THURSDAY'S SCORES
Tennessee Tech 85, @SIUE 70
@Little RocK 45, UT Martin 44
@Southern Indiana 68, Southeast Missouri 54
@Eastern Illinois 75, Lindenwood 62
Morehead State 81, @Tennessee State 58
TENNESSEE TECH 85, SIUE 70
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - SIUE women's basketball led by one after the opening quarter and trailed by three at halftime, but a 16-2 run by Tennessee Tech's offense in the third put the game out of reach as the Golden Eagles downed the Cougars 85-70 on Thursday night at First Community Arena.
SIUE drops to 1-11 overall and 0-1 in Ohio Valley Conference play. Tennessee Tech improves to 7-5 and 1-0. It marked the Golden Eagles 1,000th win in program history.
The Cougars trailed for the majority of the first, but a 7-2 scoring run to conclude the opening quarter allowed SIUE to take its first lead of the night at 22-21 since taking the opening bucket. SIUE shot 56 percent (9-16) in the opening frame and was 3-5 at the line. Senior forward Ajulu Thatha recorded half the Cougars' total with 11. She shot 5-5 in the first quarter and was 1-1 at the free-throw line. Thatha also grabbed six rebounds in the first quarter.
The Golden Eagles regained their momentum in the second after grabbing the opening basket and led for the entire quarter, outscoring the Cougars 20-16 for a three-point lead at the break. After a scoreless first, sophomore guard Sofie Lowis collected seven points in the second while freshman forward Destine Duckworth added six rebounds.
SIUE and Tennessee Tech both shot 55 percent in the opening half. The Cougars outrebounded Tennessee Tech 17-13, but the Golden Eagles scored 11 points off 10 SIUE turnovers.
Tennessee Tech flipped a switch in the second half after a 16-2 run over four minutes played midway through the third. The Golden Eagles outscored SIUE 27-12 in the quarter and shot 52 percent (12-23) while holding the Cougars to just 35 percent (5-14). Lowis added to her points total in the quarter, leading the Cougars with five while Thatha added two rebounds.
SIUE outscored Tennessee Tech 20-17 in the final quarter, led by Sofie Lowis who added 10. She was 2-3 from behind the arc and 4-4 at the free-throw line in the fourth. The Cougars cut their deficit to 13, but the Golden Eagles would hold on for the victory.
Lowis finished the contest with a career-high 22 points for the third 20-point game of her career. She shot 7-19 from the floor and was 5-7 at the free-throw line. She also led SIUE with two steals.
"She brings aggressiveness and that's what we need,", added Smith on Lowis.
Thatha put together her third double-double of the season, finishing with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Her double-figure points outing marks the 22nd of her career and her seventh double-digit rebounding effort.
Duckworth collected a season-best seven rebounds. Macy Silvey and Molly Sheehan led the Cougars with three assists each. Mikayla Kinnard added SIUE's lone block.
Tennessee Tech had five players score in double-figures, led by Maaliya Owens and Reghan Grimes with 16 apiece. Peyton Carter led the rebounding efforts for the Golden Eagles with eight while Jada Guinn led the contest with four steals.
LITTLE ROCK 45, UT MARTIN 44
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Little Rock's Tia Harvey hit a game-winning buzzer-beating 3-point shot to send Little Rock past UT Martin, 45-44, at Simmons Bank Arena in North Little Rock, Arkansas on Thursday evening.
Harvey finished the game with 11 points, including two three-pointers. Sali Kourouma led the Trojans with 14 points to go with five rebounds. Angelique Francis had six points and a team-best eight rebounds. Jaiyah Harris-Smith dished out a team-high six assists.
UT Martin was led by Anaya Brown with 12 points, going 4-for-9 from the floor and 2-for-3 from beyond the arc. Shae Littleford and Paige Pipkin each had 11 points.
The game was moved to Simmons Bank Arena after a burst water coil flooded Little Rock's court - Joe Foley Court at the Jack Stephens Center - making the surface unplayable. This marked the first conference game for Little Rock as members of the Ohio Valley Conference.
SOUTHERN INDIANA 68, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 54
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - – University of Southern Indiana Women's Basketball added another chapter to a historic first season as an NCAA Division I program Thursday, debuting in the Ohio Valley Conference with a 68-54 win against Southeast Missouri State University.
The win moved USI's record to 7-5 overall this season and 1-0 to begin conference play. With the loss, SEMO dropped to 5-7 on the season and 0-1 in the OVC.
