SUNDAY'S SCORES
Old Dominion 80,
Tennessee Tech 73
Southeast Missouri 68, @NJIT 58
@Northwestern 90,
UT Martin 64
Pittsburgh 78,
Tennessee State 56
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 68, NJIT 58
NEWARK, N.J. - Southeast Missouri (2-4) used a 9-0 run to finish with a 68-58 win over host New Jersey Institute of Technology Sunday afternoon in the final day of the NJIT Thanksgiving Classic.
SEMO made its nine-point surge last 1:33 to claim its second win of the season.
Tesia Thompson scored a team-high 15 points, grabbed eight rebounds and collected two steals. The Memphis, Tennessee native scored double figures for the fifth time in six games this season and a total of 27 during her career.
For the third-straight game, SEMO had four players in double figures. Carrie Shephard (11), Adrianna Murphy (14) and Jocelyn Taylor (11) joined Thompson as the Redhawks top scorers.
Shephard was the only Redhawk to make a 3-pointer all day. Her trifecta came at the buzzer and cut the Highlanders lead to 31-28 just before halftime. Shephard then hit shots to tie the game twice in the third quarter.
SEMO matched a season-high 39 rebounds. Taylor and Thompson both had eight. The Redhawks also added a season-best 25 points off turnovers and 16 steals.
Murphy led the way with seven steals bringing her career total to 232. She also tallied four assists to increase her career assists mark to 511.
SEMO committed just seven turnovers.
The Redhawks made 10-of-12 free throws in the fourth quarter to help ignite their late comeback.
SEMO, which ended the NJIT Thanksgiving Classic with a record of 1-1, returns to Cape Girardeau to host Indiana State Thursday. Tip-off is set for 6:30 p.m., CT, at the Show Me Center.
NORTHWESTERN 90, UT MARTIN 64
EVANSTON, Ill. – The University of Tennessee at Martin women's basketball team challenged Big Ten foe Northwestern at times on Sunday afternoon, but the margin quickly slipped away in the second quarter as the Skyhawks ultimately dropped the road contest 90-64.
The Skyhawks (4-2) looked to force the action with their pressure defense and succeeded to a certain extend by forcing the Wildcats to commit 25 turnovers. While the turnovers were nice, the team's inability to stop run outs once the press was beaten resulted in 31 fast break points and 46 points in the paint by Northwestern which proved to be the difference in the game.
Sophomore Chelsey Perry led the Skyhawks with 12 points on the day while notching four rebounds. Fellow sophomore Zaire Hicks also scored in double figures, tallying 11 points to serve as the only other Skyhawk in double figures. The team's other top contributor came in the form of Maddie Waldrop who tallied a season-best eight rebounds.
Northwestern (5-0) remained unbeaten on the season as the squad placed five players in double figures. Jess Sancataldo led the way with 20 points off the bench while Pallas Kunaiyi-Akpanah tallied a strong double-double with 12 points and 16 rebounds. Lindsey Pulliam (12 points), Byrdy Galernick (10 points) and Jordan Hamilton (10 points) also scored in double figures for the Wildcats.
UT Martin will return to action on Wednesday, Nov. 28 when traveling to in-state foe Chattanooga. Tipoff from McKenzie Arena is scheduled for 6 p.m.
OLD DOMINION 80, TENNESSEE TECH 73
CHARLESTON, S.C. - In a game that played out a lot like a boxing match, the Tennessee Tech women’s basketball team sparred with Old Dominion through all four quarters in Sunday’s portion of the Charleston Southern Buccaneer Classic, but came up just short to the Monarchs by a score of 80-73.
Anacia Wilkinson provided the major storyline for Tech, scoring a career-high 18 points on 6-of-11 shooting. The redshirt junior did much of her offensive damage early on, as she scored eight of her team’s 14 points in the first quarter and added seven more in the second to keep the Golden Eagles in the game in the first half.
Wilkinson also ripped down five rebounds in the game, but focused largely on her defensive contributions in the second half, with three of her four blocked shots coming after halftime. The Houston, Texas native entered the CSU tournament tied for 25th nationally in blocks, and will presumably move up on that list with her shot-swatting performance on Sunday.
Many of those drives also resulted in fouls drawn against ODU, as Tech held a 27-17 advantage in the fouls department before purposely sending the Monarchs to the line several times late in the game to stop the clock.
For the second time on the weekend, Tech made the most of its numerous opportunities at the charity stripe, supplementing its offense with an excellent team percentage. After connecting on just one of their first six attempts in the first quarter, the Golden Eagles drained 27 of 30 through the final three periods for a mark of 77.8 percent (28-36).
Kesha Brady had a large impact on that free throw percentage, as she went a perfect 8-fot-8 from the line on her way to a 15-point outing, her fourth game this season with at least 14.
Akia Harris and Kentoria Alexander also scored in double figures for Tech, which featured four such scorers in both games at the Buccaneer Classic. Harris collected 12 points, and added five rebounds, two assists and one steal, while Alexander went for 10 points, a team-high four assists, four rebounds and one steal.
Other scorers for Tech included Jordan Brock with nine points, Abby Buckner with five, and Lacy Cantrell with four. Cantrell also grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
Brock’s performance against ODU, coupled with her 19-point explosion on Saturday against Charleston Southern, earned her a spot on the Buccaneer Classic All-Tournament team.
The positives taken from these road/neutral-site performances could pay dividends as early as next week, when Tech visits high-level opponents Wichita State on Sunday (Dec. 2) and Arkansas the following Tuesday (Dec. 4).
PITTSBURGH 78, TENNESSEE STATE 56
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Tennessee State women’s basketball team could not overcome a slow start in a, 78-56, loss to Pittsburgh Sunday night in Municipal Auditorium.
Tennessee State (0-7) nearly matched Pittsburgh (4-4) point-for-point in the second half after falling behind by 20 in the opening period.
Taylor Roberts led the way for TSU with 21 points. The sophomore scored a total of 69 points during the three-game tournament and was named to the All-Tournament Team.
Tia Wooten pulled down a team-best seven rebounds to go with nine points and three assists.