Tuesday, Nov. 18
UALR Moves to 2-0 with Win over Missouri State
LITTLE ROCK – The UALR women’s basketball team built a large leads in the first and second halves against Missouri State, and the Trojans never trailed in a 61-48 victory over the Lady Bears at the Jack Stephens Center on Tuesday night.
UALR (2-0) went ahead by as many as 15 points in the first half before Missouri State (0-2) brought the game back within four at halftime. But in the second half, the Trojans again jumped out to a double-digit lead and this time wound up keeping it that way.
Junior Alexius Dawn led UALR with 16 points and had seven consecutive points for the team in a critical stretch in the second half. Missouri State had closed the gap to seven points with UALR leading 43-36 with 10:28 to go. But Dawn kicked into gear at that point, sandwiching two fast-break layups around a 3-pointer to put the team’s lead back at a comfortable 14.
The Lady Bears never got closer than 11 again after that. Dawn also added three assists and two steals in the game.
Besides Dawn’s big night, UALR got double-digit scoring from Taylor Gault (11), Keanna Keys (10) and Shanity James (10). Gault was all over the stat sheet, picking up five rebounds, three assists, three blocks and four steals as she caused havoc on the defensive end. Kaitlyn Pratt was the team’s leader with seven rebounds.
Reigning Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week Ka'Nesheia Cobbins scored four points while contributing four assists, and four rebounds. James had five rebounds, four assists and three steals to fill up the stat sheet as well.
Overall, the UALR defense was stifling all night. Missouri State committed 27 turnovers, one shy of the single-game high for a Trojan opponent all of last year. The Trojans produced 13 steals and five blocks as a team, and they were also great passing the ball with 17 total assists.
The game’s first four minutes were fairly even, with the teams knotted at 5-5 to that point. The Trojans took a small lead after that, going on a 6-0 run heading into the first media timeout thanks to two baskets from Clark and another from Pratt.
That 11-5 lead kept growing, as the team got fast-break baskets from Gault and Cobbins while continuing to force the Lady Bears into turnovers and bad shots. A layup from Cobbins with 8:36 left in the half put UALR ahead 23-11 and made Missouri State call a timeout.
The Trojans got their lead as large as 15 points with a 28-13, but that’s when Missouri State got back in the game. UALR went six minutes without scoring, and Missouri State went on an 11-0 run before a James layup with 20 second left in the half. The teams went into half with UALR ahead only by a 30-26 margin.
Keys led the Trojans with eight points at the break while Pratt had a team-high four rebounds. Missouri State turned the ball over 15 times in the first 20 minutes, and UALR had eight steals.
Once the second half began, UALR immediately extended its lead from four to 12 by beginning the period on an 8-0 run. Gault nailed a 3-pointer, Dawn hit two layups and Gault added a free throw to make it 38-26 in the half’s first four minutes.
The Trojan lead remained in double digits for most of the next six minutes until the Bears scored five straight points to make it 43-46. But that’s when Dawn’s seven-point stretch took place, and UALR had the win secured.
The victory was just UALR’s second ever against the Lady Bears all-time and the first since 2007. The Trojans are now 2-0 for the first time since 2008, and Tuesday was the team’s second consecutive win in a home opener.
After their one game at home, the Trojans head back on the road this weekend when they travel to Rice. Game time against the Owls is set for 2 p.m. on Saturday.
Georgia Southern Opens Home Slate with Win
STATESBORO, Ga. – Anna Claire Knight tallied 15 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, and Georgia Southern held Jacksonville to 34 percent shooting to open its home schedule with a 78-65 women's basketball victory over the Dolphins Tuesday night in Hanner Fieldhouse.
Knight was one of four Eagles in double figures as Georgia Southern had assists on 18 of its 26 field goals and shot 41 percent for the contest. Angel McGowan scored 17, and Briana Jones netted 15. Alexis Sams scored 12, and Jessica Marcus collected eight points and eight rebounds.
Sherranda Reddick tallied 24 points and four steals for Jacksonville (0-2), and Briona Brown collected 12 points and five rebounds. Brandi Ruie scored 10 points.
Reddick's two free throws tied the score 56-56 with 6:47 to play, but Marcus sparked an 8-0 Eagle run with a layup, while Sams and McGowan added triples.
Jacksonville worked the margin down to five points twice, but the Eagles answered each time. After Ruie put in a layup for the Dolphins, Sams hit Jones with a long pass for a layup to break Jacksonville's full-court pressure defense, and McGowan hit a layup to make the margin 70-61 with 1:54 remaining.
"I'm really proud of the grit our kids showed," said Georgia Southern coach Chris Vozab. "Jacksonville kept coming at us, making run after run, and there were instances where we lost our poise a little bit but we were able to regroup and stick to what we do."
Sams and Knight combined to go 8-for-8 from the free-throw line to seal the win. The Eagles went 19-for-22 from the charity stripe as a team.
Georgia Southern (1-1) held Jacksonville to 24-for-71 from the field in the contest and 2-for-14 from 3-point range. Meanwhile, the Eagles shot 44 percent in the first half to build a 36-29 cushion at the break.
"We made some big defensive stops, especially down the stretch," said Vozab. "Holding a team to 34 percent field goal percentage – that's just a tremendous defensive effort. Our veterans did a great job, and our young kids were tremendous, especially in the second half. It may not be things that show up on a stat sheet, but they were solid, took care of business and did a lot of the little things we talk about every day."
