Middle Tennessee women's basketball waited 17 years for its NCAA Tournament First Round victory. So the Lady Raiders went ahead and made it as dramatic and historic as possible.

The 11 seed Lady Raiders overcame an 18-point lead in the first half to knock off 6 seed Louisville 71-69 when a half-court heave from the Cardinals' Merissah Russell after Ta'Mia Scott missed a pair of free throws to put the game out of reach. The 18-point comeback is the third-largest comeback in women's tournament history. It also pushes the winning streak to 20 straight games for the Lady Raiders.

REQUIRED READING: MTSU basketball stuns Louisville in third-biggest comeback in NCAA Tournament history

Middle Tennessee trailed 28-12 after the first quarter and the Cardinals pushed the lead to as many as 18 at 38-20 with 4:18 left in the second quarter. The Lady Raiders scored the final seven points of the first half to cut the lead to 11. They outscored Louisville 28-12 in the third quarter for a one-point lead entering the fourth.

The Lady Raiders will play the winner of 3 seed LSU and 14 seed Rice on Sunday in the second round. Here's where the MTSU's comeback ranks in NCAA Women's Tournament history:

Largest comebacks in Women's March Madness history

Here is the top-10 list of largest comebacks in NCAA Women's Tournament history, according to ESPN.

• 1. 2017 first round: (5) Texas A&M 63, (12) Penn 61 (21 points)

• 2. 2010 first round: (4) Oklahoma State 70, (13) Chattanooga 63

• T3. 2024 first round: (11) Middle Tennessee 71, (6) Louisville 69

• T3. 2023 first round: (7) Baylor 78, (10) Alabama 74

• T3. 2021 second round: (2) Louisville 62, (7) Northwestern 53

• T3. 2011 Sweet 16: (2) Maryland 81, (3) Texas A&M 74

Middle Tennessee finds itself tied for third with four other teams in history. The Lady Raiders are the first double-digit seed to ever make a comeback of that deficit and are just the second team to be a lower seed and pull off such a dramatic comeback.

The top goes to Texas A&M, which pulled out a 21-point come back in the first round. Maryland made its comeback the deepest in the tournament, while Louisville's second round comeback is the only other one to not occur in the first round.

This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: Biggest comebacks in Women's March Madness history: Where MTSU win vs UL ranks