THURSDAY'S SCORES
@Tennessee Tech 104, Tennessee Wesleyan 43
@Murray State 98,
Little Rock 79
TENNESSEE TECH 104, TENNESSEE WESLEYAN 43
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Tennessee Tech came out hot on Thursday and put up big numbers on Education Day, thrilling a near-record crowd in the Eblen Center as the Golden Eagles soared to a 104-43 victory over Tennessee Wesleyan.
The announced attendance of 5,887 stands as the second-most fans for a women's basketball home game at the Hooper Eblen Center. The 61-point margin of victory is also the fourth-largest in the program's history. It is also Tech's first 100-point game since 2018.
The Golden Eagles (3-6) scored 38 points in the first quarter alone, banking on a 75-percent shooting rate, hitting 15 of their 20 shots. Tech was also able to force 31 turnovers in the contest, converting those into 46 points. Reagan Hurst had four steals, while Maaliya Owens, Jennifer Sullivan and Harley Paynter each had three.
Tech distributed the ball well, collecting 28 assists on 39 made baskets, led by six dimes from Owens and five for Paynter.
Owens led the Golden Eagles in scoring with 24 points as she hit 8-of-13 shots from the field, including 6-of-10 from 3-point range. Yaubryon Chambers chimed in with a career-high 19 points, shooting 8-for-9 on the floor.
Anna Walker, Peyton Carter and Kiera Hill each had 10 as every member of the Golden Eagle lineup that set foot on the court scored four points or more in the contest.
Alexis Bates led Tennessee Wesleyan with 12 points, while Jaci Powell had seven points. The game will not count for the Lady Bulldogs as it was an exhibition game on its schedule.
While Tech's largest scoring run in the game was a 12-0 sprint in the second quarter, the Golden Eagles outscored TWU 38-11 in the opening stanza, then 30-5 in the second quarter to take a 68-16 halftime advantage.
Tech outscored the Lady Bulldogs 16-13 in the third and 20-14 in the fourth.
For the game, the Golden Eagles finished with a 53.4-percent effort from the floor, knocking down 39 of 73 shots, including 11-of-30 from long-range and 15-of-22 at the free-throw line.
MURRAY STATE 98, LITTLE ROCK 79
MURRAY, Ky. - Little Rock's women put up their best numbers of the season Thursday but were outdone by the host Murray State Racers in a 98-79 non-conference loss at the CFSB Center. The Trojans (0-8) posted season-highs in points (79), shooting (55 percent), and turned the ball over a season-low 10 times. Little Rock also had four players reach double figures in scoring, another season high.
Faith Lee led the Trojans with 18 points, Jaiyah Harris-Smith added 16 points to go with seven assists and five rebounds, Tia Harvey had 15 points on 7-of-11 shooting and Mesi Triplett added 10 points, four rebounds and two blocks. Jordan Holman came off the bench to score nine points and grab six rebounds while Annemarie Batista hit a pair of triples to help the offense. Little Rock made 34-of-62 field goals, far surpassing their previous high of 22 field goals earlier in the season.
Murray State (6-2) edged out the Trojans in each period, leading 28-19 after the first, 57-43 at the break and 73-58 as the game went to the fourth, where the Racers outscored Little Rock, 25-21. Katelyn Young led all scorers with 31 points and grabbed seven rebounds, Hannah McKay added 15 points and seven rebounds, and Ava Learn scored 10 off the bench for the Racers, who entered the game averaging a NCAA-best 94.4 points per game. The Racers converted 16-of-20 shots from the free throw line while Little Rock struggled, hitting just 8-of-22 (36 percent) from the line.