SATURDAY'S SCORES
@ETSU 53,
Tennessee Tech 48
@Eastern Illinois 66, Loyola Chicago 60
@Southern Indiana 75, Northern Kentucky 73
ETSU 53, TENNESSEE TECH 48
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. - Tennessee Tech led most of the way, but just couldn’t shake host East Tennessee State as the Bucs pulled ahead late and took a 53-48 victory over the Golden Eagles on Saturday.
Tech (4-2) returns to action on Tuesday as it heads down to Birmingham to take on Samford.
Peyton Carter, within an hour of her hometown of Abingdon, Va., led the Golden Eagles in scoring with 14 points as she was 5-for-9 from the field with a 4-for-7 day behind the arc. Carter also led the team in steals with three.
Reghan Grimes also scored in double figures, with 12 points, including a 4-for-5 effort at the free-throw line. Grimes also had seven rebounds, two assists and two steals. True freshman Chloe Larry also chipped in 10 points with four rebounds and five assists.
While graduate Anna Walker was held off from reaching the 1,000-point milestone against the Bucs, the veteran did pull down 13 boards – including three on the offensive side of the glass – as the Golden Eagles collected 33 total caroms.
Braylyn Milton led ETSU (2-4) with 20 points as she was 8-for-14 from the field with four 3-pointers and three steals. Meghan Downing led the team on the boards with eight rebounds, while Courtney Moore also scored in double-digits with 10 points.
The Golden Eagles were saddled with 20 turnovers – 10 in the third quarter alone – leading to 20 points off of giveaways. The 10 third-quarter takeaways led to 13 ETSU points out of the 15 scored in the period as the Bucs outscored Tech 15-11.
The seven-point advantage the Golden Eagles enjoyed late in the second quarter was the largest in the game, buoyed by an 8-0 scoring run. Tech led the game for 24:35 of the full 40, but the lead swapped possession 13 times with five ties.
ETSU outscored Tech 15-14 in the opening period after the Golden Eagles scored the first six points of the contest. The Bucs powered back, tying the game at 12 with a pull-up jumper with 1:11 left in the quarter. Taris Thornton responded with a fast break jumper off a turnover to retake the lead, only for ETSU to climb back on top with a free throw, followed by a layup off a steal for Milton.
Tech held ETSU to just six points in the second quarter as the Bucs were 2-for-13 from the field and 1-for-7 from 3-point range. The drought allowed the Golden Eagles to take a 27-21 halftime lead. However, with the turnovers hampering the effort, ETSU was able to outscore Tech 15-11 to make it a 38-36 Golden Eagle lead at the end of the third quarter.
Tech’s last lead game with 3:53 remaining in the game as Carter drained a 3-pointer off of Thornton’s offensive board to make it 46-44, but the Bucs outscored the Golden Eagles 9-2 to finish the game.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 66, LOYOLA CHICAGO 60
CHARLESTON, Ill. - The Eastern Illinois women's basketball (1-4, OVC 0-0) team secured their first victory of the 2024 season 66-60 in their home opener against Loyola Chicago (4-2, A10 0-0) at Groniger Arena. The Panthers now tie the all-time series record against the Ramblers at 11 wins a piece.
EIU came out of the gates with momentum, knocking down seven of their ten shots from the field while connecting with their only three-point attempt in the opening quarter. Eastern Illinois was able to hold the Ramblers to 42 percent shooting as the contest entered the first break 15-11 in favor of the Panthers.
The second quarter belonged to Loyola, outscoring EIU 14-7 as the Panthers struggled to find a bucket, finishing one for nine. The Loyola defense stood strong as the Ramblers headed into halftime with a 25-23 lead.
Loyola took control of the third period, recording a 67 percent shooting percentage while connecting on three of their six attempts from three-point land. The Ramblers jumped out to a 44-34 lead before the Panthers were able to cut it to seven points heading into the final frame.
The final quarter was all EIU, as they outscored Loyola 28-16 in the fourth. The Panthers went on a 15-4 run through seven minutes of action to push themselves ahead and take the lead. EIU knocked down six free throws in the final 41 seconds to secure the victory.
