Ohio Valley Conference

MOREHEAD, Ky. - The Morehead State women's basketball team opened their 2024-25 campaign with a 92-80 victory over Asbury University Monday night in Johnson Arena. 

Sophomore guard Kate Novik led all scorers with a career-high 25 points, hitting nine of 13 from the floor, including one of two from three-point range.  She also hit six of the seven free throws she attempted. Novik also swiped a career-high seven steals to go along with seven rebounds.  

Freshman Chrishawn Coleman added 16 for Morehead State in her collegiate debut with four steals and three rebounds.

Harley Paynter and Michelle Ugwah added 13 points apiece. Kuryn Brunson tossed in 11 points and hauled in 10 rebounds for her first double-double in her Morehead State career. 

The Eagles held Asbury to just 12 points in the first quarter leading 25-12 after the first stanza.

After trailing 49-31 at the half, Asbury responded by outscoring the Eagles 32-22 in the third quarter.

Asbury placed four players in double figures, led by sophomore Camryn Poole with 21 points. Haleigh Releford tossed in 14. Sophomore Ma'Kiya West added 12 points. Senior Camry Preston chipped in 11 and led Asbury with seven rebounds.

TENNESSEE STATE 72, CUMBERLAND 62
NASHVILLE - Erin Martin and XaiOnna Whitfield both recorded double-doubles to help lead the Tennessee State women's basketball team past Cumberland 72-62 in the season opener on Monday.

The Tigers (1-0) had five players score in double figures, led by Somah Kamara, who had 19 points and six rebounds. Saniah Parker added 16 points, six rebounds and three steals and Martin helped out with a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

The Tennessee State offense made hay from deep, making eight threes on 30 attempts. Parker hit four treys for the Tigers in the contest.

Tennessee State forced 24 turnovers while committing 22 themselves in Monday's game. The Tigers turned those takeaways into 24 points on the offensive end of the floor. Lyric Cole's three steals led the way for Tennessee State.

After falling behind 13-6, Tennessee State went on a 5-0 run with 3:06 left in the first quarter, culminating in a bucket from Xaionna Whitfield, to narrow its deficit to 13-11, a score that would hold for the rest of the period.

Tennessee State then started off the second quarter by going on a 5-0 run, highlighted by a bucket from Parker, to take a 16-13 lead. The Tigers proceeded to tack on one point to that lead and enjoyed a 35-31 advantage heading into halftime. Tennessee State dominated in the paint, scoring 14 of its 24 points close to the basket.

Tennessee State continued to preserve its halftime lead before going on a 5-0 run, punctuated by a three from Xaionna Whitfield, to expand its lead further to 47-40 with 3:59 to go in the third. The Tigers held onto that lead for the rest of the frame and entered the fourth quarter with a 51-44 edge. Tennessee State played well near the basket, scoring 12 of its 16 points in the paint.

Tennessee State kept its lead intact before going on a 14-0 run, finished off by Parker's three, to grow the lead to 72-54 with 1:52 to go in the contest. The narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Tigers still cruised the rest of the way for the 72-62 win. Tennessee State fired away from deep in the quarter, knocking down five shots to account for 15 of its 21 points.

MISSOURI-ST. LOUIS 60, SIUE 54
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - The Cougars opened their season at First Community Arena against Missouri-St. Louis. SIUE led the 26-21 at the break, before the Tritons took the game 60-54.
 
Brianna Wooldridge had 12 total points while Emiyah Cobb followed with 10 total points and three blocks.
 
SIUE connected on 30 percent (18/60) of its shots from the field. The Cougars scored 73 percent (15/22) of their free throws and scored 29 points off the bench.
 
UMSL was lead by Katie Hamill (15 points) , Alex Wolff (11 points) and Mara Rieder (11 points).

SOUTHERN INDIANA 100, BRESCIA 49
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - Recap coming soon.

NORTH ALABAMA 66, UT MARTIN 63
MARTIN, Tenn. - The UT Martin women's basketball team used three late 3-pointers to cut an eight-point deficit with under two minutes to play to just one Monday night at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center Monday evening. However, the rally fell short as North Alabama escaped Martin, with a 66-63 win in the season opener for both teams.

Shae Littleford and Kenley McCarn used back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the Lions' eight-point lead to just two with just over a minute to play. After two free throws by North Alabama's India Howard, pushed the lead back out to four, McCarn trimmed the lead to only one with another three with just 15 seconds to play.

Jazzy Klinge made two free throws with two seconds left in the game, giving the Skyhawks the ball back and one last shot at tying the game. Ultimately, UT Martin could not get a shot off and fell, to the visiting Lions, 66-63.

Anaya Brown led the Skyhawks in both scoring and rebounding in the game, with 16 and five, respectively. McCarn added 15 to the tally, while Littleford had 11 and Daejah Richmond chipped in with 10.

TENNESSEE TECH 82, EMORY & HENRY 54
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Tennessee Tech started the new basketball season on a high note as the Golden Eagle women took an 82-54 victory over Emory & Henry on Monday night.

The Golden Eagles (1-0) got offensive production from every player on the roster as Tech finished the game shooting 45.6 from the field, despite the defensive presence from the visiting Wasps.

True freshman Chloe Larry led the Golden Eagles in scoring with 17 points, while Reagan Grimes narrowly missed a double-double with 16 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Newcomer Taris Thornton also had 16 points and two blocks. Peyton Carter scored 11 points and a team-best six assists.

Emory & Henry played the game as an exhibition and its statistics will not count in its regular season. Lyndie Ramsey led the team with 19 points, while Hannah Spainhour added 12 points and seven rebounds.

Tech controlled the glass, outrebounding the Wasps 44-33 with the Golden Eagles collecting 17 offensive boards, including four for Anna Walker, which accounted for 20 second-chance points. The defense also forced 25 turnovers, including three steals for Larry, with the Golden Eagles turning them into 21 points.

The Golden Eagles never trailed in the contest, outscoring the Wasps 19-11 in the first quarter, then extended the lead to 38-24 at the intermission. Tech edged E&H 21-20 in the third, but the Golden Eagles surged once more in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Wasps 23-10 in the final 10 minutes.

In the fourth quarter, Tech shot 53.3 percent from the field, while holding E&H to a 2-for-13 performance or 15.4 percent.

Emory & Henry shot 32.7 percent for the game, including 8-for-26 from long range, while also shooting 10-for-13 at the free-throw line.

The Golden Eagles return to action Thursday as they hit the road for the first time for a 5 p.m. contest at Chattanooga. Tech will return home Sunday for a 6 p.m. game against North Alabama.