Ohio Valley Conference

CHARLESTON, Ill. - Eastern Illinois improved to 3-0 in the Ohio Valley Conference behind double figure nights by Macy McGlone and Alex Rouse as the Panthers beat Lindenwood 77-65 on Thursday night at Groniger Arena.
 
EIU shot 50 percent from the floor in the opening half and built what was a 18 point lead just three minutes into the third quarter.
 
Lindenwood shot well in the second half shooting 50 percent in the third quarter and 53 percent in the fourth including 5-of-11 from 3-point range in those two quarters.
 
The Lions trimmed the EIU lead to 58-53 with 7 minutes left in the game on a basket by Gracy Wernli.
 
EIU responded with points by both Rouse and McGlone to push the lead back to out ten where it remained the rest of the game.  Rouse hit a pair of free throws and her 3-pointer with 4:55 left extended the lead back to double figures.  Rouse had 19 points including an 8-of-9 night at the line.
 
McGlone finished with another double-double scoring 28 points with 12 rebounds.  Kiyley Flowers dished out nine assists for EIU.
 
Mya Skoff led Lindenwood with 13 points followed by Mykayla Cunningham with 11 off the bench.

LITTLE ROCK 66, UT MARTIN 61
MARTIN, Tenn. - The Little Rock women's basketball team couldn't find the lead until it counted Thursday night at UT-Martin. The Trojans took their first lead, 51-50, with 8:23 to play left in regulation. They took their final one with 2:25 remaining in the game. 
 
Trojans guard Faith Lee led all scorers with 26 points making 10 of 11 free throws and two big three-pointers in the fourth quarter. Jordan Holman added 14 points and Emerald Parker chipped in 10 points and seven rebounds.
 
Little Rock forced 20 turnovers and made 16 of its 19 free throws to preserve the win.
 
The Trojans trailed 50-46 heading into the final stanza. Lexi Rubel's two free throws gave UT Martin a 56-61 lead with 7:24 to play in the game. The Skyhawks led by five at the 5:56 mark, but that's when the Trojans made their run. 
 
Lee immediately hit her first three-pointer cutting the lead to 58-56 with 5:31 left. The UT Martin lead grew back to four with just over three minutes to play, but Lee struck again with another triple and the lead was 60-59.
 
A few minutes later, the Trojans took the lead for good on two Holman free throws. Little Rock held UT Martin scoreless for most of the final three minutes, which allowed them to not only keep the lead but extend it. 
 
Lee hit one of two free throws to give the Trojans a slim, 62-60, advantage. Moments later, Holman took a loose ball on the fast break all the way to the basket to extend the margin to 64-60 with 53 seconds remaining.
 
UTM cut it back to three, but Lee hit two free throws with 20 seconds left to ice the win. 
 
Anaya Brown led UT Martin with 16 points. Melbourne, Ark., native Kenley McCarn added 12 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists. 
 
Little Rock trailed 15-10 after one period and by as many as 11 in the second. However, a 9-0 run over the final 1:10 of the first half cut the UT Martin halftime lead to 32-31. 
 
The Trojans made the score 21-16 with a Mesi Triplett bucket in the paint with 6:03 to play. The Skyhawks moved the lead back to seven on the next possession. 
 
Triplett cut the cushion to three with 4:50 left with another short bucket, but then McCarn drilled a three-pointer to push the lead to six.
 
UT Martin looked primed to take control of the game, but the Trojans exploded offensively in the final 90 seconds. 
 
 
Annemarie Batista came off the bench in the second quarter and scored five quick points. Her three-pointer that rattled around the basket and in cut the lead to 32-29 with 30 seconds left.
 
Lee capped off the frantic run with an acrobatic drive to the basket with six seconds left that made the halftime score 32-31.

TENNESSEE TECH 83, SOUTHERN INDIANA 79
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - And the first round goes to the Golden Eagles.
 
Southern Indiana, the defending Ohio Valley Conference champions, came into the Hooper Eblen Center Thursday night looking to extend their early league lead to 4-0 and add another conference victory to their already impressive 22 wins in their last 23 outings.
 
Tennessee Tech wasn't going to let that happen. The title may be decided in Evansville, but the road to the OVC women's basketball championship continues to go through Cookeville as the Golden Eagles knocked off the defending league champs and preseason favorite 83-79.
 
