Ohio Valley Conference

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - The Panthers' strong defense was not enough to keep up with the Bulldogs. EIU generated 6 steals and forced 16 turnovers but was not able to overcome their cold shooting. 

The Panthers battled through multiple key injuries, which led to EIU losing the bench scoring battle 8-35. Each EIU starter recorded 28+ minutes played, led by Clara Glad with 36 minutes. Both teams battled early, which brought 7 lead changes in the first half. EIU went into the first quarter break trailing 13-12 after a fast break layup by Clara Glad in her 9-point performance. 

Eastern Illinois' defense kept the Panthers within striking distance, forcing 16 Bulldog turnovers and generating 6 steals. Ella Lune had two, with multiple Panthers recording one each. Eastern Illinois' resistance defensively continued to shine by holding Butler to shooting 35% from the field and 31% from beyond the arc at halftime. 

Offensively, EIU dominated in the paint, led by Abbie Boutilier, who scored 11 of the Panthers' 30 bench points. Trailing 41-28, EIU showed life when Ella Lune grabbed a rebound and went coast to coast, resulting in free throws. Lune was a positive spark for the Panthers, scoring a career-high 16 points and grabbing 6 rebounds. However, trailing 41-31 in the third quarter, Eastern Illinois was unable to overcome their cold night from the field, shooting 34% and 16% from the three-point line.

The Bulldogs raced away in the second half after scoring 10 unanswered points in the third quarter and reaching their largest lead of 25 in the final 10 minutes. Butler shared the wealth with only Anna Wypych in double figures but had seven players with 8+ points in the scoring column. 

Ella Lune shined with a new career high of 16 points and grabbed 6 rebounds. Abbie Boutilier followed with 11 points and 3 rebounds. Ava Stoller added 9 points and 3 assists. As a team, EIU forced 16 turnovers and held Butler to 40% shooting from the field and 30% from three-point range.

SOUTHERN INDIANA 76, MIDDLE TENNESSEE 59
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - University of Southern Indiana Women's Basketball returned home to Liberty Arena on Sunday afternoon with a solid performance on both ends of the court, opening a three-game homestand with a 76-59 victory over Middle Tennessee State University.
 
USI (6-2) controlled the contest behind a balanced offense and a pesky defense against Middle Tennessee (4-6). In the Screaming Eagles' final tune-up game before the start of Ohio Valley Conference play later this week, USI shot for over 42 percent (25-59) from the floor, including four made threes, and a season-best 91.7 percent (22-24). Defensively, USI converted 22 turnovers by the Blue Raiders into 23 points. The Eagles also had 22 fast-break points.
 
Senior guard Ali Saunders led the Screaming Eagles in scoring with a game-high 21 points, which was two shy of her USI career best that she set earlier this season against Murray State University. Junior guard Sophia Loden recorded a fourth consecutive double-double performance on Sunday, pouring in 19 points and hauling in 11 rebounds. Loden's four straight double-doubles are the most consecutive by a USI player since Morgan Dahlstrom had four in a row in the 2017-18 season.
 
Sunday's triumph was also highlighted by the debut of freshman forward Channah Gannon, who had been working back from injury. Gannon tallied 16 points in only 11 minutes. Gannon's 16 points were the most scored in a true freshman debut for USI since Jessica Stuckman's 21 points against Indiana Tech in the 2000-01 season. The last time a USI true freshman scored double digits in a debut was during the 2011-12 season, when Brooke Valentine registered 13 points against Saginaw Valley State University.
 
Following a slow start to Sunday's game and a 7-6 lead for Middle Tennessee State, five and a half minutes into the game, USI got rolling late in the opening quarter. Gannon checked into the game and provided an immediate spark off the bench for the Screaming Eagles, draining a spot-up three from the top of the arc to put the Eagles in front. Gannon and the Screaming Eagles continued to be aggressive and get to the foul line to extend their lead. A layup in the final seconds of the first quarter by sophomore guard Lexi Sepulveda capped off a 13-0 USI run to end the period and give USI a 19-7 advantage going to the second quarter.
 
Sepulveda scored another easy one to start the second for the Eagles. Following a few minutes of exchanging buckets, Middle Tennessee was able to find some rhythm to trim USI's lead down to 10, 30-20, by the midway point of the second quarter. Back-to-back layups by Loden got the Screaming Eagles back on track. Inside the last two minutes of the first half, Saunders cashed in a three-pointer and converted a three-point play to send USI into halftime up by 15, 40-25.
 
As the Blue Raiders looked to cut into USI's lead to start the second half, Saunders quickly halted their momentum with five points in 15 seconds. Later, back-to-back layups by Loden pushed the Screaming Eagles ahead by 18, 51-33, at the seven-minute mark of the third quarter. Gannon continued her strong debut with a three-point play off a USI defensive steal later in the period. USI's lead grew to over 20, as junior forward Maddy Fay scored a last-second layup to end the third and give the Eagles a 63-42 cushion going to the fourth quarter.
 
A layup by Loden and a triple from Saunders got USI off to a quick start in the final frame. However, Middle Tennessee continued to fight, trimming the difference down to 16, 71-55, with four and a half minutes to go. From that point on, it was all USI, as Saunders answered with another three-point play. The Screaming Eagles' defense locked down the rest of the game, as the game went scoreless in the final two minutes of action.

UT MARTIN 98, CHAMPION CHRISTIAN 56
MARTIN, Tenn. - The University of Tennessee at Martin women's basketball team recorded 50-plus rebounds for the first time since 2018, had all 12 active Skyhawks score and saw six players reach double-digits all in a 98-45 win over Champion Christian Sunday at the Kathleen & Tom Elam Center in Martin.

The Skyhawks never trailed in the game and their last lead of 53 points was the largest of the game. As a team, UT Martin gathered 57 rebounds, had 23 assists and 20 steals. For the second consecutive game, the Skyhawks finished the game shooting just under 50.0-percent from the floor, making 48.7-percent of their shots on Sunday.

Yar Tong led six Skyhawks in double-figures with a career-high 17 points, while Zy Thompson followed with 12. Sidni Middleton and Kenley McCarn had 11 each with Brittani Wells and Kennedy Horton following at 10. On the boards, Thompson and Horton each had a game-high seven, while Wells and Middleton had seven and six assists, respectively.

SIUE 83, HARRIS-STOWE 36
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Recap coming soon.