By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
MOREHEAD, Ky. – The winning streak continued on Thursday morning as the Tennessee Tech women got double-digit scoring performances from five players to top Morehead State 87-69.
The Golden Eagles (14-7, 9-2 Ohio Valley Conference) won their seventh straight game and 12th of their last 14.
Tech soared out early, shooting 75 percent from the floor in the first quarter, to take a commanding 28-13 lead through the first 10 minutes. While the host Eagles did make things a little interesting at times, MSU (1-20, 0-11 OVC) was unable to cut the deficit back under single digits, getting as close as 13 in the second half. Tech led by 24 with 2:43 remaining in the contest before the home Eagles made a small run to close out the contest.
Anna Jones, this week's OVC co-Player of the Week, led the Golden Eagles with 21 points. She was 6-for-9 from the field and 6-for-7 from the free-throw line. Jones also collected three rebounds and three steals in the contest.
Three Golden Eagles also chipped in with 12 points apiece. Megan Clark was 5-for-7 from the field with two 3-pointers, while also posting two rebounds, one assist and a steal. Maaliya Owens was 4-for-9 – all four hits from 3-point range – and had three boards. Kesha Brady was 2-for-4 from the floor and was 8-for-9 at the charity stripe. Brady also collected three rebounds and two assists. Mackenzie Coleman was 3-for-5 from the field for 10 points with two 3-pointers and 2-for-2 at the line, adding two rebounds, four assists and a block.
Jada Guinn, who ended the game with eight points, narrowly missed tying her career-high in assists with seven, while also leading the team in rebounds with nine.
The Tech women controlled two important areas in Thursday's contest – rebounds and free throws. The Golden Eagles finished the game 28-for-35 at the free-throw line, drawing 25 fouls with one disqualification and another in foul trouble. Tech was 6-for-8 in the first quarter, 4-for-6 in the second, 11-for-13 in the third and 7-for-8 in the fourth.
On the glass, the Golden Eagles outrebounded Morehead 38-23. Tech pulled down 12 offensive boards – converting those into 14 second-chance points.
While Tech had one more turnover than the home Eagles – 12-11 – the Golden Eagles were more efficient turning those takeaways into points, scoring 21 points off of turnovers to MSU's 10.
The game also gave head coach Kim Rosamond a chance to rest starters and get the bench some action as the reserves ended the game with 36 of the Golden Eagles' 87 points and earning valuable minutes.
Jada Claude led Morehead with 22 points as she was 7-for-14 from the field and 8-for-11 at the line. She also led the team with seven rebounds. Julian McDonald had 18 points and six boards, while Terri Smith had 13 points.
The Golden Eagles return to action on Saturday for a big showdown against Belmont in the Hooper Eblen Center. Tipoff is slated for 5:30 p.m.
Photo | Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