The Golden Eagles improve to 8-4, 2-1 in league play. With USI's loss, Eastern Illinois becomes the conference's only undefeated team at 3-0, followed by the Screaming Eagles at 3-1. Tech, Lindenwood, Little Rock and Southeast Missouri are all tied at 2-1.
 
Tech got two 23-point performances to lead the way as Reghan Grimes picked up a double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds. Grimes also had four assists and three steals. Trevecca transfer Keeley Carter also scored 23 points as she continues to settle in the Golden Eagle lineup, knocking down all six of her 3-point tries with four rebounds, three assists, one block and two steals.
 
Peyton Carter added 11 points with a couple of big buckets late to hold off USI.
 
Triniti Ralston led the Screaming Eagles with 25 points as she was 9-for-16 from the field, including 4-for-4 from long range and 3-for-4 at the free-throw line with five rebounds and five assists. Vanessa Shafford was 9-for-14 from the field and 5-for-8 from 3-point range as she scored 23 points and completed the double-double with 12 rebounds. Meredith Raley scored 11 points on 5-for-8 shooting with four rebounds.
 
Tech took the attack out to the perimeter as the Golden Eagles knocked down 12 3-pointers in the contest among 27 long-range attempts. The Screaming Eagles outscored Tech 36-28 in the paint as the Golden Eagles tried to make things happen mid-range to the arc.
 
Both teams were whistled for a lot of fouls as the teams combined for 35 personal fouls – 18 against USI and 17 against the Golden Eagles. Tech went 13-for-21 at the line, the Screaming Eagles 10-for-19.
 
It was a close contest from start to finish with the Golden Eagles taking the first, third and fourth quarters, but Tech trailed only 2:30 in the contest. The Screaming Eagles had their largest lead with a five-point advantage at the 8:20 mark in the opening quarter, but Tech used an 11-0 run in the first quarter, then a run in the second quarter to build an 11-point lead with 5:07 left before the intermission.
 
The game was tied nine times, including twice in the fourth quarter. Grimes took control in the final stanza as she scored 11 points with Keeley Carter's six for the bulk of Tech's 26 points in the fourth.
 
Tech led by two points to open the final quarter, but Raley tied the game at 58-all with 8:15 remaining in the contest. Keeley Carter sank a second-chance 3-pointer. After Ali Saunders cut it back down to one point (61-60), the Golden Eagles surged back out to a six-point lead with 6:20 left, seven with 5:15 remaining, then the largest lead of the quarter at eight with 4:39 left.
 
Saunders tied the game once more at 74-all with 1:52 remaining in the game. Peyton Carter responded with a driving jump shot with the and-one to complete the 3-point play to make it 77-74. Chloe Larry sank a floating jumper, then Grimes hit the front end of a pair of free-throws to make it an 80-74 game with 39 seconds left.
 
Ralston hit a driving layup to cut the game back to four, then Larry sank both free throws on the other end to make it a six-point game with 28 seconds left. Turnovers swapped possession, then Shafford drained a 3-pointer with 13 seconds left to make it a one-possession game.
 
Forced to foul, USI sent Anna Walker to the line with five seconds remaining. The Tech grad missed the first toss, then hit the second for what became the final four-point margin. Saunders missed a 3-point try with two seconds left and Raley came down with the offensive board, but too late to make another shot attempt.

SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 75, TENNESSEE STATE 68
NASHVILLE - Southeast Missouri Women's Basketball (4-8, 2-1 OVC) picked up its first road victory of the season on Thursday evening with a 75-68 victory over Tennessee State (4-9, 0-3 OVC) from the Gentry Center. 
 
Guard Indiya Bowen recorded a career-high 25 points in the contest on 9-for-17 shooting, including 3-for-5 from three, and a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe. Bowen surpassed her previous record of 20 set in 2023-24. 
 
Bowen was one-of-three Redhawks to finish in double figures, Zoe Best chipped in 18 and Lexi McCully finished with an additional 13 points. As a team, SEMO finished 26-for-62 from the field (41.9) and 8-22 from three (36.4). 
 
SEMO had a stagger advantage at the free throw line, outshooting the home team by nearly 20-percent, 78.9 to 58.5. The Redhawks also turned it up on the defensive end converting 28 forced turnovers into 20 points. 
 
