COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee State kept pace with the
league-leaders, staying just two games out of first place, with a
67-57 Ohio Valley Conference victory at Tennessee Tech Thursday
night in the Eblen Center.
The Lady Tigers (15-11 overall) improved their conference log to
11-4 with the victory.
The Golden Eagles, still battling for a spot in the eight-team OVC
Tournament, fell to 7-20 overall and 5-11 within the OVC with two
league games remaining.
Jasmine Smith had a double-double by halftime, with 10 points and
11 rebounds in the first 20 minutes. She finished with 16 points
and 18 rebounds, and also had four assists, four steals and two
blocked shots.
Tiffany Jackson also had double figures by the break, with 10 in
the first half before finishing with 16 points and five rebounds.
Kendra Appling scored 10 in the second period to finish with
16.
The Golden Eagles were led in scoring by Blair
Bowens with 13, while Meagan
Lyons added 11. Vivian
Nwosu finished with nine points, five rebounds and three
blocked shots, and Allison
Price had eight points, six rebounds and five assists.
The Tigers had a 41-32 advantage in rebounds. TSU shot 45.6
percent, while Tech hit 38.6 percent from the field.
The Lady Tigers forced three quick ball-handling mistakes and took
advantage to run out to a 7-0 lead to open the game. Once Tech got
untracked, the Golden Eagles drew to within two, 7-5.
Up by four, 16-12, Tennessee State hammered together a 12-2 run to
build a 28-14 lead with 7:26 to go in the half. During the run,
five different players scored for TSU. The Lady Tigers kept a
double-digit advantage all the way until halftime, when Meagan
Lyons scored with five seconds left to make it an 11-point
game, 37-26.
Early in the second half, Tech trimmed the difference to four
points, opening play with a 9-2 run to make it 39-35. The margin
hovered between four and five, before TSU went on a 14-3 run,
building its lead to 16 points at 59-43 with 5:12 to play. Hicks
started the stretch with a layup, and Appling hit back-to-back
layups.
The Golden Eagles were able to get the margin into single digits
twice in the final two minutes, including an eight-point deficit
when Rachel Glidden hit a layup with 39 seconds remaining.
The Golden Eagles will recognize their four senior players and two
senior team managers Saturday before tipoff when they host Austin
Peay in a 7 p.m. contest. It’s Tech’s final home game
in Eblen Center.
Ticket are available at the Athletics Ticket Office in the Eben
Center lobby, or by calling (931) 372-3940. Tickets may also be
purchased online at TTUsports.com.