They were outscored 21-10 in the third quarter to cut a 12-point advantage to one, 38-37, heading to the fourth.
IUPUI had a chance to take the lead early in the fourth quarter but missed a driving layup.
After Emily Vogelpohl’s short jumper gave WSU a 3-point lead again, the Jaguars had a chance to tie it when Sydney Roule was left open. She missed, and Vogelpohl’s swished a 3 at the other end to put Wright State back up six, 45-39, with 7:54.
The fourth-seeded Jaguars wouldn’t get closer than four again.
Mackenzie Taylor led the Raiders with 15 points while Angel Baker had 14 and Vogelpohl finished with 10. Wright State will play the tournament championship game at noon Tuesday against Green Bay or Youngstown State.
**FIRST HALF RECAP **
Wright State led IUPUI 28-16 at halftime of a Horizon League tournament semifinal contest at Little Ceasar’s Arena.
The top-seeded Raiders led 12-7 after one quarter, a two-possession lead thanks to Angel Baker’s coast-to-coast driving bank shot that beat the buzzer.
The Raiders never trailed in the first 10 minutes, holding the Jaguars to 13.3 percent shooting (2 or 15) from the floor. Both of No. 4 seed IUPUI’s field goal were 3-pointers by Sydney Roule.
Wright State built an 8-1 lead in the early going, forcing four turnovers and 10 misses on 10 attempts in the first six minutes-plus.
Horizon League Player of the Year Macee Williams was 0 for 7 from the floor in the first quarter.
She scored six points early in the second quarter, but the Raiders extended their lead to double-digits with a 14-3 run.
Mackenzie Taylor started it with a 3-pointer at the 7:56 mark, and Angel Baker continued it with a fast-break layup.
After Dasia Evans hit a 3-pointer for the Raiders, Taylor scored in the lane and Baker added two more baskets to push the Wright State lead to 28-13 with 1:46 left.
The Raiders looked poised to push ahead by 17 or 18 when Anisja Harris drew contact in the lane and made a layup, but her basket was wiped out by an offensive foul call.
At the other end, Sydney Hall hit a 3-pointer from the corner for IUPUI to set the halftime score of 28-16.
Baker led all scorers in the first half with 10 points while Taylor added five.
The Raiders shot 33.3 percent (12 for 36) from the floor while IUPUI went just 6 for 30 (13.3 percent) against WSU’s zone defense.
The Raiders had a 27-22 rebounding edge and outscored the Jaguars 14-6 in the paint.
Roule and Williams had six apiece to league IUPUI in scoring in the first half.
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