Ohio Valley Conference

MOREHEAD, Ky. - Morehead State closed out the game with a 9-0 run and outlasted Lindenwood 69-63 Saturday in Johnson Arena in a game that featured 11 ties and 11 lead changes to run their winning streak to five straight games.
 
Lindenwood (16-7, 8-4 OVC) took a 63-30 lead on a Mya Skoff three-point play off a layup and free throw with 2:31 to play. Morehead State responded with their game-ending run kicked off by a Kate Dike turnaround in the lane. Josefine Enander drilled her fifth three-pointer in the game, a jumper from deep in the corner. Landon Forbes closed out the game with four free throws.  
 
Morehead State (14-9, 9-3 OVC) was paced by Laura Toffali with 16 points, Enander finished with 15 points on five of six from three-point range. Marie Sepp added 11 points.  Dike finished with 10 points. Sepp and Forbes both dished out six assists to tie for game honors.
 
Morehead State countered a six-point Lindenwood run to open the game with an 8-0 run of their own and led 13-9 at the end of the first quarter. Lindenwood heated up in the second period shooting 10 of 16 (63%) from the floor and took a 32-29 lead in the intermission.
 
It was Morehead State's turn to heat up out of the halftime break. Morehead State shot 62% 8-13 from the field in the quarter. The Eagles used a 10-0 run capped by a Toffali driving layup at the 1:24 mark to push ahead 50-42. MSU hit five of last six shots to close out the quarter and led 50-46 heading into the final ten minutes.
 
Lindenwood used a 9-3 run to draw even at 53-53 at the 7:55 mark. After a five-point Morehead State run, the Lions ran off seven straight points capped by Skoff's three-point play for LU's final points of the afternoon.
 
The Lions were led by Aleshia Jones with 17 points. Brooke Coffey notched a double-double with 16 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Ellie Bruggemann finished with 16 points and Gracie Kelsey pulled down 10 rebounds.

TENNESSEE TECH 72, LITTLE ROCK 47
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Mired in their losing streak, the Tennessee Tech women's basketball coaches saw Saturday's game as a chance to shake things up to try to revitalize the lineup.

Oh, boy, did it pay off.

Amaya Thomas collected her first double-double with the Golden Eagles as she finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds on 5-for-10 shooting, including a pair of 3-pointers and a 2-for-2 day at the line, while also collecting a steal, to help lead Tech to a decisive 72-47 victory over Little Rock.

The win snaps a seven-game losing streak and keeps the Golden Eagles from going 0-for-January as Tech improves to 11-9 overall and 4-7 in the Ohio Valley Conference.

Chloe Larry led all scorers with 17 points, two rebounds, five assists and two steals, while Reagan Hurst had 12 points and LaReesha Cawthorn with 10 points and 10 boards for her fifth double-double of her freshman campaign.

Little Rock (10-11, 6-5 OVC) did not have a double-digit scorer in the game as Jordan Holman was held to eight points – well short of her season average of 17.2. Destinee Salgado also had eight points, while Mya Cotto and Taelor Coxford each had seven.

The biggest number on the scoresheet came on the rebounding side as the Golden Eagles dominated the glass, pulling down 53 rebounds to Little Rock's 34. While both teams had nine second-chance points, the rebounding effort kept the Trojans off the board.

In a reverse of the January 1 meeting, it was Tech that led in paint points, scoring 32 inside to Little Rock's 14. The Trojans led that 40-12 in the earlier meeting at Jack Stephens Arena. The Golden Eagles were also able to tamper down their turnovers, losing 13 in all after seeing nine go away in the first half.

In a moment of defense leading to offense, the Golden Eagles stepped up and held Little Rock to 18.8-percent shooting in both the second and third quarters – holding the Trojans scoreless for over eight consecutive minutes in that span. The Golden Eagles turned that into a 14-0 run, outscoring the visitors 16-8 in the second and 20-9 in the third.

Tech then scored 27 points in the fourth quarter to seal the deal on the contest, hitting 63.3 percent from the field and 85.7 at the line in the final 10 minutes, climbing the Golden Eagle advantage to its peak at 25 with eight seconds to go.

As the second half of the OVC race dawns, the Golden Eagles will look to keep it going on Monday as they travel to Tennessee State at 5 PM to make up the postponed game earlier in the week.

SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 71, EASTERN ILLINOIS 56
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Southeast Missouri Women's Basketball (8-13, 4-8 OVC) defeated Eastern Illinois (3-20, 2-10 OVC), 71-56, at Groniger Arena, dominating with 46 points in the paint on Saturday afternoon. 

Eastern Illinois started strong with a 6-0 run, featuring two layups by Sydney-James Desroches. Raissa Nsabua responded for the Redhawks, contributing a layup and jumper to bring them within two points. Nsabua would go on to have a perfect shooting night, going 6-6 from the field. Kearra Jones hit a 3-pointer, shifting momentum and giving the Redhawks a 9-6 lead. By the end of the quarter, the Redhawks held an 18-8 advantage.

Carmen Taylor scored a layup assisted by Lexi McCully at 8:17, starting a strong performance for the Redhawks. Madison Ayers hit a fast-break 3-pointer, extending the lead to 13 points at 6:00. McCully converted two free throws at 5:26, pushing the Redhawks further ahead. Jones closed the quarter with a jumper at 0:30, sealing a 17–8 scoring advantage for the period.

