BELTON - The bad news for the Mary Hardin-Baylor women’s basketball team is that it let a late lead slip away for the second straight game.

The good news for the Lady Crusaders is that they have five days instead of seven months to correct the problem.

UMHB never trailed in the first 35 minutes but failed to score in the final 4 minutes, falling 61-54 to No. 9-ranked McMurry at Mayborn Campus Center on Saturday afternoon.

The loss, while disappointing in its manner, had no effect on the Lady Crusaders’ postseason hopes. UMHB (14-11 overall, 12-9 American Southwest Conference) clinched a berth in the ASC Tournament by virtue of Concordia Texas’ loss to Hardin-Simmons and will face tourney host Texas-Tyler in a first-round game at 8 p.m. Friday.

“We’re playing our best right now, and these last two have been heartbreaking losses,” said UMHB coach Kim Kirkpatrick, whose team squandered a lead in the closing minutes of Thursday’s loss to Hardin-Simmons. “But we have shown that we can play with these other teams, and all that matters now is how we do in our next game.”

The Lady Crusaders did just fine against McMurry (22-3, 9-2) in the initial 35 minutes. UMHB mixed the inside power of post Landie Thompson with the slashing skills of Kallie White and the outside shooting of Blair Heitmiller and Mallory McAdams, while limiting the production of McMurry preseason All-American Tarra Richardson.

After the first of Thompson’s 20 points put the Lady Crusaders up 2-0, McMurry didn’t pull even until tying it at 39 with 15:29 left in the second half.

Even then, consecutive 3-pointers by Heitmiller and McAdams gave UMHB another cushion, and another Heitmiller 3 put the Lady Crusaders out front 54-50 with 4:45 to go.

But the long-range bucket by Heitmiller, a senior playing in her final home game, marked the last time UMHB scored.

The Lady Crusaders’ next six possessions resulted in four missed shots and two turnovers. The last turnover - which followed a Richardson layup that gave McMurry a 57-54 edge - came on a shot-clock violation and forced UMHB to foul in the final minute.

McMurry was 4-of-7 from the free-throw line in the last 40 seconds, and all the Lady Crusaders could muster was one more turnover and a last-second heave as the buzzer sounded.

“I think part of the problem at the ends of games has just been our inexperience,” Kirkpatrick said. “For the most part, a bunch of our girls have never been in those situations. And the other team has seniors who have been there and want the ball in their hands.”

Amber Horton scored 17 points for McMurry and Richardson added 16.

Thompson grabbed 21 rebounds, White had 11 points and Heitmiller and McAdams added eight apiece for UMHB.

“Obviously, we need to work on closing things out, but I think these last two games will give us a boost going into the conference tournament,” Kirkpatrick said. “If before these two our girls only wanted to believe that can beat the top teams, then this should prove to them that they can.”

NOTES: UT-Tyler (17-8) is the East Division’s top seed for the ASC Tournament. . . . The other first-round tournament games will pit Howard Payne (25-0) against Louisiana College (15-10), Mississippi College (15-10) against Hardin-Simmons (20-5), and McMurry (22-3) against Texas-Dallas (16-9).

edrennan@temple-telegram.com