Inside the first minute of the contest, sophomore guard Vanessa Shafford (Linton, Indiana) got USI on the scoreboard first with a triple from the wing against SEMO's 1-3-1 defense, tallying USI's first points in OVC play. A minute later, junior forward Meredith Raley (Haubstadt, Indiana) capitalized on a three-point play to give USI an early 5-0 lead.
Southern Indiana was able to jump out to a 13-2 lead midway through the first quarter, as Southeast Missouri switched around zone defenses. The offensive end cooled off a little bit in the back half of the first period, as USI carried a 15-8 lead to the second quarter.
Shafford continued to feel it from outside the arc in the second quarter, connecting on another pair of triples. At the 6:29 mark in the second, Shafford used a ball fake to create an opening to knock down her fourth three of the first half and push USI's lead to a dozen, 24-12. With 3:32 remaining until halftime, Raley was on the receiving end of an assist from Shafford, as Raley beat the shot clock with a layup to give a 26-15 advantage.
Following the layup by Raley, Southeast Missouri went on a 9-0 run over the next two minutes, cutting the score down to 26-24 USI. With 30 seconds left until the break, Screaming Eagles junior guard Lexie Green (Indianapolis, Indiana) canned a corner three-pointer to snap the Redhawks' scoring run to give USI a 29-24 lead. Southern Indiana went into the intermission ahead 30-24.
At halftime, Shafford led USI with 14 points while Raley totaled eight first-half points for the Screaming Eagles.
Inside the first minute to begin the third quarter, SEMO cut down USI's lead to two, 30-28. Once again, USI responded with a three-pointer from senior guard Tori Handley (Jeffersonville, Indiana). The next few minutes were competitive, going back and forth. With 6:12 left in the third, Handley splashed home another triple to extend USI's lead back to nine, 42-33.
The Screaming Eagles' advantage remained at nine, 53-44, with 1:39 remaining in the third quarter after successful trips to the free-throw line for USI senior forward Hannah Haithcock (Washington Courthouse, Ohio). Haithcock joined Raley and Shafford in double figures by the end of the third. USI took a 53-47 lead to the fourth quarter.
Graduate forward Ashlynn Brown (Perrysburg, Ohio) made two layups within the first couple of minutes of the fourth quarter to push USI ahead 57-47. The Redhawks kept battling, bringing the deficit down to single digits with under five minutes remaining.
The Screaming Eagles continued to keep the Redhawks at bay, holding a 62-52 lead with 2:11 left. USI put the finishing touches on the win with points late by Shafford, Brown, and Raley.
For the game, USI shot for 40 percent (22-55) from the field with eight three-pointers. USI outrebounded SEMO 39-36 and had 16 assists to only six assists for SEMO. USI recorded 27 points off turnovers and 24 points in the paint.
Shafford led all scorers with 16 points in the game, hitting four of her six total makes from outside. She also pulled down six rebounds. Haithcock posted 15 points and seven rebounds. The reigning OVC co-Player of the Week is two points away from 1,000 career points. Raley posted 13 points and eight rebounds for USI.
The Redhawks were 16-for-49 from the floor for 32.7 percent in the game. Southeast Missouri made three triples and went 19-for-26 at the charity stripe. Freshman guard Alecia Doyle led the Redhawks with 14 points while sophomore guard Jaliyah Green had 12 points.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 75, LINDENWOOD 62
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Eastern Illinois women's basketball survived a stiff challenge from the Lindenwood Lions to improve to 9-3 overall and earn a 1-0 start in Ohio Valley Conference play. The 75-62 win marks the fifth season in a row where the Panthers have won their conference opener.
It was a 6-6 tie early on before a 5-0 Lions run gave Lindenwood an 11-6 first quarter lead. Down 14-10 with two minutes to go in the opening period, buckets by Taris Thornton and Lariah Washington tied the game at 14 going into the second quarter. Miah Monahan scored the first bucket of the period to give EIU a 16-14 lead that was immediately matched by another Lindenwood three. EIU responded with a 6-0 run to give them a 22-17 lead. After Lindenwood pulled back to within a point, Litwiller drilled a three to give EIU a 27-23 lead. At the end of the half, Litwiller hit another three and Washington hit a jumper as the clock expired to give EIU a 34-27 halftime lead.
