Trinity (Texas) jumped out to an early lead on McMurry in the first Division III NCAA Tournament game of the season, but McMurry took over late in the first half, extended its lead to as many as 15 points in the second half and held on down the stretch to win 71-67.

McMurry, the No. 12 team in the D3hoops.com Top 25, advances to play at No. 2 Howard Payne on Saturday. &&teaser&&

The Tigers scored 16 of the first 20 points, but McMurry answered with 33 of the next 51 to take a 37-34 lead into the locker room. McMurry extended its lead to 47-34 early in the second half, then went out to as many as a 15-point lead on an Erica Peters jumper with 6:55 left. Trinity cut the lead to two with a 17-4 run capped by a Prato Matthews jumper with 44 seconds left. However, Tarra Richardson blocked a shot, the 300th of her career, and Amber Horton hit a pair of free throws with four seconds left to seal the victory.

&&g-boxr&&Richardson led all scorers with 30 points and added her 1,000th rebound as well.

Will defending champion DePauw repeat? Who has the best chance to be the Cinderella story of each of the four brackets? Which high-"seeded" team is in the best position to disappoint? And who will eventually cut the nets down and get the free trip to Holland, Mich.?

We predict all in our annual Division III women's tournament preview.

Don't forget to join the Pick'em contest, with the men's deadline tomorrow. Men's bracket and women's bracket.