THURSDAY'S SCORES
Tennessee Tech 61, @Morehead State 58
@Lindenwood 54, UT Martin 49
@Western Illinois 84, Little Rock 73
@SIUE 69, Southeast Missouri 61
@Southern Indiana 81, Tennessee State 55
TENNESSEE TECH 61, MOREHEAD STATE 58
MOREHEAD, Ky. - Thursday night felt like it was a late-round game in the Ohio Valley Conference Basketball Championships. The bout between Tennessee Tech and Morehead State had drama, excitement and a photo finish. It had March emotion in February.
In the end, Tennessee Tech prevailed 61-58. It wasn't pretty. It was survive and advance basketball at its finest.
The Golden Eagles improve to 14-10 overall, 7-8 in the OVC, while Morehead State falls to 15-11 overall, 10-5 in the league. The host Eagles fall out of the logjam in second into a solo hold on fourth place, while Western Illinois (13-3), Lindenwood (11-4) and Southern Indiana (11-4) continue to stand in the top three spots. Tech now sits three games back of a potential bye in the conference tournament with five games remaining.
The first two quarters were as even as they could be. Tech won the first stanza, outscoring Morehead 14-13. The Eagles used a seven-point run in the second, but it wasn't enough as the Golden Eagles extended their slim margin 15-12 for a 29-25 halftime lead.
Tech took a 9-0 run to open the third quarter to get its largest lead of the game of 13 points, but Morehead State came back, chipping away from the Golden Eagles' new cushion as Tech outscored the hosts 23-18.
The fourth quarter belonged to Morehead State. The Eagles outscored Tech 15-9, but it wasn't enough to reclaim the lead as the Golden Eagles held on.
With 4:08 left, MSU cut it back down to two points – 54-52 Tech – with a Landon Forbes 3-pointer, but Reghan Grimes sank a layup to get back out by four with 3:49 remaining. However, that was the last field goal Tech hit in the game.
Violet McNece hit the back end of two free throws to get Morehead back within three at 2:18, then neither team scored for almost two minutes. Tech turned the ball over twice – including a challenged call. Morehead lost the ball three times in that span.
The scoring drought ended as Chloe Larry sank a crucial pair of free throws with 22 seconds remaining to put the Golden Eagles back up 58-53. McNece answered with a 3-pointer on the opposite end to cut it back to two points with 17 seconds left.
Needing to foul, MSU tapped Larry to send her to the line. She missed the first, then found the composure to knock down the second to reclaim the 59-56 lead. Grimes blocked a potential game-tying shot with 12 seconds left, but the Eagles forced a turnover. McNece tried again, but was forced inside for a layup – again a one-point Tech lead with six seconds left.
Anja Ekstrom fouled Grimes to put her at the line. The Tech senior drained both to put the Golden Eagles back up by three.
Morehead State had one last shot at it after a foul on Larry allowed the Eagles to move the ball and get one last 3-point try for Forbes, but the ball was off the mark, securing the Tech victory.
Reagan Hurst led Tech in scoring with 21 points – including 14 points in the third quarter alone with three 3-pointers and 5-for-6 at the line in the period. She ended the game with four 3-pointers.
Grimes finished the game with a double-double as she scored 13 points and pulled down 12 rebounds. She went 7-for-7 at the stripe, while also collecting four assists, three steals and a block.
Forbes led Morehead State with 18 points, while Katie Dike and McNece each had 11.
Both teams shot a shade over 37 percent from the field, but Tech ended the night shooting 90 percent from the line, hitting 18 of 20 charity tosses.
LINDENWOOD 54, UT MARTIN 49
ST. CHARLES, Mo. - The Lindenwood women's basketball team (19-7, 11-4 OVC) grinded out a 54-49 win over UT Martin (13-11, 9-6 OVC on Thursday night from Hyland Arena in St. Charles, Mo.
UT Martin started the game on a 7-0 run before an Aleshia Jones three put an end to the spurt. The Skyhawks continued to gain separation throughout the opening frame and led 17-9 after one.