Zoe Best opened the scoring for both teams on the Redhawks' first possession of the contest with a knockdown three pointer in the left corner. Indiya Bowen scored the next basket as SEMO opened the contest on a 5-0 run. 
 
A 6-0 run from TSU would give them their first lead of the contest before the Lexi McCully took the ball coast-to-coast and floated it over the TSU defender to regain a one-point advantage. 
 
McCully's floater sparked a 13-2 run over the next two minutes of action as Best recorded a pair of free throws, another three pointer to make it 12-6 Redhawks. 
 
After a TSU layup from Lyric Cole, Ainaya Williams would score six points in a row to make it 18-8 SEMO with just over four minutes to play.
 
A McCully three-pointer would be the final basket of the opening quarter for SEMO, this one from the left wing to put SEMO up 10 (21-11).
 
TSU would close the quarter on a 5-0 run to cut it to 21-16 after the first quarter. 
 
Best would open the scoring again in the second quarter and was then followed by a McCully jumper to make it 25-16 to begin the second 10-minutes.
 
With 3:14 left before halftime, TSU would cut it to their smallest margin since the first quarter with an Erin Martin jumper to make it 30-27 Redhawks. 
 
That was the final basket for the Tigers as Indiya Bowen closed the half on a 10-0 run by herself, including a pair of three-pointers, over the final 2:53 before halftime. The Redhawks led 40-27 at the break. 
 
Best and Bowen led the Redhawks at half in scoring with 13 and 12 points, respectively. As a team, SEMO shot an impressive 47-percent from the field (15-32) and an even more impressive 50-percent (6-12) from three-point land. 
 
SEMO forced 18 first half TSU turnovers and turned them into 20 points. The Redhawks defense stifled TSU into shooting just 34.8-percent (8-23) from the field, and just 9.1-percent (1-11) from three. 
 
The third quarter allowed TSU back into the game with a 23-14 advantage in the third stanza thanks to a 61.5-percent to 28.6-percent shooting advantage. 
 
SEMO fell cold in the quarter, hitting just one three pointer (1-5), but managed to stay in front at the free throw line with a 5-for-6 performance in the third, compared to just 6-10 from TSU. 
 
At the end of the third quarter, the Redhawks led 54-52. Indiya Bowen opened the fourth quarter scoring with a three-pointer to extend SEMO's lead back out to five and from there the Redhawks controlled the rest of the way.

WESTERN ILLINOIS 75, SIUE 48
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Western Illinois Women's Basketball delivered a commanding performance against SIUE in their Ohio Valley Conference matchup on Thursday night, securing a decisive 75-48 victory at the First Community Arena in Edwardsville, Illinois. The Leathernecks improved their record to 7-5 overall and 1-2 in conference play, while SIUE fell to 2-10 and 0-3 in the OVC.

The game opened with a slow start for both teams, but WIU found their rhythm in the second quarter, outscoring SIUE 17-8 to take a commanding 29-17 halftime lead. The Leathernecks maintained their dominance in the second half, particularly in the third quarter, where they tallied 24 points, showcasing efficient shooting and strong defensive plays.

Raegan McCowan recorded her second-straight double-double finishing with a game-high 22 points and 12 rebounds. McCowan's interior presence and clutch scoring were instrumental in breaking down SIUE's defense. Addi Brownfield also made significant contributions, adding 12 points and seven rebounds. Allie Meadows chipped in with 10 points and four assists, while Mia Nicastro anchored the defense with two blocks and eight rebounds.

The Leathernecks ability to share the ball was evident in their 18 assists, a testament to their ball movement and unselfishness. They also capitalized on SIUE's 18 turnovers, converting them into 22 points. The WIU bench contributed 16 points, with Kennedy Flanagan adding 8 points and Madison Davis chipping in 6 points.

WIU also held SIUE to just 26.6% from the field. Ava Gugliuzza led the Cougars with 13 points, including two three-pointers, while Halle Smith added 10 points. Despite their efforts, the Cougars were unable to match WIU's pace or counter their defensive intensity.

Rebounding proved to be a key factor in the game, with WIU outrebounding SIUE 45-40. The Leathernecks' dominance on the defensive boards limited SIUE's second-chance opportunities and helped establish their transition game, leading to 19 fast-break points. The Leathernecks' efficient shooting, especially from the free-throw line (82.6%), and their ability to control the paint with 34 points in the paint proved decisive.