THURSDAY'S SCORES
@Indiana 74,
UT Martin 50
@Central Arkansas 51,
SIUE 39
INDIANA 74, UT MARTIN 50
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The University of Tennessee at Martin women’s basketball team saw its season come to a close in the first round of the Postseason Women’s National Invitation Tournament on Thursday night, falling to Big Ten foe Indiana, 74-50, on the road.
The Skyhawks finish the season with a 19-15 overall record in a year in which the squad notched the program’s seventh postseason appearance in the last eight years.
UT Martin struggled for much of the contest, shooting just 38.5 percent from the floor, but it was a rough second half which proved to be the difference in the ballgame. After trimming the once double-figure deficit down to five points heading into halftime, the Hoosier would outscore the Skyhawks 33-14 in the second half to advance into the second round.
Sophomore Kendall Spray closed out her record-setting season with a strong performance, scoring a team-high 18 points on the evening while knocking down four three-pointers. With the quartet of trifectas, Spray finishes her sophomore campaign with a school-record 125 three-pointers on the season which ranks in the top-five nationally. Joining Spray in double figures was junior Myah Taylor with 10 points off the bench.
Indiana improved to 18-14 on the season behind a strong shooting night in front of an impressive crowd. The Hoosiers would shoot 54 percent from the field while placing four players in double figures. Freshman Jaelynn Penn scored a game-high 25 points while Amanda Cahill flirted with a double-double by tallying 14 points and nine rebounds. The squad was rounded out in double figures by Tyra Buss with 14 points while Kym Royster tossed in 10 points of her own.
The Hoosiers would come out aggressive, scoring the first seven points of the contest through the opening three minutes of action. Sitting in a hole, the Skyhawks would charge back to tie the game with back-to-back buckets by Mason before a backdoor cut by Spray tied the game a 7-7. From there Indiana would take control to hold a 23-14 lead after the opening quarter of play.
UT Martin would cut into the lead in the second quarter behind the strong play of Taylor who scored eight points off the bench. At the second quarter media, the Skyhawks had outscored the Hoosiers 15-9 to trim the team’s deficit down to three points with three minutes to play in the first half. With the strong play in the quarter, UT Martin would head into halftime trailing Indiana by just five points.
Indiana came out in the second half looking to take control right away. The Hoosiers would outscore the Skyhawks 20-7 in the third quarter to take an 18-point lead into the fourth quarter. The pair of Penn and Cahill would play a big role in the quarter, combining to score 14 of the team’s 20 points in the segment.
The Skyhawks would make a final run to try and get back into the contest in the opening five minutes of the fourth quarter, trimming the 18-point margin down by six points following a layup by Maddie Waldrop with 5:07 to play. The run would not be enough however as the Hoosiers responded accordingly by finishing the game on a 12-0 run to seal the team’s first round victory and advance to the next round by a final score of 74-50.
CENTRAL ARKANSAS 51, SIUE 39
CONWAY, Ark. - Central Arkansas used a 15-0 first-half run and then held off SIUE women's basketball Thursday night 51-39 in the opening round of the Women's Basketball Invitational.
SIUE completed the season with a 17-15 record. Central Arkansas moved to 23-9 and advances in the WBI.
SIUE Head Coach Paula Buscher honored seniors Donshel Beck, Lauren White, Gwen Adams and Elina Berzina after the game.
The Cougars leaped out to a 10-2 lead in the first period at the Farris Center only to have Central Arkansas go on a 15-0 run. By halftime, Central Arkansas extended its lead to 32-18.
Buscher said the Cougars didn't step up and challenge UCA in the first half, allowing a 21-11 rebounding differential over the first 20 minutes of play.
SIUE came back with its own 18-2 run in the third period. After a Sydney Bauman layup and a jump shot by Zaria Whitlock, SIUE cut Central Arkansas' lead to one point at 37-36 with 8:50 to play in the fourth quarter.
The Cougars outgrinded Central Arkansas in the third period and the beginning of the fourth period, a trait that Buscher has instilled in the 2017-18 Cougars.
Central Arkansas, however, never trailed in the second half and pushed back over the final eight minutes. Taylor Sells led the Sugar Bears in scoring with 12 points followed by 11 from Taylor Baudoin.
The Suger Bears edged the Cougars on the boards 36-32. SIUE won the battle in the paint 32-28.
Bauman was SIUE's leading scorer with 12 points. She also extended her single-season blocks record with five more tonight. She finished the season with 63 and now has a SIUE career-best 133 blocks.
Buscher said the WBI contest gave her future players a taste of the next level.