Ella Lune opened the quarter with a layup, assisted by Meioshe Mason, boosting Eastern Illinois. Nsabua responded for the Redhawks with consecutive jumpers, extending their lead. She also went 2-4 at the free throw line, contributing to her total of 14 points. Ava Stoller added a three-pointer for Eastern Illinois to narrow the margin midway through the quarter. The Redhawks held a 53–35 advantage at the end of the third quarter.

McCully scored early with a layup at 9:33, boosting the Redhawks' lead. Eastern Illinois responded with a 3-pointer from Adriana Arroyo at 8:54. Taylor hit a 3-pointer at 5:11 to extend the visitors' lead. The Redhawks secured the 71–56 victory at the final buzzer.

WESTERN ILLINOIS 80, UT MARTIN 54
MACOMB, Ill. - Western Illinois women's basketball turned in a dominant performance Saturday afternoon, rolling past UT Martin, 80–54, inside Western Hall. With the win, the Leathernecks improved to 18-3 overall and 10-2 in Ohio Valley Conference play.

WIU set the tone early and never looked back. After a brief back-and-forth start, Western used a strong first-quarter push to build a 23–13 lead, fueled by interior scoring and active defense. The Leathernecks kept their foot on the gas in the second quarter, shooting 60 percent from the field in the period and knocking down four three-pointers to take a commanding 47–27 advantage into halftime.

Mia Nicastro led the charge with a game-high 22 points on 10-of-20 shooting while adding nine rebounds, a block, and a steal. Kaylen Reed and Allie Meadows each added 12 points, with Meadows connecting on four shots from beyond the arc. Addi Brownfield filled the stat sheet with 11 points, six rebounds, and three assists, while Mallory Shetley added 10 points and three assists of her own.

Western Illinois shot an efficient 50.8 percent from the floor and 38.1 percent from three-point range, while also holding a 32–25 edge on the boards. The Leathernecks controlled the paint with 38 points inside and forced key stops that limited UT Martin to just 37.3 percent shooting.

UT Martin was led by Kenley McCarn's 12 points, with Sidni Middleton and Grace Billington each adding 11.

WIU continued to extend its lead throughout the third quarter, pushing the margin past 20 behind balanced scoring and strong ball movement. The Leathernecks maintained control in the fourth, emptying the bench late as they closed out the 26-point conference win on their home floor.

SOUTHERN INDIANA 67, SIUE 46
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - University of Southern Indiana Women's Basketball posted a big 67-46 victory against Southern Illinois University Edwardsville on Homecoming night at Liberty Arena on Saturday, closing out a four-game homestand in front of many USI Women's Basketball alumni in attendance.
 
With the win, USI Women's Basketball (15-6, 9-3 OVC) snapped a brief two-game skid and completed a regular-season series sweep of SIUE (10-12, 3-9 OVC). USI held SIUE to below 60 points in both regular-season wins this season, and Saturday was USI's eighth win this season holding an opponent to below 50 points.
 
Strong defense and a balanced attack highlighted USI's win on Saturday. Offensively, six Screaming Eagles scored 10 or more points, which has not happened in over a year since November 2024. Senior guard Ali Saunders led the way with 12 points, and junior forward Chloe Gannon tallied 11 points. Junior forward Amiyah Buchanan, junior guard Sophia Loden, junior guard Shannon Blacher, and redshirt sophomore guard Kylee Dennis each recorded 10 points. As a team, USI shot just over 40 percent (24-59) overall with six three-pointers and went 13-17 for over 76 percent at the free-throw line.
 
Defensively, the Eagles forced 21 turnovers, which led to 17 USI points, including 11 steals for USI. The Screaming Eagles held SIUE to below 30 percent (16-55) shooting from the floor with five threes. The Cougars were only 9-18 for 50 percent at the charity stripe. SIUE won the rebounding battle 45-37.
 
USI surged out to a quick 6-0 lead to open the contest, as Buchanan tallied four of the first six points. With the Screaming Eagles still up by six past the halfway point of the first quarter, SIUE started to find some rhythm and knock down shots. The game was tied at 15 through the first 10 minutes of action.
 
The Screaming Eagles flipped a switch to start the second quarter, building a 17-0 run. Gannon scored seven points in the early part of the run, while Loden added on by draining a pair of three-pointers. A layup by Buchanan finished off the run, as USI doubled up the Cougars, 30-15, with under five minutes left in the first half. The Eagles went into halftime ahead by 15, 36-21.
 
SIUE chipped away at USI's lead to start the second half, cutting the Screaming Eagles' advantage down to 12, 41-29, just past the seven-minute mark of the third quarter. However, Dennis provided a boost off the bench and drained a triple to put USI's lead back up to 15. A couple of minutes later, Dennis drilled another trey to reach 10 points in the contest. The Eagles led 54-37 heading into the fourth quarter.
 
Two minutes into the fourth period, USI's lead reached 20 points thanks to inside looks by Buchanan and Gannon. The Eagles kept the momentum a little over a minute later with a three-point play by Loden and then a fast-break layup by Blacher, putting five Screaming Eagles in double figures for the game. The Screaming Eagles' defense continued to limit SIUE, while USI's lead continued to grow. Buchanan became the sixth Screaming Eagle to reach 10 points after hitting a jumper that gave USI a 67-41 lead with three minutes to go, as USI closed out the victory.
 
Following Saturday's results around the Ohio Valley Conference, the Screaming Eagles moved into a tie for second place in the conference standings alongside Morehead State University with a 9-3 conference record and one game back of league-leading Western Illinois University.