By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – After a tough loss on Thursday that came down to literally the final second, the Tennessee Tech women's basketball team will forget the past and forge onward toward the next opponent – Saturday's contest at SIUE.
Tipoff from First Community Arena is slated for 1 p.m. Saturday. Roger Ealey will have the call on 106.1 The Eagle, while the game will be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).
As Saturday's game opens, the Golden Eagles find themselves needing to make up some ground in the conference race. Southern Indiana continues its torrid pace at 8-0 and a two-game cushion over Morehead State, Eastern Illinois and Little Rock. Tech (8-10, 3-4 Ohio Valley Conference) stands in a three-way tie for sixth, but just two games back from the trio in second-place. With 11 games to play in the conference race, there's work to do, but tournament byes are certainly still within reach.
The Golden Eagles came within 30 seconds of knocking off one of those second-place teams on Thursday night, but Eastern Illinois scored the final five points of the contest with a deep 3-pointer and a buzzer-beating layup as time expired – and that's enough said on Thursday's heartbreaking 73-71 loss to the Panthers.
Tech will look to move on and build some momentum on Saturday at SIUE. The Cougars have had a tough time to open OVC play as they look for their first conference win of the season with a 3-17 overall record and 0-7 in the league.
SIUE have lost three of those conference contests by six points, then the other four by double-digits, ranging from a 13-point loss to Morehead State to a 23-point loss to Southern Indiana. The Cougars are averaging a 12.6 margin of defeat in league play.
It certainly isn't the offensive numbers – SIUE is averaging 71.3 points per game. The Cougars are second in the league in scoring offense and have more total points than any other team in the league.
However, they are also giving up the most points in the conference on the defensive side – an average of 79.1 per game.
The Cougars are also missing the presence of guard K.K. Rodriguez, who has not seen action since December 6. She was averaging 22.0 points a game before getting injured against SIU Carbondale. SIUE is 1-10 since then with the lone victory coming against non-D-I opponent Harris-Stowe.
In her place, Sofie Lowis is leading the way with an 11.4-point average, while Macy Silvey (9.7), Ava Stoller (9.4) and Molly Sheehan (9.0) closing in on the double-digit point mark. Stoller leads the team in rebounds with a 5.5-board average and leads the squad in assists with 67 total. The Cougars also have a pair of shot blockers as Halle Smith has 23 and Olivia Clayton 20.
As a team, SIUE is shooting .403 from the field, .362 from long-range and .763 from the charity stripe. The Cougars average 7.9 3-pointers and 15.0 free throws made per game.
Tech has had recent success against SIUE, posting a 12-8 mark all-time. The Golden Eagles have won seven straight and eight of the last nine. Tech is 5-4 at First Community Arena.
The Golden Eagles enter game 19 averaging 69.2 points and allowing 65.9, shooting .415 from the field, .342 from 3-point range and .750 at the line. Tech is hitting an average of 7.3 3-pointers and 13.7 free throws a game.
Maaliya Owens leads the team with a 15.6-point average, while Reghan Grimes is also above the double-digit plateau with a 10.7-point effort. Grimes also leads the team in rebounding, pulling down 5.5 rebounds a game. Owens and Peyton Carter pace the team in assists with 49 and 43 respectively, while Reagan Hurst and Yaubryon Chambers lead Tech in steals with 24 and 23 each. Anna Walker has blocked 23 shots with Chambers just behind at 17.
The Golden Eagles return home next week as they host OVC leader Southern Indiana on Thursday and Morehead State on Saturday.
Tickets for Tennessee Tech basketball are on sale now – call (931) 372-3940, visit the Hooper Eblen Center ticket office or order online at TTUsports.com.