The Eagles are back in action at home Saturday when they play host to Kennesaw State at 4:30 p.m. It's a doubleheader with the Georgia Southern men's team, which will take on Johnson University.
Cajuns Run Past Xavier (LA), 69-53
LAFAYETTE, La. – An 11-2 run to begin the second half propelled the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball team to a 69-53 victory over Xavier (La.) in the Cajuns' home opener Tuesday night at the Cajundome.
Leading 29-23 at halftime, Keke Veal and Simone Fields combined for eight of the Cajuns' 11 points out of the break to give Louisiana (2-0) a 40-25 cushion with 16 minutes to play. The Gold Nuggets continued to fight as a layup by Trana Hopkins cut Xavier's deficit to 44-35 with 12:50 to play in the game.
However, a three-pointer by Cienna Rodriguez at the 10:18 mark extended the Cajuns' lead to 48-35. Xavier (2-4) was able to pull within 10 after a three-point play from Donyeah Mayfield with 7:36 remaining, but the Cajuns answered with a 10-0 run over the next three minutes to seal the 69-53 victory.
Veal led the Cajuns with 18 points and added eight boards. Fields finished with 13 points and nine rebounds, while Kia Wilridge totaled 12 points and four assists. Jaylyn Gordon came off the bench to finish with eight points and a career-high seven assists. Adrienne Prejean added seven points and tied Fields with a team-high nine boards, helping the Cajuns to a 45-32 advantage on the glass. Ireyon Keith and Whitney Gathright each totaled 10 points to lead the Gold Nuggets.
"They (Xavier) had been ranked in the top 20 in the NAIA. They pressure the ball and push the ball down the floor on the offensive side," said head coach Garry Brodhead. "It's like what we see in our conference. They shot the ball well too from the outside. It gave us an opportunity to work on some things and see where we're at."
In the first half, the Gold Nuggets grabbed a 5-4 lead four and a half minutes into the game before the Cajuns responded with a 7-0 run to go on top. Neither team was able to take control of the game in the first half as Louisiana shot 33 percent from the floor and Xavier was 31 percent in the first period.
Louisiana stretched its lead to double figures for the first time at the 3:50 mark in the first as a layup by Wilridge gave the Cajuns a 22-12 lead. A three-point play by Gathright capped off a 7-2 Xavier run late in the first period before a jumper by Rodriguez ended the spurt to help the Cajuns take a 29-23 lead at halftime.
Louisiana finished the night shooting 42 percent while holding Xavier to just 34 percent.
Louisiana continues its homestand Saturday at noon when the Cajuns host in-state foe Louisiana Tech at Earl K. Long Gym. Fans that show their ticket to the Cajuns football game for later that afternoon vs. Appalachian State will receive free admission. A food truck from Cajun Commander Café will give the first 50 fans a free bowl of jambalaya, and will also sell gumbo to fans in attendance.
Texas State Falls in Overtime to Texas Tech
LUBBOCK, Texas – The Texas State women's basketball team had five double-digit scorers including a career night by Meghan Braeuer, but ultimately fell in overtime to the Texas Tech Lady Raiders by a score of 81-77. Braeuer led the offensive efforts of the Bobcats with 24 points including 5-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc.
Texas State (1-1) started on the right foot against the Lady Raiders, forcing a stop in Texas Tech's (2-0) first possession of the contest. The Bobcats took the momentum of that stop by scoring the first basket of the game on the next possession, a three-pointer by Braeuer.
In the following moments, Texas State built up as much as six-point lead that was capped by a three-pointer by Ayriel Anderson. Tech then made a jumper in the paint to cut the lead to four with 13:13 left in the first half.
The Bobcats then rattled off a 7-0 run to take a 20-9 lead over the Lady Raiders. That lead, however, would be cut as time in the first half ran out. Texas Tech took its first lead of the contest with 5:27 left in the half after a three-pointer by Rayven Brooks.
Texas State did not let up as a three by Braeuer just a minute and a half later gave Texas State the lead once again. The Bobcats went into intermission with a 35-31 edge over Texas Tech.
The second half of action continued to be a hard fought battle between the teams. The Bobcats got the upper hand early in the half, scoring the first four points.
The Bobcat lead continued to swell anywhere from seven to 10 points through the first 10 minutes of action. It was with 9:50 remaining in regulation that Texas Tech hit a three-pointer by Minta Spears to cut the Bobcat lead to six. The Lady Raiders proceeded to score eight out of the next nine points to regain the lead with 7:13 on the clock.
Neither team in the final five minutes of regulation would take more than a three-point lead on the other. With five seconds on the clock, Texas Tech's Brooks made a free throw to tie the contest up at 66-all and force it into overtime.
The overtime period would prove to produce three more ties until Texas Tech ultimately took the final lead with 1:28 remaining.
Along with Braeuer, Erin Peoples, Jacqueline Jeffcoat, Ayriel Anderson and Kileah Mays all recorded double-digit points for Texas State. Peoples finished with 15, Anderson with 14, Jeffcoat with 11 and Mays with 10. Peoples and Jeffcoat each led the team with eight rebounds.
Texas State's offense was highlighted with a 58.8 percent showing from beyond the three-point line. The Bobcats finished the game 10-for-17 from beyond the arc.
Texas State will return to Strahan Coliseum for a pair of games, starting on Saturday afternoon against Southland Conference foe Houston Baptist. Tip-off against the Huskies is scheduled for 2 p.m.