Macy McGlone was the contest's leading scorer, recording a double-double with 28 points and 14 rebounds in 38 minutes of action. Tiny Lewis also chipped in with double digits, logging 11 points while shooting 50 percent from behind the arc. Alex Rouse contributed to the EIU offense as well, scoring eight points and dishing out five assists in her 38 minutes on the floor.
The Ramblers had two scorers in double digits as Alex Finney led Loyola with 14 points while Rosalie Mercille chipped in with 11.
SOUTHERN INDIANA 75, NORTHERN KENTUCKY 73
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - University of Southern Indiana Women's Basketball renewed an old rivalry against Northern Kentucky University on Saturday afternoon, as the two sides battled to a nail-biting finish with the Screaming Eagles collecting a 75-73 victory at Liberty Arena, home the Screaming Eagles.
With the win, Southern Indiana improved to 5-1 this season after a fourth consecutive victory and a 3-0 homestand. Northern Kentucky dropped to 2-4 after facing its third reigning conference champion in four games.
The two programs used to be former Division II rivals in the Great Lakes Valley Conference, and Saturday was the first meeting between USI and Northern Kentucky as Division I foes and the first clash since 2011-12. Just like the series history in the GLVC, USI and Northern Kentucky went down to the wire on Saturday.
Southern Indiana grabbed a 7-2 lead two minutes into the contest thanks to five early points from senior guard Vanessa Shafford. Northern Kentucky hit two consecutive threes to go in front, but Shafford answered with a determined drive to the basket to give USI a one-point lead, 9-8, at the midway point of the first quarter. USI doubled up Northern Kentucky, 16-8, with a 9-0 run, but a scoring drought in the last 2:40 of the opening period led to a 16-11 advantage for the Screaming Eagles through the first 10 minutes of action.
After NKU cut USI's lead down to two, 18-16, quickly in the second quarter, Shafford knocked down a triple to reach double digits and halt the Norse's momentum. Five straight points from junior guard Ali Saunders helped increase the Eagles' lead up to 10 by the six-minute mark of the second. Northern Kentucky remained within striking distance off a couple of made three-pointers in the middle of the quarter. Strong play late in the first half from sophomore forward Chloe Gannon, including a pair of inside baskets, kept the Eagles ahead going into halftime, 35-27.
Southern Indiana's defense forced Northern Kentucky into challenging shots to begin the second half, leading to good transition opportunities for USI. Following a stretch with multiple scorers for the Screaming Eagles, including a run by Saunders and graduate forward Meredith Raley, Shafford canned a three-point shot with 3:18 left in the third to give the Eagles their largest lead of the game, 53-34. Shafford reached the 20-point plateau by the end of the third, as USI led 59-43 going to the fourth quarter.
While Southern Indiana looked to maintain its double-digit margin, Northern Kentucky chipped away in the fourth quarter. The Norse climbed back within nine, 65-56, with 5:26 remaining in regulation. Following a 14-2 run, NKU pulled within one possession with 1:40 left, 69-66. The 19-point advantage for USI dwindled, as the Norse had not been within one possession since the early portion of the second quarter. After a big three-point play from graduate forward Madi Webb, Northern Kentucky did not go quietly by converting a three and a layup to make it a one-point ballgame with USI still up, 72-71, and 22 seconds on the clock. Made free throws helped the Eagles to a two-point lead, 75-73, with six seconds remaining before a foul on a three-point shot sent the Norse to the line for three attempts. Northern Kentucky missed all three, as Southern Indiana held on for the two-point victory.
For the game, USI shot for 44 percent (30-68) overall with six made threes. The Screaming Eagles were 9-14 for 64 percent at the free-throw line. USI also won the battle on the glass, 41-36. Shafford led all scorers with 24 points, two off her career high, on 9-15 shooting and four made treys with six rebounds and five steals. Saunders posted 15 points with seven rebounds, five assists, and four steals. Raley tallied 10 points and eight boards.
Northern Kentucky was 28-60 for nearly 47 percent shooting from the field with nine three-pointers. The Norse went 8-16 at the charity stripe. Two players reached double figures for the Norse with freshman guard Kamora Morgan charting 21 points.