WEDNESDAY'S SCORES
@SIUE 62, Eastern Illinois 52
SIUE 62, EASTERN ILLINOIS 52
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Lauren White and Donshel Beck kept the SIUE women's basketball team pointed in the right direction Wednesday night.
White scored a game-best 18 points, including a career-best four three-pointers, and Beck contributed 17 points as the Cougars defeated Eastern Illinois 62-52 in an Ohio Valley Conference game at the Vadalabene Center.
SIUE, winning its third in succession and posting its 11th victory in its last 13 games, improved to 14-10 overall and 11-2 in the OVC. The second-place Cougars, just 1 ½ games behind league-leading Belmont, defeated Eastern Illinois for the eighth consecutive time. The Panthers, losing their eighth in a row this season, tumbled to 2-22 and 1-12.
White and Beck, a pair of seniors, made sure the Cougars finished it off properly. They combined for more than half of the team's points. Beck also collected nine rebounds and handed out six assists. White grabbed four rebounds.
Reserve Allie Troeckler added to the cause by making 4 of 5 shots and scoring nine points. She also had three assists.
Overall, the Cougars made 22 of 44 shots, including 5 of 16 from three-point range.
Jennifer Nehls (12 points) and Karle Pace (10 points) led the Panthers, who outrebounded the Cougars 30-28. EIU made 21 of 51 shots, with 5 of 20 coming from beyond the arc. The Panthers sank 5 of 13 free throws.
White's 10 first-half points paced the Cougars, owning that slim two-point margin at the break. SIUE led by no more than seven points twice in the first half. The Cougars stretched their advantage to 50-40 with 9:12 remaining in the game and then traded points with the Panthers most of the rest of the way.