WEDNESDAY'S SCORES
@Tulane 71,
Tennessee Tech 49
@Tennessee State 105, Wilberforce 54
@Missouri State 55,
Little Rock 48
Utah Tech 82,
Lindenwood 68
@Southern Indiana 90, Brescia 48
TULANE 71, TENNESSEE TECH 49
NEW ORLEANS, La. - Tulane put forward a physical fight in its battle with the Tennessee Tech women on Wednesday in the championship game of the Tulane Holiday Tournament, but the Golden Eagles didn't back down, trying its hardest to keep up with a strong, physical team out of the American Athletic Conference.
However, the Golden Eagles saw the Green Wave pull away in the second half, the tide rising with a 12-point run in the third quarter as Tulane took a 71-49 victory over Tech in the last non-conference contest of the season for the Golden Eagles.
Tech (6-4) advanced to the championship of the two-day event by default as VCU had to pull out of the tournament on Monday afternoon.
The Golden Eagles, as hard as they tried, couldn't get their shots to fall as Tulane (9-3) blocked seven shots and Tech only hit 18 of 60 tries, a 27.8-percent clip.
Tech did get double-digit production from Anna Walker (11 points) and Reghan Grimes (10 points), while the true freshman from Nashville narrowly missed a double-double as she pulled down a team-best eight rebounds. Walker and Grimes were both named to the All-Tournament team.
Maaliya Owens had nine points and Jada Guinn had seven – including 5-for-6 from the free-throw line.
Rachel Hakes led Tulane with 22 points and was 5-for-6 from the stripe as she drew six fouls in the contest. Kyren Whittington also scored 17 points, while Anijah Grant grabbed 11 caroms and had four of the Green Wave's seven blocked shots in the contest.
Tech was able to force Tulane into 20 turnovers in the game.
Tulane also led the battle on the glass, grabbing 40 rebounds to 26 for Tech. The Golden Eagles did have more second-chance tries.
The surge in the third quarter came as Tulane shot 72.7 percent from the field and 83.3 percent from 3-point range, while Tech went 3-for-14 in the period (21.4 percent).
TENNESSEE STATE 105, WILBERFORCE 54
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Tennessee State women's basketball team shot 50 percent from deep on the way to a 105-54 win against the Wilberforce Bulldogs at home Wednesday.
The Lady Tigers (5-6) had three players score in double figures, led by Zyion Shannon, who had 20 points. Kianni Westbrook tacked on 14 points and two steals and Saniah Parker chipped in as well with 11 points, seven rebounds and two steals.
The Tennessee State offense was impressive from beyond the arc, knocking down eight threes on 16 attempts. Parker hit three treys for the Lady Tigers in the contest.
The Tennessee State defense was effective at taking away the basketball in Wednesday's game, forcing 30 Wilberforce turnovers while committing 24. Those takeaways turned into 39 points on the offensive end of the floor. Gia Adams led the way individually for the Lady Tigers with two steals.
After jumping out to a 14-11 advantage, Tennessee State went on an 11-0 run with 3:47 left in the first quarter, culminating in a three from Parker, to increase its lead to 25-11. The Lady Tigers then lost some of that lead, but still entered the quarter break with a 25-13 advantage. Tennessee State capitalized on eight Wilberforce turnovers in the period, turning them into 10 points on the other end of the floor.
Tennessee State built that first quarter lead to 29-16 before going on a 10-0 run starting at the 8:24 mark in the second period, highlighted by a three from Corina Suarez-Tudela, to increase its lead to 39-16. The Lady Tigers proceeded to tack on five points to that lead and enjoyed a 57-29 advantage heading into halftime. Tennessee State dominated in the paint, scoring 22 of its 32 points close to the basket.
Tennessee State wasted no time building on its lead, going on a 17-0 run, punctuated by a three from Suarez-Tudela, to expand its lead further to 74-29 with 5:55 to go in the third. Before the third period was over, the Lady Tigers added nine points to that lead and entered the fourth quarter with a 92-38 edge. Tennessee State played well near the basket, scoring 18 of its 35 points in the paint.
The Lady Tigers then held on for the victory in the fourth quarter. Tennessee State fired away from deep in the quarter, knocking down two shots to account for six of its 13 points.
TSU will be back in action on December 29 as they take on Morehead State to open up OVC play. Tip-off is slated for for 5:30 p.m.
MISSOURI STATE 55, LITTLE ROCK 48
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Little Rock went on a nine-point run over the final two minutes and forced 10 turnovers in the first quarter, but Missouri State controlled the pace of play in the intervening 28 minutes in a 55-48 loss to the Lady Bears Wednesday afternoon.
The Trojans could not overcome a 41-25 deficit in rebounds, particularly on the offensive side where Missouri State (5-4) turned 19 offensive boards into 10 second chance points. Little Rock (3-8) was out-scored 21-13 thanks mostly to Aniya Thomas scoring 15 of her game-high 19 points in the final period.
Faith Lee led the Trojans with a career-high 17 points, marking the third time in four games the freshman has reached double figures. Tia Harvey added 14 with three rebounds.
The Trojan defense forced 16 turnovers out of the Lady Bears but 10 of those came in the first quarter. After that, Missouri State was able to limit its mistakes despite the strenuous pressure of the Little Rock defenders. Five of LR's seven steals came in the first period.
Little Rock's 13 turnovers were the second-lowest mark of the season, but the team's 22 fouls marked the second-highest and several players spent most of the second half in foul trouble. Lee, Angelique Francis and Nikki Metcalfe all finished the game with four fouls while Harvey and Jayla Brooks ended with three. The 22-15 difference in fouls led to Missouri State getting seven extra free throw attempts.
Missouri State was aided by double figures out of Kennedy Taylor (13 points) and Sydney Wilson (12 points), both of whom recorded the majority of their scoring in the first half.
The Trojans and Lady Bears entered the game as two of the only six non-P5 teams in the country to have won games over P5 opponents in each of the past three seasons.
Wednesday's contest wraps up the non-conference portion of the schedule for the Trojans and Little Rock will now look forward to its first-ever OVC conference game on Dec. 29 when UT Martin visits the Jack Stephens Center. The Skyhawks dropped a 68-59 decision at Missouri State on Saturday.
UTAH TECH 82, LINDENWOOD 68
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Lindenwood fell to Utah Tech, 82-68, in the final game of the Las Vegas Holiday Hoops Classic.
The Lions had four players reach double-digits in points. Mary McGrath led the team with 17 points and 10 rebounds. She also had two assists and three steals.
Masyn McWilliams hit a pair of threes to finish with 15 points. She added four assists and two steals.
Devin Fuhring scored 12 points while Alana Striverson has 10 points, including a pair of threes.
Lindenwood will be back in action on December 29 as it travels to Eastern Illinois to open up league play.
SOUTHERN INDIANA 90, BRESCIA 48
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - Southern Indiana defeated visiting Brescia, 90-48, on Wednesday.
Hannah Haithcock led the team with 24 points, shooting 56.3 percent from the floor. She added 13 rebounds for the double-double. She added two assists and three steals.
Ashlynn Brown went 9-for-12 from the field to finish the game with 19 points. She brought down eight boards to go with four assists and one block.
Lexi Thompson added 12 points while Meredith Raley and Vanessa Shafford each had 11 points.
USI is back in action on Dec. 29 when it hosts Southeast Missouri to open up league play.