TUESDAY'S SCORES
@Middle Tennessee 70,
Austin Peay 56
Belmont 58, @Indiana 54
@Eastern Illinois 70, Evansville 57
MIDDLE TENNESSEE 70, AUSTIN PEAY 56
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Scoring droughts on either side of halftime doomed Austin Peay State University women's basketball team in a 70-56 loss to Middle Tennessee, Tuesday, at the Murphy Center.
Austin Peay (2-6) used a 12-4 first-half run to take and build its first lead, 23-18, with 7:09 remaining in the first half. The Lady Govs offense got four points from both senior Leslie Martinez and freshman Jennifer Nwokocha during the run. Austin Peay's defense also found its stride, forcing seven turnovers during that nearly five minute stretch.
Middle Tennessee (5-3) recovered and closed the first half with a 21-7 run to take a 40-30 halftime lead. The Lady Govs offense suddenly went cold, failing to hit a field goal over a six minute span after building its five-point lead.
The second half did not start any better for Austin Peay as Middle Tennessee used a 17-7 run over the opening 8:33 to build a 20-point, 57-37, lead. The Lady Govs would steady themselves and not allow the lead to grow larger over the next four minutes.
Austin Peay's offense would wake up again over the final 7:33, outscoring the Blue Raiders 15-5, slashing the deficit in half and settling on the final score. Senior Nicole Olszewski scored six points and senior Meghan Bussabarger added four points during the game-ending burst.
Bussabarger led Austin Peay with a 12-point, 10-rebound effort - her season's first double-double. Nicole Olszewski finished with a team-best 14 points, four assists and four steals. Freshman Jennifer Nwokocha added 11 points and senior Leslie Martinez chipped in a 10-point, nine-rebound performance.
Ebony Rowe led Middle Tennessee with a 14-point, 14-rebound performance. Kortni Jones added a game-high 17 points and five steals.
Austin Peay returns to action when it hosts NAIA foe St. Catharine in a 4 p.m., Sunday contest at the Dunn Center.
BELMONT 58, INDIANA 54
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Belmont women's basketball team (4-5) grabbed an early lead and never looked back on the road at Indiana (6-3) on Tuesday night. The Hoosiers inched within a single field-goal in the final three minutes of action but a pair at the charity stripe by senior Jordan Coleman (Orlando, Fla.) in the final 2.6 seconds was enough for the Bruins to hold on for the 58-54 victory. It marked the first time in program history BU defeated Indiana.
Indiana took an early 5-0 lead but the Bruins came storming back and used a completed three-point play by freshman Frankie Joubran (Detroit, Mich.), a jumper by newcomer Jordan Coleman (Orlando, Fla.) and layup by senior Katie Brooks (Maryville, Tenn.) to knot the contest at seven with 14:45 on the clock. The matchup would be tied three more times over the next four minutes before a triple by junior Molly Ernst (Louisville, Ky.) opened the door for BU to take control.
IU trimmed BU's lead to one, 20-19, but the Bruins were able to maintain control of the tempo. Belmont blew its lead up to six after a pair of Ernst triples just before the buzzer to give BU a 30-25 advantage heading into the locker room.
Belmont continued working to open the second stanza with sophomore Katie Carroll (Lilburn, Ga.) delivering a three pointer from the left corner to put BU ahead 33-27 after a jumper by Sinclair. The Hoosiers fell silent from the floor for a span of nearly four minutes and the Bruins pushed to a 36-30 lead by the 16:30 mark. Suddenly, BU expanded its lead to double digits for the first time in the contest after a trifecta by junior Julianne Downs (Franklin, Tenn.) and a tip-in by Joubran put the team on top, 41-31. The IU bench burned a timeout after racking up a careless frustration foul as the realization of the deficit set in.
The Hoosiers were able to close the gap to four, 48-44, by the eight and a half minute mark but Coleman drilled a highly contested jumper from the left block. IU surged behind a 10-3 run and by the 8:16 mark had moved to within four, 48-44. However, the Bruins did not panic, even as tensions soared on the floor and the IU fans made Assembly Hall deafening as the point differential continued to shrink.
A banked in three pointer by Nicole Bell briefly made it a two-point game, 54-52, with just under three minutes left in regulation but Coleman swished a jumper in the lane to maintain BU's lead. The Hoosiers pushed again in the final 90 seconds to make it a one possession game but Belmont used excellent clock management as the clock neared zero. Jasmine McGhee found the bottom of the net with 51 seconds left on the clock but it would be Belmont to score the final points of the night with a crucial pair at the stripe by Coleman with 2.6 ticks remaining. IU attempted to ice her at the line, calling a timeout in between the shots but she was able to make both to ensure to the 58-54 win.
Indiana shot 33.3 percent from the floor, 40 percent from behind the three-point arc and 75 percent from the free-throw line. The Hoosiers held the advantage in blocks, 6-0, and steals, 9-6.
IU was led in scoring by Aulani Sinclair, who scored a game-high 19 points. Nicole Bell also reached double digits with 11 points. Milika Taufa and Jasmine McGhee pulled down six rebounds each.
Belmont shot 39.7 percent from the hardwood, 36.8 percent from three-point range and 83.3 percent from the charity stripe. The Bruins held the advantage in rebounds, 37-36, and assists, 15-3.
Ernst led BU with 16 points, followed by Coleman with 15. Coleman and sophomore Adrienne Tarrence (Bowling Green, Ky.) pulled down a game-high nine rebounds apiece. Brooks finished with a game-high seven assists.
Belmont returns to action on December 13 after taking a break for final exams. The Bruins host former Atlantic Sun foe Georgia State. Tipoff is slated for Noon at the Curb Event Center.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 70, EVANSVILLE 57
CHARLESTON, Ill - Senior Ta’Kenya Nixon posted her second double-double of the season to push the Panther women’s basketball team over Evansville 70-57 on Tuesday night inside Lantz Arena. EIU improves to 4-3 on the year.
Down 46-42 with 11:31 left in the game, EIU posted a 28-11 run on 11-for-19 shooting to close the contest. The Panthers led by as many as 18 points (70-52) with 1:38 left on the clock. The game had 15 lead changes and nine ties until the Panthers late-game rally.
The first stanza only saw the Panthers hit 33.3 percent of their shots (11-for-33) to Evansville’s 50 percent clip (14-for-28), but EIU was able to keep the game tied at 34 heading into intermission on 10-for-12 shooting from the charity stripe. The Panthers finished the contest going 12-for-14 from the foul line.
Nixon paced the Panthers with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Offensively, Mariah King added 11 points while Jordyne Crunk and Sydney Mitchell both contributed 10 points. Nixon also dished out a team-high four assists.
EIU outrebounded Evansville 44-31 with King adding seven rebounds for the Panthers. Chelsea Falkenstein paced the Purple Aces on the glass with a career-high 15 rebounds.
Three Evansville players scored in double figures led by Meagan Collins who had 16 points. Samantha Heck added 15 points in the loss while Khristian Hart chipped in 10 points.
The Panthers conclude their three-game homestand on Friday, Dec. 7 when they play host to Sacramento State. Tip-off is schedule for 7 p.m. inside Lantz Arena.