Middle Tennessee women’s head basketball coach Rick Insell is the winningest head coach in MTSU basketball history, a 12-time conference champion and a single win away from his 500th career win at Middle Tennessee. 

As Insell closes in on the coveted 500 career win mark, there are quite a few games that stand out along the way.  

MTSU 62, University of Houston 35 – Nov. 22, 2005, first home game of the Insell era 

In the Lady Raiders’ home opener against Houston in the fall of 2005, MTSU was coming off a loss to in-state University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in the season opener.  

Against Houston, Middle Tennessee played the style of basketball that the program has become known for with stifling defense. The Lady Raiders forced 29 turnovers and held the Cougars to shoot 30.8%.  

Krystle Horton, Tia Stovall and Monique Martin led MTSU on the offensive end, going a combined 15-of-30.  

Insell’s first team at MTSU was drastically different than the latest version, with the Lady Raiders only making one three-pointer against Houston while having eight players play double-digit minutes.  

MTSU 84, Western Kentucky University 73 – March 7, 2006, first conference championship v. WKU of Insell era 

Insell was likely no stranger to the 100 Miles of Hate rivalry when he became the head coach at Middle Tennessee. The long-time basketball coach has never strayed far from Middle Tennessee, as Insell was born in Woodbury, Tennessee and coached at Shelbyville Central High School, in Shelbyville, Tennessee for 28 years.  

The early March matchup wasn’t the first time Insell squared off against the Hilltoppers as his Lady Raiders went 1-1 against them in the regular season. MTSU faced WKU in the Sun Belt Conference championship game at the Murphy Center.  

There was plenty of scoring from Middle Tennessee, but at the end of the game it was the Chrissy Givens show. Givens finished with 24 points, going 12-of-12 from the charity stripe with 12 rebounds in 40 minutes.  

MTSU 85, Gonzaga University 46 – March 17, 2007, first NCAA Tournament win of the Insell era 

The 2006-2007 season was the first time Insell led the Lady Raiders to an undefeated conference campaign on the way to his second conference championship.  

After a 30-4 regular season, including a four-point loss to No. 1 Maryland early in the year, a win over No. 8 Georgia on the road and a 26-game win streak entering the NCAA tournament.  

Gonzaga was no match for the No. 5-seed Lady Raiders as Middle Tennessee jumped out to a commanding 44-20 halftime lead.  

There was one tie in the game at the 19:12 mark in the first half and the Lady Raiders didn’t look back from there.  MTSU’s largest lead was a 41-point lead with just under four minutes left in the fourth, leading the Bulldogs 82-41.  

MTSU 71, University of Louisville 69 – March 22, 2024, NCAA Tournament win 

The jump to Conference USA in 2013 provided a tougher challenge on the way to conference crowns for Insell and MTSU. Through the program’s time in CUSA, Middle Tennessee has won five tournament championships in 12 seasons.  

Against Louisville in the 2024 NCAA Tournament, Middle Tennessee struggled in the first half, falling into an 11-point hole to end the first half. Former sharpshooting guard and current assistant coach Jalynn Gregory kept the Lady Raiders in it with multiple three pointers.   

Point guard Savannah Wheeler outscored the Cardinals in the third quarter by herself putting up 14 points compared to UL’s 12. The win marked Middle Tennessee’s first NCAA tournament win since the 2007 victory against Gonzaga.  

MTSU 68, Sam Houston State University 67 – Jan. 17, 2026, Insell’s 499th career win 

The 2025-2026 season has provided challenges that Insell hasn’t faced since his first year at MTSU. The Lady Raiders didn’t have a single returning starter and regularly start three freshmen.  

Sam Houston, like other CUSA opponents, figured out that shutting down freshman guard Blair Baugus is a good starting point for victory. Baugus, the leading scorer for MTSU, averages 12.4 points per game, was held to eight points by the Bearkats defense.  

Flipping the script from other times earlier in the season, the rest of the Lady Raiders have started to fill the void when Baugus has a slow night. Every other starter finished in double figures and outlasted a Bearkat run in the final minutes for the one-point victory.  

“Everybody’s concerned about that except me,” Insell said on Jan. 2, 2026, on ESPN after MTSU first conference win of the season. “My thing is the next game…you know my athletic director, my team, my coaches, everybody’s excited about that. You know it is what it is.” 

MTSU takes on the University of Delaware on Jan. 22 at the Murphy Center as Insell attempts to claim his 500th victory.