Feb. 28. The higher seed hosts each game throughout the tournament. All games of the RSC Women's Basketball Tournament will be streamed on the RSC Game Central presented by Stretch Internet. Subscribe for $7.95 per game or $19.99 for the entire tournament.