A strong second-half performance propelled Morehead State women’s basketball past OVC foe Murray State, 58-51, Saturday night at Murray State’s RSEC. The win was Eagle coach Mike Bradbury’s first victory in the RSEC. The Eagles improved to 6-3 overall and 2-0 in the Ohio Valley Conference.
"That was as good a defensive effort as we have had all year," said Bradbury. "Sometimes on the road you really have to grind out wins and they may not be pretty, but after a bad first half, we only turned the ball over six or seven times in the second half and that made a huge difference."
Morehead State established a comfortable margin early in the second half thanks to a pair of triples, one from senior Tiffany Hamilton and one by sophomore Courtney Lumpkin, followed by a short jumper by senior Deja Watson to turn a two-point halftime deficit into a 10-point lead. The lead was as high as 13 after Hamilton hit her third 3-pointer, but the Racers cut that lead to seven with under a minute remaining. The Eagles hit their free throws down the stretch to push the lead back to 10. A couple of late fouls by Morehead State allowed Murray to close to the final margin of seven.
Bozeman led the Eagles with 16 points, 11 of which came in the second half. Hamilton added 12 and Lumpkin had 10 points and six assists. Ashar Harris pulled down a team-high seven boards. Morehead State improved dramatically in ball control in the second half, surrendering just seven turnovers compared to 17 in the first half.
The teams combined for 32 turnovers in the first half and shot just 30 percent between them from the field. The Eagles had an early five-point lead following a 3-pointer by senior Tiffanie Stephens, but a 12-3 run by the Racers gave the home team a four-point advantage with 9:11 left in the half. Five points from Hamilton and a bucket by junior Chyna Bozeman gave the lead back to Morehead State. Murray countered with seven straight points, but the Eagles hit the last shot of the half for a two-point halftime margin.
Kayla Vance led all scorers with 19 pints for the Racers and Jessica Holder had seven rebounds. The Eagles held Murray to 29.7 percent shooting, including 19.2 percent from beyond the arc.
The Eagles host Detroit Mercy at Johnson Arena at 2 p.m. on Dec. 13. That game will be broadcast on Wazoo Sports Television.
Rowan County Sports
Stellar defensive effort leads Lady Eagles past Murray State, 58-51
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