Washington picked right up where she left off in the third period, scoring the first points of the quarter to up EIU's lead to 36-27. The two teams then proceeded to trade baskets before a 9-3 Panther run gave EIU a 47-32 lead. Lindenwood continued to keep themselves in the game with the three-point shot, as back-to-back triple from Emily Benzschawel cut the EIU lead to nine. Thornton responded with a three of her own which was quickly followed by a Julia Bengtson steal and score to up the lead back to 14. The Lions used two more threes, both from Mary McGrath, to end the third quarter on a 6-2 run to make it 54-44 going into the final period. Macy McGlone got the scoring started in the fourth for the Panthers, hitting a layup in the paint off a pass from Lyric Johnson to make it 56-44. After Benzschawel responded with a layup on the other end, Washington converted on an and-one opportunity and McGlone hit on another layup to make it 61-46. The Panthers kept the Lions at arms' length the rest of the way, winning by 13.
Washington led the way for EIU with 16 points on 7-of-14 shooting, her 10th double-digit effort in 12 games this season. She has now surpassed Melanie Hatfield for 10th on EIU's all-time scorers list. Macy McGlone scored 14 points and grabbed six rebounds, her 10th game this season with at least five rebounds. Litwiller scored a season-high 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field, including 3-of-5 from three-point range to go along with six rebounds of her own. Thornton scored 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting while Johnson contributed with four points, six rebounds, and three assists.
Monahan had four points on 2-of-3 shooting and four assists while Hannah Purcell came off the bench to also score four points on 2-of-3 shooting. Jackie Maulucci came into the game in the fourth quarter and drained two threes.
Deven Fuhring and Mary McGrath each had 18 points to lead Lindenwood. McGrath nearly had a double-double, bringing down eight rebounds. Emily Benzschawel added 12 points.
EIU doubled up Lindenwood 40-20 in points in the paint and tripled up the Lions 24-8 in bench points. The Panthers shot 51.8% from the field and accumulated 19 assists on 30 made shots from the field.
MOREHEAD STATE 81, TENNESSEE STATE 58
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Morehead State women's basketball team shot 57.1 percent from three-point range on the way to an 81-58 win against the Tennessee State Lady Tigers on the road Thursday.
The Eagles had three players score in double figures, led by Veronica Charles, who posted her third double-double on the season with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Isabel Gonzalez added 15 points and Crystal Corley chipped in as well with 11 points, seven rebounds, six assists and four steals off of the bench.
Morehead State utilized great ball movement in Thursday's game, piling up 18 assists on 30 made field goals. Corley's six assists paced the Eagles and Sandra Lin also contributed with six assists of her own.
Morehead State forced 19 Tennessee State turnovers. The Eagles turned those takeaways into 13 points on the other end of the floor. Corley's four steals led the way for Morehead State.
The Eagles will stay in the Volunteer State for a New Year's Eve matinee against UT Martin Saturday, with tip-off slated for 2:00 PM.
How It Happened
After jumping out to a 9-6 advantage, Morehead State went on a 6-0 run with 1:45 left in the first quarter, culminating in a three from Melissa Secchiaroli, to increase its lead to 15-6. The Eagles then maintained that lead and entered the quarter break with a 19-10 advantage. Morehead State relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down three shots to account for nine of its 19 points.
Morehead State built that first quarter lead to 22-12 before going on a 5-0 run starting at the 7:35 mark in the second period, highlighted by a bucket from Erola Aliberch, to increase its lead to 27-12. The Lady Tigers cut into that lead, but the Eagles still enjoyed a 39-26 advantage heading into halftime. Morehead State was strong from deep in the period, knocking down four three-point shots to account for 12 of its 20 points.
Morehead State continued to preserve its halftime lead before going on a 7-0 run, punctuated by a three from Charles, to expand its lead further to 53-36 with 3:43 to go in the third. Before the third period was over, the Eagles added three points to that lead and entered the fourth quarter with a 62-42 edge. Morehead State played well near the basket, scoring 12 of its 23 points in the paint.
Morehead State kept its lead intact before going on an 8-0 run, finished off by Tolisha Walker's layup, to grow the lead to 77-55 with 2:13 to go in the contest. The Eagles kept expanding the margin and coasted the rest of the way for the 81-58 win. Morehead State took advantage of four Tennessee State turnovers in the quarter, scoring five points off of those takeaways.
The Lady Tigers (5-7, 0-1) had two players score in double figures, led by Erica Haynes-Overton, who had 12 points. Kianni Westbrook tacked on 12 points and nine rebounds and Gia Adams added nine points, five assists, and five steals.
Westbrook pulled down six offensive rebounds to lead an offense that racked up second-chance opportunities for Tennessee State, grabbing 17 boards and turning them into eight second-chance points.