By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Turnovers plagued the Tennessee Tech women all night long on Thursday, but the Golden Eagles just kept finding ways to endure and come back.
With 50 seconds remaining, Tech tied the game after coming back from a 10-point deficit not even five minutes earlier.
But with 22 seconds left, the turnover was costly. As LaTrese Saine stripped the ball away during a transition from Mackenzie Coleman to Jordan Brock, all Tech could do was foul and try to get the ball back.
Despite a tremendous effort, the Golden Eagles saw Southeast Missouri escape with a 59-55 victory Thursday night at the Show Me Center.
With the tough defeat, Tech fell to 9-6 on the season, 7-5 in league play, while Southeast Missouri leapfrogged the Golden Eagles, improving to 10-7 overall and 8-4 in OVC play.
Tech ended the contest with four players in double figures as Jada Guinn led the way with 15 points, while Coleman added 11. Anna Jones and Kesha Brady scored 10 points. Jones and Guinn also led the Golden Eagles with seven rebounds, while Guinn also had a game-best five steals.
Tesia Thompson was held to four points in the first half, but came away with 13 in the second half to pace the Redhawks with 17. She was 2-for-14 in the first half, but ended the night 6-for-19, going 4-for-5 in the second half and 5-for-7 from the free-throw line.
Roshala Scott and Sophie Bussard ended the game with 11 points each.
While turnovers were a factor as the Golden Eagles lost the ball 19 times, including seven in the first quarter and six in the final period, SEMO was only able to convert those takeaways into 16 points. Tech was a bit more efficient, turning 11 Redhawk turnovers into 22 points.
After scoring the first points of the contest, Southeast Missouri went on a tear, outscoring the Golden Eagles 15-4 to take a nine-point lead with 2:14 left in the first period. Tech responded, cutting the deficit back within two at 15-13 just before the quarter closed, then Jones tied the game at 15 at the 8:47 mark in the second.
SEMO then climbed back out to a seven-point lead – 26-19 – with 13 seconds left before the intermission. The Golden Eagles clawed back again and again as Guinn cut the deficit back within one at 4:37 in the third, but within minutes, SEMO had its advantage back to eight points.
By the 6:25 mark in the final period, the Redhawks' lead ballooned to double-digits at 10, the largest lead of the contest, at 51-41. Over nearly the next five minutes, Tech outscored SEMO 14-4 as Jones tied the game with 50 seconds remaining.
Scott gave SEMO the lead once more on the other end of the court with 38 seconds left. Following a timeout as Coleman was stonewalled in the paint, the resulting play was stripped by Saine, forcing the Golden Eagles to foul three times to try to get the ball back.
The last one put Thompson at the line where she knocked down both shots. The Golden Eagles tried to go on the offensive one last time but Guinn was stripped by Terri Smith, allowing SEMO to run out the clock.
Tech returns to action on Saturday as it travels to OVC leader UT Martin. Tipoff from the Elam Center is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Photo | Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
