MONDAY'S SCORES
UT Martin 63, Western Kentucky 47
@Murray State 94, Cumberlands (Ky.) 56
@Stephen F. Austin 83,
Southeast Missouri 59
UT MARTIN 63, WESTERN KENTUCKY 47
MANHATTAN, Kan. - The University of Tennessee at Martin women’s basketball team will leave the WNIT Preseason Classic with glowing reviews after producing a 2-1 overall mark following another impressive showing on Day Three of the round-robin invitational, knocking off Western Kentucky 63-47.
The Skyhawks (2-1) had a quick turnaround, playing their third game in four days and second game in last than 24 hours. While the recovery period was short, the results were nearly identical as the day before. UT Martin took an early lead in the contest and never looked back – building an advantage as large as 24 points in the contest off the shoulders of yet another stingy defensive effort.
Much like in the first two contests of the season which saw the Skyhawks play suffocating defense, the squad emulated a vacuum on Monday evening. UT Martin held Western Kentucky to just two points in the opening quarter while holding them to just 27.3 percent from the field. The Skyhawks also forced a season-high 20 turnovers while recording 10 steals.
With the defensive effort taking care of itself, UT Martin built out its lead behind a strong shooting performance – especially in the second quarter where the team shot 60 percent from the field. The Skyhawks found a lot of success in the paint where they scored 26 points while also knocking down eight three-pointers to stretch the floor.
Seven different players contributed in the scoring column for the Skyhawks while placing a pair in double figures. Hayley Harrison paced all scorers with a career-high 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting – including three three-pointers. She was joined in double figures by graduate transfer Holly Forbes who capped off her impressive tournament appearance with 16 points and nine rebounds. Other top contributors included Seygan Robins who tallied nine points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals while Shanice Simpson-Whiteley tallied eight points and five rebounds in eight minutes of action.
Western Kentucky (1-3) dropped its second straight contest after struggling to solve the Skyhawks defensive scheme. Meral Abdelgawad posted an impressive performance for the Lady Toppers however, tallying 12 points and 19 rebounds. Meanwhile, Mya Meredith chipped in 12 points off the bench to tie for the team lead.
The Skyhawks took command of the game early by jumping out to an 11-2 advantage at the end of the first quarter. UT Martin would eventually string together a run as big as 14 points which ran into the second quarter while also using their hot shooting touch to push the margin out to as large as 21 points on a pair of occasions. The Lady Toppers did not go quietly however, finishing the first half on a 7-0 run to trim the deficit down to 36-22 heading into intermission.
UT Martin regrouped and turned up the intensity again at the break, coming out of halftime on a 10-0 run to push its lead out to a game-high 24-point margin with seven minutes to play in the third. WKU responded over the next few minutes in the period but the Skyhawks still held a 49-35 advantage at the end of the third. The margin elevated up to around 18 midway through the fourth before leveling off as UT Martin cruised to a 63-47 victory down the stretch with Harrison scoring 14 of her 17 points in the second half.
The Skyhawks will return to action in two days when traveling to national powerhouse No. 10 ranked Louisville on Wednesday, Nov. 17. Tipoff from the KFC Yum! Center is scheduled for 6 p.m. CST and will be broadcast on ACCNX+.
MURRAY STATE 94, CUMBERLANDS 56
MURRAY, Ky. - Murray State defeated the Cumberlands, 94-56, on Monday night. With the win the Racers improved to 2-1 on the season.
Macey Turley knocked down seven three-pointers en route to scoring 30 points in the win. Turley moved into 11th place on the school's all-time scoring list.
Katelyn Young scored 23 points, including going a perfect 9-for-9 from the line.
Alexis Burpo brought down a team-best 10 boards to go with seven points.
The Racers are back in action on Friday as it travels to Chattanooga.
STEPHEN F. AUSTIN 83, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 59
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Deanay Watson notched a career-best 14 points as Southeast Missouri women's basketball (1-1) fell to Stephen F. Austin (3-0), 83-59, Monday evening at the William R. Johnson Coliseum.
Watson, a senior from Bradenton, Florida, was a perfect 4-for-4 shooting from the field and 6-for-6 at the charity stripe. She also added four rebounds in a team-high 25 minutes.
Taelour Pruitt, a Crowley, Texas, native, and Shymaryia Christopher each added 11 points and four rebounds while Roshala Scott finished with nine points.
SEMO took its only lead in the game, 5-4, after a trey by Pruitt at 8:34 in the first quarter. Pruitt was 3-for-9 from three-point land Monday in her return to her home state.
The Ladyjacks then went on an 8-0 run to pull ahead 12-5.
Brianna Mitchell swished a 3-ptr to provide SFA a 10-point advantage (22-12) with just over two minutes remaining in the opening period.
Stephen F. Austin, a 2021 NCAA Championship Tournament Qualifier, then commenced the second quarter on an 8-2 run (32-18).
The Ladyjacks outscored the Redhawks 17-9 in the frame and returned from halftime with a 28-16 third quarter.
Pruitt converted a lay-up before a Johné Stewart 3-ptr to cut the deficit to 35-25 at 3:10 in the second quarter.
SFA then closed the second quarter with six unanswered points to take a 41-25 advantage at halftime.
Avery Brittingham's bucket at 8:26 in the third quarter widened the gap to 47-27.
The Ladyjacks then extended its margin to 65-34 after a 10-0 rally at 2:24.
Pruitt hit a 3-ptr as the third quarter expired to make the score 69-41.
SEMO then turned in its best quarter of the game in the fourth, outscoring SFA, 18-14. The Redhawks shot 50 percent from the field during the quarter.
Scott had seven of her nine total points in the quarter, connecting 3-for-4 from the field during the final 10 minutes. Christopher chipped in five points.
SEMO went on a 6-0 run down the stretch to make the SFA advantage 80-58. Scott opened the sequence with a jumper before completing a three-point play.
The Redhawks shot 30 percent from the field Monday while the Ladyjacks had a clip of 46 percent.
SEMO struggled on the three-ball, shooting 26 percent from distance. The Redhawks knocked down at a rate of 67 percent from behind the arc in the third quarter.
SEMO was perfect at the charity stripe for the first three quarters and finished 12-for-20 on free throws. SFA was 77 percent at the line.
Michaela Mayfield grabbed a career best six rebounds.
Stewart dished out three assists.
Stephanie Visscher led five Ladyjacks in double-figures scoring, posting 20 points and 11 rebounds. Visscher was 8-for-12 on field goals and 3-for-5 from distance.
The Redhawks conclude their non-conference excursion in the Lone Star State Wednesday against #12 Texas. Tip-off is set for 11 a.m. in the morning showdown at the Frank C. Erwin, Jr., Special Events Center in Austin, Texas.