SATURDAY'S SCORES
@Belmont 58, UT Martin 56
@Eastern Kentucky 62, Morehead State 52
@Eastern Illinois 76, Jacksonville State 56
Tennessee Tech 66, @SIUE 56
Murray State 77, @Austin Peay 76
BELMONT 58, UT MARTIN 56
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Propelled by stunning second half performances by redshirt sophomore Jordyn Luffman and senior Katie Brooks, the Belmont women's basketball team (9-8, 4-1 OVC) knocked off visiting UT Martin (7-11, 2-2 OVC) on Saturday afternoon at the Curb Event Center, 58-56. The win moves the Bruins to 4-1 in OVC play and gives them their second consecutive win.
BU had a incredibly slow start to open the contest, punctuated by a nearly five minute scoring drought. The Skyhawks went on to take an eight-point advantage into the lockerroom 27-19, and grabbed a 10-point lead, 36-26, early in the second stanza before the Bruins rebounded. Belmont sprinted toward its buzzer beating finish with the help of a 13-2 run midway through the game.
Luffman led the Bruins with 12 points and junior Molly Ernst added 11. Brooks rounded out the double digit scorers with 10 points. Senior Jordan Coleman pulled down 11 rebounds and had a game-high six assists.
UT Martin was led by Jasmine Newsome and Heather Butler with 17 points each. Butler went 5-for-16 from the floor, including hiting three three-pointers. Newsome also made a trio of trays while going 5-for-18 from field.
EASTERN KENTUCKY 62, MOREHEAD STATE 52
RICHMOND, Ky. -Senior Jade Barber dominated the paint with 21 points and 19 rebounds to lead the Eastern Kentucky University women’s basketball team past in-state and Ohio Valley Conference rival Morehead State, 62-52, on Saturday afternoon at McBrayer Arena.
With the win, EKU improved to 9-6 (3-1 OVC) and also took the lead in the all-time series with Morehead State, 42-41. The loss dropped MSU to 5-12 (1-2 OVC).
Barber, the leading rebounder in the OVC, took advantage of a Morehead State team that came into Saturday ranked last or second-to-last in the OVC in most rebounding categories. The 6-2 senior from Louisville nearly posted a double-double by halftime (12 points, nine rebounds) en route to her seventh double-double of the season. It was also her 17th career double-double in only 44 games as a Lady Colonel.
Fellow senior Brittany Coles also produced a big game for the Lady Colonels, scoring 16 points on 4-of-9 shooting from behind the arc. With the four three-pointers, Coles is now tied with Laura Shelton for eighth-place on EKU’s all-time three-pointers made list (118).
Terrice Robinson carried the Morehead State offense, scoring 30 points while connecting on 5-of-9 three-pointers. Casey Ryans also contributed 11 points for the Eagles.
Morehead State led for most of the first half, as a three-pointer by Ryans gave the Eagles a 19-14 advantage with 7:31 on the clock. Spurred by back-to-back three-pointers by junior Marie Carpenter, however, the Lady Colonels ended the half on a 17-6 and a late triple by Coles sent EKU into the locker room with a comfortable 33-26 lead.
Another three-pointer by Coles right out of the break handed EKU a 10-point lead, and the Lady Colonels maintained a double-digit advantage for most of the second half. Morehead State made a late run and cut the lead to five, 54-49, on a three-pointer by Whitney Kyle; however, Eastern converted 8-of-8 free throws down the stretch to pull away and seal the victory.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 76, JACKSONVILLE STATE 53
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Sabina Oroszova and Kelsey Wyss both scored 14 points to lead the Panther women’s basketball team over Jacksonville State, 76-53, on Saturday afternoon at Lantz Arena. EIU extended its win streak in the series history to 11 games with the victory.
The Panthers (9-7, 3-1 OVC) raced out to an early 17-2 lead in the game’s opening minutes before leading by as much as 26 (35-9) with 8:23 left on the clock before halftime. EIU had a double-figure advantage for the duration of the game and took a 46-23 lead into intermission.
Jacksonville State (0-17, 0-5 OVC) used a 4-0 run to start the second half and get within 19 (46-27), but could not overcome the early deficit. JSU and EIU both scored 30 points in the second stanza.
All 12 Panthers players who saw action in the contest scored a point. Jordyne Crunk scored nine points and Ta’Kenya Nixon added eight points. Mariah King and Sydney Mitchell both chipped in seven points. Nixon also dished out a game-high four assists.
Defensively, the Panthers posted 10 more rebounds (57-47) than the Gamecocks while collecting 10 steals and forcing 17 turnovers. EIU scored 18 points off of the Jacksonville State miscues. Oroszova and Morgan Palombizio led the Panthers on the glass as both players had eight rebounds.
The Panthers sank a season-high 20 free throws on the day, going 20-for-35 from the charity stripe. EIU also went 25-for-70 from the floor and 6-for-14 from behind the arc.
Marikate Gardler led three Jacksonville State players in double figures with 16 points on 5-for-12 shooting. Candace Morton added 11 points and a team-high seven rebounds. The Gamecocks finished the contest only hitting 29 percent of their field-goal attempts (20-for-69).