Martin scored the first bucket of the second quarter, but the Lions began to settle in and went on a 13-2 run, capped off by a Mya Skoff and-one to put Lindenwood in front 22-21 with 6:43 to go in the half. A few minutes later, Ellie Brueggemann drilled a three to give the Black and Gold its largest lead at 29-24. The Skyhawks scored the final four points of the second and Lindenwood led 29-28 at the break. Skoff and Jones had seven points apiece, followed by Brueggemann with six.
Skoff hit a pair of threes early in the third to put the Lions in front 35-31. Lindenwood locked in defensively coming out of the locker room, holding the Skyhawks to 2-of-15 shooting from the field and five points overall. Up 39-33 late in the quarter, Alyssa Nielsen found Ellie Brueggemann, cutting to the basket who finished it off and converted from the free throw line to extend the lead to 42-33 after 30 minutes. Overall, Lindenwood got 16 points off of Skyhawk turnovers in the period.
Lindenwood extended the lead to double digits after a three from Brueggemann put them up 45-33. A few possessions later, Brooke Coffey hit another three to maintain the double digit lead a 48-37. However, UT Martin would not go away responding with a 10-0 run that cut the deficit to one with 2:51 to go. On the ensuing possession, Brueggemann knocked down a three from the wing, making the score 51-47. The Lions clamped down on the defensive end and eventually sealed the win with a jumper from Valerie Norwood. The Black and Gold would go on to win 54-49.
WESTERN ILLINOIS 84, LITTLE ROCK 73
MACOMB, Ill. - The Western Illinois women's basketball team used a dominant fourth quarter to secure an 84-73 victory over Little Rock on Thursday evening at Western Hall.
With the win, the Leathernecks improved to 21-4 overall and 13-3 in conference play, while Little Rock fell to 12-13 (8-7).
Western Illinois came out strong, jumping to a 24-13 lead after the first quarter. The Leathernecks shot 52.9 percent from the field in the opening frame and capitalized on turnovers, turning defense into early offense. Addi Brownfield and Kaylen Reed combined for 13 first-quarter points to help set the tone.
WIU carried that momentum into the second quarter, pushing its lead to as many as 13 points. Mia Nicastro began to find her rhythm offensively, finishing the first half with 13 points as the Leathernecks took a 46-36 advantage into the break.
Little Rock responded in the third quarter, outscoring Western Illinois 21-9. The Trojans caught fire from beyond the arc and used a late surge to take a 57-55 lead heading into the final period, marking just the second lead change of the contest.
Facing its first deficit since the opening minutes, Western Illinois answered powerfully. The Leathernecks erupted for 29 fourth-quarter points while holding Little Rock to 16. Nicastro took over down the stretch, finishing with a game-high 37 points on 11-of-20 shooting and a perfect 13-of-13 mark from the free throw line. She added six rebounds and three blocks in a complete performance.
Brownfield added 17 points and seven rebounds, while Reed chipped in 15 points. Allie Meadows contributed seven points and three rebounds, and Madison Davis provided a spark with eight points off the bench.
As a team, Western Illinois shot 50.9 percent from the field and an impressive 96 percent (24-of-25) from the free throw line. The Leathernecks also forced 10 steals and scored 20 points off turnovers.
SIUE 69, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 61
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - SIUE women's basketball had a big win at First Community Arena defeating Southeast Missouri 69-61 Thursday night.
The Cougars improve to 11-14 overall and 4-11 in Ohio Valley Conference play while the Redhawks fall to 8-16 overall and 4-11 in OVC play. The teams are now tied for eighth place in the OVC.
Ava Gugliuzza opened the scoring for SIUE early in the first quarter with a layup. The Cougars had a 9-0 run over the last 4:42 of the first quarter to give them a 13-6 lead.
SIUE kept their lead throughout the second quarter, gaining momentum in the final 54 seconds after Adriana Blazquez found Rory Conboy's hands under the hoop, for a layup giving the Cougars a seven-point lead. SEMO responded with a layup of their own but still trailed the Cougars 32-27 going into halftime.
Kiyoko Proctor started the third quarter with a pair of free throws that sparked a 10-0 run for SIUE. Proctor hit a three-pointer at the end of the run giving the Cougars a 42-30 run. SEMO's Ainaya Williams had a layup ending the Cougars run and a Redhawks scoring drought over the last 5:07. Gugliuzza ended the quarter with a three pointer of her own helping build the Cougars lead (51-36).