TENNESSEE TECH 66, SIUE 56
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Tennessee Tech remained the lone unbeaten team in OVC play as the Golden Eagles earned a 66-56 road win over SIUE on Saturday.
The Golden Eagles shot 51 percent from the floor, and dished out 18 team assists, tying a season high. The Purple and Gold were led by Jala Harris who put up 26 points tying her career high at Tech. Harris dished out seven assists of her own, and committed just two turnovers in 33 minutes of play. Lashay Davis tipped four steals for the Golden Eagles and countless loose balls. Davis added six assists and 10 points along with four rebounds.
Defensively, the Golden Eagles blocked three shots, a season high, and forced 12 SIUE Turnovers.SIUE was held to 31.5 percent from the floor, and allowed just one three point shot. The key to the Cougars game was 25 trips to the charity stripe.
The Cougars were the first to draw blood, but the Golden Eagles came right back with a three-pointer by Katherine Barker as the shot clock expired and the Purple and Gold never trailed for the remainder of the half. Thanks to quick ball movement, Tech found their teammates wide open for shots under the basket. SIU Edwardsville attempted to make adjustments, but as they packed the paint, Harris drained a wide open three showing Tech's strength behind the perimeter The Golden Eagles shot 51 percent in the half.
SIU Edwardsville was able to remain in the game thanks to Raven Berry. The 6-0 sophomore far out-sized the Golden Eagles in the paint, and her body underneath the hoop helped her to collect five offensive rebounds in the first half, and 10 points in the paint.
Candace Parson came into the game and made her presence known. Posting up against Berry Parson scored sparking a 3-0 run with just under 10 minutes to play.
Tech continued to run away with the game, thanks to precision shooting and went into the locker room with a 36-25 lead over the Cougars at half-time.
Davis drained a long three to open the half extending the lead to 14, but after a few shot exchanges the Cougars went on an 11-3 run pulling within six points thanks to Tech fouls.
As the game appeared to get tight, Tech forced four turnovers in four possessions thanks to Davis and she found her teammates for four points off turnovers. The Cougars would inch closer, but Tech pushed the tempo of the game and kept a 10 cushion until 4:39. SIUE again benefited from Tech fouls. Berry again found her way to the free throw line, marking the 17th time the Cougars made an appearance at the charity stripe with over four minutes to play.
The Cougars would continue to pressure Tech, but the Golden Eagles remained unphased holding a nine point lead with 1:19 remaining in the game. SIUE would employ a press, but Tech would breeze through triple coverage and find Parson wide open for a fast break giving Tech a 63-52 edge.
With just over 30 seconds to play, SIUE's Jazmin Hill sunk a three, and the Cougars appeared to be in the hunt for another comeback, but the Golden Eagles stiffled any chance of a SIUE win.
SIU was led by Raven Berry with 20 points and 12 rebounds.Tierny Austin was the only other Cougar in double figures with 16. She joined CoCo Moore for the team high in assists with four.
Tech held the Cougars to just eight field goals in the second half, and a 31 percent field goal percentage.
MURRAY STATE 77, AUSTIN PEAY 72
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Austin Peay State University women’s basketball team could not hold on to a double-digit second half lead, dropping a 77-72 decision to Murray State, Saturday, in Ohio Valley Conference action at the Dunn Center.
Austin Peay (5-10, 0-3 OVC) built an 11-point, 52-41, lead in the second half courtesy nine consecutive points. Junior Nicole Olszewski and senior Meghan Bussabarger each hit three-pointers and freshman Tiasha Gray followed with a conventional three-point play in the burst.
Murray State (9-6, 2-2 OVC) erased that lead with a 19-8 run over the next four minutes, capped by Tessa Elkins’ layup and three pointer in a 40-second span, tying the game 60-60 with 6:25 left.
The Lady Govs built another five-point lead, 66-61 with 4:46 left, but wasted several opportunities to either expand that lead of maintain that lead down the stretch. In the final stretch, Austin Peay converted only 2-of-9 shots, including two missed fast break layups.
Murray State had no trouble with its offense, closing the game with a 16-6 run over the final 3:54. The Racers made only 3-of-5 field goals in the closing stretch but converted on 10 of its 12 free throws and outrebounded APSU 12-2 to secure the win.
The two squads traded scoring runs in the first half, Murray State opening the game with a 14-4 run in the opening 12:08 as Austin Peay was a cold 2-of-12 from the floor. The Lady Govs offense warmed up over the next eight minutes, composing a 23-6 run to build a 27-20 lead with 4:12 left. However, the Racers closed the half with an 11-4 run and the two teams went to the break tied 31-31.
Bussabarger led Austin Peay with 14 points. Sophomore Kristen Stainback (12), freshman Alexis Hardaway (11) and Nicole Olszewski (10) also reached double-digit scoring territory. Senior Leslie Martinez finished with nine points and 10 rebounds while Gray played a career-high 33 minutes and ended the night with nine points, four steals and three assists.
Erika Sisk led Murray State with 15 points and six assists. Elkins added an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double effort. Keiona Kirby (14) and Jessica Winfrey (12) broke through to double-digit scoring territory.