Syanne Mohamed brought energy to the fourth quarter with a layup right at the start, giving SIUE its largest lead of the game (53-36). SEMO responded with an 8-0 run that cut into the lead, but it wasn't enough. Macy Silvey ended the game with a pair of free throws to help secure the Cougars win.
The Cougars had their third game of the season with five players scoring in double digits. Kiyoko Proctor had her 10th game of the season as the scoring leader for SIUE with 18 points, shooting 6-for-12 from the field, she also led the team with five assists. Syanne Mohamed had her third double-double of her career with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Macy Silvey also had 12 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Lauren Miller put up 15 points and had five rebounds, while Ava Gugliuzza had 10 points.
SOUTHERN INDIANA 81, TENNESSEE STATE 55
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - University of Southern Indiana Women's Basketball scored 48 second-half points at Liberty Arena on Thursday night to soar past Tennessee State University, 81-55, in USI's annual Play4Kay pink game.
In what was a tight, physical game on Thursday night, the Screaming Eagles (17-7, 11-4 OVC) utilized a strong second-half surge to pull away from the Tigers (4-20, 3-12 OVC) and pick up a second straight Ohio Valley Conference victory. USI outscored Tennessee State 48-27 in the second half after a 33-28 first half.
With Thursday's triumph to kick off the final regular-season homestand for the Screaming Eagles, USI kept pace in the OVC standings by remaining tied for second place alongside Lindenwood University and a game and a half back of first-place Western Illinois University going into Saturday's slate.
The Screaming Eagles had four players score in double figures on Thursday. Senior guard Ali Saunders led the way with a game-high 19 points while adding four rebounds, six assists, and four steals. Junior forward Chloe Gannon tallied 16 points with seven boards, and junior guard Sophia Loden recorded 15 points in the contest. Junior forward Amiyah Buchanan posted her second consecutive double-double and third of the season with 10 points and a career-best 13 rebounds.
Collectively, USI shot just over 38 percent (27-70) from the floor and nearly 38 percent (7-17) from beyond the arc. The Eagles went 21-31 for over 67 percent at the free-throw line. The Screaming Eagles outrebounded the Tigers 53-32, coming up just shy of a season high. 26 of USI's 53 boards came on the offensive glass, setting a new season-high mark. USI also notched 31 second-chance points and 26 points off turnovers.
Tennessee State, which had only two double-digit scorers on Thursday, shot 35 percent (19-54) overall and was held to seven percent (1-14) from three-point range. The Tigers were 16-20 for 80 percent at the foul line.
USI jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the blink of an eye on Thursday, forcing Tennessee State to take a quick timeout 1:15 into the contest. Loden scored five of USI's first seven points. Despite the Eagles' fast start, the Tigers battled back to take a one-point lead just past the four-minute mark. After Tennessee State led by five, 17-12, with just over a minute left in the opening quarter, back-to-back baskets by Chloe Gannon and Buchanan made it a one-point contest, 17-16, going to the second quarter.
The tight battle continued into the second period, with both teams matching at the free-throw line. USI led by four, 25-21, at the midway point of the second. Not long after, Chloe Gannon made it a six-point Screaming Eagles lead while hitting the 10-point mark in the first half. A great hustle play to keep a USI possession alive led to a wide-open bucket by Buchanan inside the final minute of the first half, giving the Screaming Eagles a 33-28 advantage heading into halftime.
During the first few minutes of the second half, the Tigers erased USI's five-point lead and grabbed a 37-35 lead to force USI into a timeout just over three minutes into the third quarter. Late in the quarter, USI seized momentum with a run that featured eight points by Loden and a three-point play from freshman forward Channah Gannon to catapult the Screaming Eagles ahead, 51-41. USI ended up leading by a dozen, 55-43, through 30 minutes of action.
The Screaming Eagles added on to their lead in the fourth, as a bucket by Saunders and a couple of baskets by Chloe Gannon pushed USI's lead to 14, 63-49, with under six minutes to play. Saunders earned a three-point play and then drained a three-pointer near the four-minute mark of the fourth period to essentially ice the game, as USI went up by 19 following a 13-0 run in the late minutes of the fourth quarter.